The choir was formed in 1968 performing both choral works and light opera accompanied by the Royal Artillery band and orchestra. Band master Raymond Pinkney conducted the choir during the 1980s and was instrumental in arranging BBC Songs of Praise to be recorded at Larkhill Garrison church with the choir.
On 4 December 2010 Larkhill Choral Society gave its first performance as a registered charity. Well established on Salisbury Plain, the society lists eminent local musicians Ben Lamb, Alan Harwood, Peter Ford, Lewis Gaston, and Sarit Aloni among its former conductors. LCS continued to flourish, forging a successful relationship with Royal Holloway, University of London in creating the Larkhill Sinfonia, an excellent student ensemble which benefited from the professional leadership of Salisbury violinist Marian Givens. Joint concerts with Andover Choral Society and Genesis Choral singing Elijah and The Pearl Fishers respectively were highlights in 2014 and 2105. The society has a long-standing commitment to showcasing young talent, and many wonderful young soloists have appeared alongside local professionals.
Today we are a friendly choir of approximately 30 members and our Music Director, Simon Irwin, joined us in January 2025.
Simon Irwin – Musical Director
Simon Irwin is a Hampshire born and bred singer, actor, writer and director. His first steps in the world of music came as a chorister, and later choral scholar, at Portsmouth Cathedral. He went on to train in London as an actor/musician at The Rose Bruford College, and also at Goldsmiths College. Alongside his acting work Simon began increasingly to perform with leading choirs including St Paul’s Cathedral Choir and the Richard Hickox Singers, and to develop and train as a solo singer. He now sings both freelance and, for over two decades, as a permanent Tenor Lay Clerk with Winchester Cathedral Choir, with which he has made numerous recordings, broadcasts and international tours.
As well as Larkhill Choral Society, Simon directs two other choirs in the south; The West End Singers and Solent Gay Men’s Chorus. Though music now takes up most of his time, Simon continues to pursue his interest in drama and frequently writes and directs performances in Winchester and the south of England. He has six times written and directed fringe shows at The Southern Cathedrals Festivals (2002 – 2024). Other career highlights include directing Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (2017), A Dickensian Christmas, a musical show he devised around the story of A Christmas Carol (2016-17), and appearing as King Herod in The Winchester Passion (2008), performed to large crowds on the streets of the city. As a Tenor soloist over the last few years he has performed The Light of Life (Elgar), Psalmus Hungaricus (Kodaly) and For St Cecilia (Finzi). In the last few years Simon has made something of a habit of tackling challenging works with small forces; as he has sung one-to-a-part performances of Messiah, The B Minor Mass (Bach) and most recently The Vespers (Monteverdi).