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The Carice Singers, praised by The Times for its “poised professionalism and beautiful sound” (2024), is one of the most distinctive vocal ensembles in the UK, defined by its engaging approach to choral sound and trailblazing concert programmes.
Established by George Parris in 2011 and naming itself after Elgar’s only child, the group curates projects involving British music (including Elgar and his contemporaries), European and especially Nordic-Baltic repertoire, alongside works by today’s composers including Arvo Pärt, Kaija Saariaho, Matthew Whittall and Soosan Lolavar.
The choir is active in training the next generation of British choral composers at the Cheltenham Music Festival’s Composer Academy, the Three Choirs Festival’s New
Voices Academy and Spitalfields Music. Recent commissions have included Weaving Stars by the Scottish composer Electra Perivolaris and HumanNature, a new work by the Estonian composer Evelin Seppar.
FOUNDER&CONDUCTOR
As a young enthusiast of Elgar's music, George Parris (b. 1993), was awarded the Elgar Society's Certificate of Merit in 2011 for his commitment to the research and performance of Elgar works. He then studied for a BA in Music at the University of Cambridge, followed by an MSt in Musicology at the University of Oxford.
He founded The Carice Singers in 2011, and conducted the ensemble's first concert only a few days after his eighteenth birthday. Since then he has been the choir's Conductor and Artistic Director, making his first recording with them for the Naxos label aged 20.
His recent studies at the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki, have seen him assist his main teacher, Nils Schweckendiek, in a project with the Croatian Radio and TV Choir, work under such visiting conductors as Sir Roger Norrington, Justin Doyle, and Paul Hillier, and observe professional choirs in Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Latvia, and Estonia.
Meet the Singers
Click on a familiar face to find out more!
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WORLD PREMIERES
The Carice Singers are proud to have given the following world premieres:
2021
Lillie Harris - The dusk of thee
Matthew Whittall - Songs of Travel
Aileen Sweeney - Canntaireachd
Electra Perivolaris - If this island... (original version)
Will Harmer - Loneliness
Claire Victoria Roberts - Interlude 3
James Batty - Waneth the watch, the weaker ones dwell
Michele Deiana - A new center
2022
Derek Smith - Requiem
Ina Boyle - Caedmon's Hymn
Bo Holten - The Delian Madrigal
Thomas Hyde - From Silence (40-part work)
2023
Mary Offer - One heart, beating whole
Alexander Papp - Let there be peace
Alice Beckwith - Three Songs
Robert Crehan - THINGS AS...
Effy Efthymiou - The Crazed Moon
Anibal Vidal - Just A Déjà Vu Cariño
2024
Electra Perivolaris - Weaving Stars
Claire Cope - In its Light
Max Gibson - ...cold, clear, and blue...
Daniel Soley - With Wonders to Hear
Elif Karlidag - Sïnglïyï ïr
CARICE ELGAR BLAKE
An unsung hero of British music, Carice Elgar Blake (1890-1970) was responsible for founding the Elgar Birthplace Museum in Lower Broadheath, near Worcester. She curated the first exhibitions of her father's life and music, and made essential documents available to his early biographers.
These may sound like customary actions for the daughter of a world-famous composer, however Carice is striking in her quiet sense of duty and unpretentious facilitating of her father’s legacy, especially as Elgar’s music began to be overlooked in the years following the Second World War.
From a young age, Carice's hard-lined mother instilled on her the importance of not disturbing her father, albeit with Victorian motherly affection. Correspondence between Carice and her father show endless puns, cartoons and references to wildlife. Elgar even dedicated the part-song Owls: An Epitaph to Carice's pet rabbit, Peter.
Click here to visit the Elgar's Birthplace museum website >>
