History
In 1952, the Adelaide University Union Choir was formed by John Winstanley to perform at official University functions. His departure to Sydney meant that the choir lapsed. Fortunately, conductor Lewis Dawe resurrected the choir to form the Adelaide University Choral Society (AUCS) in 1960. Lewis Dawe also founded the Adelaide Harmony Choir at about the same time, and conducted the Adelaide Harmony Choir for almost twenty years. His stewardship as conductor of AUCS was not nearly as long, and following his resignation from AUCS after just two years, Ralph Middenway took over as the musical director. He conducted AUCS in the middle and late 1960s. Ralph Middenway often composed and arranged works for AUCS to perform, and the highlight of this was the commission by an Australian Intervarsity Choral Festival to perform one of his works.
Since that time the choir has developed a reputation as one of Adelaide’s most able and enthusiastic large choral groups. Over the last 45 years, Adelaide’s art critics have commended the Society’s performances. Elizabeth Silsbury has written about AUCS: “they were at least valiant and at best heroic”. Describing another performance, Rodney Smith wrote “there was real electricity in this performance from start to finish”. In 2002, Steven Whittington wrote about the Handel Joshua concert: “the chorus was superb”.
AUCS is a proud and active member of the Australian Intervarsity Choral Societies’ Association (AICSA), the Australian National Choral Association (ANCA) and the Adelaide University Clubs’ Association. AUCS was also one of the founding members of AICSA and played an integral part in its formation in 1974.
AUCS has performed under conductors Hilary Weiland, Graham Abbott, Carl Crossin, Peter Leech, Russell Larkin and Timothy Sexton. However since 1997 AUCS has been musically directed and often also conducted by Peter Kelsall. The acclaimed Adelaide organist is the longest serving musical director in the Society’s history, and has been awarded Life Membership for his extensive service to AUCS.
Recent years
Over the years, AUCS has been involved in many performances, including Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols, Verdi’s Requiem, William Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast, Handel’s Acis and Galatea, the Australian premiere of David Fanshawe’s African Sanctus, and even a performance of the rock musical Jabberwocky. Additionally, in 1995 AUCS was a part of the massed choir performance of Berlioz’s Requiem, and in 1996 AUCS participated in a Hymnfest at St Peter’s Cathedral.
In 1998 as part of the Elder Conservatorium Centenary concert series, AUCS performed Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky, and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Elder Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra. Then, in 1999 AUCS enjoyed collaborating with Connaître Miller, then the lecturer in Jazz Voice at the University of Adelaide, and Ian Boath to create the concert ‘Funky Tunes’. The choir’s main concert for 1999 was the successful performance of Haydn’s Nelson Mass and Handel’s Zadok the Priest, which was performed with the Adelaide Youth Orchestra and conducted by Peter Kelsall.
The highlight of 2000 was AUCS’ 40th Anniversary Concert, performed to a full audience at St Peter’s Cathedral. AUCS lifted the roof with the sounds of Mozart’s Requiem, and Bach’s cantata Christ lag in Todesbanden. This was a near re-enactment of AUCS’ 30th Anniversary celebrations ten years earlier, where AUCS performed Mozart’s Requiem in St Peter’s Cathedral again with a commissioned orchestra, affectionately referred to as an AUKestra. Later in 2000, AUCS tackled a challenging, and more modern program featuring Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms and Copland’s In the Beginning. AUCS began 2001 with a performance of Renaissance music, celebrating the works of Allegri, Palestrina, Tallis, Anerio and Victoria. Later in the year, the choir performed Mozart’s ‘Great’ Mass in C Minor in the beautiful Cathedral of St Francis Xavier.
In 2002, AUCS began with a first in the Society’s history, an appearance in the Adelaide Fringe Festival under conductor and past AUCS member, Christie Anderson. The choir performed a diverse and modern programme to appreciative, capacity audiences over three nights. This concert series was followed by a performance of Rutter’s Gloria and other works with a brass ensemble led by trumpeter Geoff Bradley. Later in 2002 AUCS combined with the Adelaide Philharmonia Chorus to perform Handel’s oratorio Joshua with the Adelaide Art Orchestra in the majestic Norwood Concert Hall under the baton of Graham Abbott. This historical combination of two of Adelaide’s premier choirs, performing a work that had only been performed a handful of times before in Australia, attracted a full house and much critical acclaim. AUCS completed the year with a Christmas concert at Pilgrim Uniting Church with conductor and organist Peter Kelsall and the Mount Torrens Handbell Ringers.
In mid 2003 AUCS was jointly contracted with the Adelaide Philharmonia Chorus by the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra to make up the chorus for their Ultimate Symphonic Spectacular. At this concert, works including O Fortuna from Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana and a choral arrangement of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture were performed to a crowd of thousands at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre. Earlier that year AUCS performed Haydn’s Mass in Time of War and Bach’s cantata Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott with a spectacularly talented orchestra, led by Carolyn Lam and accompanied by Graham Abbott on the organ. AUCS also staged an a capella concert of classical and twentieth century sacred music, including a work commissioned by AUCS: The Ninth Hour, by Adelaide composer Bruce Stewart. This work was commissioned with the assistance of the South Australian Youth Arts Board and has since been performed many times around the country, to critical acclaim.
In 2004, AUCS performed the Rutter and Howells Requiem masses in Christ Church, North Adelaide under the direction of Peter Kelsall, with renowned Adelaide performers, soprano Emma Horwood and organist Anthony Hunt. The final concert for 2004 was a novel performance of choral arrangements of 1970s rock music by Pink Floyd, Queen and Andrew Lloyd Webber, together with local rock band Perestroika at the South Australian German Club. One of the works performed, Time After Time, was arranged by our very own musical director, Peter Kelsall.
The first concert of 2005 was staged in the superb acoustics of St Patrick’s Catholic Church on Grote Street, where AUCS sung Victoria’s Requiem and a series of other renaissance works by Victoria, Handl and Gesualdo. In October, AUCS sang the Duruflé Requiem, accompanied by celebrated English church organist Thomas Trotter.
The first concert of 2006 was a performance of Haydn's Nelson Mass and Mozart's Litaniae Lauretanae, held in Sir Francis Xavier Cathedral. Raymond Chapman Smith described the concert as having,“just the right blend of enthusiasm and discipline … one of the finest amateur choral performances I have heard for years” (The Advertiser, 21st June 2006). 2006 also saw AUCS Lite concerts in the grand reading room of the Barr Smith Library and at Seven Hill Winery (pictured).
In 2007, AUCS performed a short concert, "Introducing AUCS", at St. Johns Church on Halifax St on March 31. This included some of AUCS' favourite repertoire and pub songs. The second concert, held on June 23rd in St. Pauls Cathedral and entitled "I Was Glad," featured twentieth century English sacred music from Parry, Elgar, Stanford, Vaughan Williams and Howells, with internationally renowned organist Simon Preston. On 15 October, AUCS returned to the German Club for a pop concert of music that inspired choir members (and their parents) - favourite songs by Toto, The Beatles, The Who, Carole Bayer Sager and others. AUCS performed alongside local 4 piece rock band Footwork to an appreciative audience of 130. To finish the year, AUCS held a Christmas concert, on December 12 in Pilgrim Church, with traditional congregational carols and less well known works from Tavener, Howells, Gabrieli and Mathias, among others.
In 2008, AUCS performed a concert of masses and lamentations at Christ Church, North Adelaide, and a concert of madrigals and spirituals in August at Pilgrim church.
If you would like to know more about the history of AUCS, please contact our archivist at archivist [at] aucs [dot] org [dot] au. Alternatively, if you would like to make a contribution to the archives (especially any recordings of AUCS from before 1997), then the archivist would be very keen to hear from you!
