WADEBRIDGE MALE VOICE CHOIR

Wadebridge Male Voice Choir was formed in 1920 at the instigation of Mr Harry Woolcock and is one of the oldest in Cornwall.  It was originally directed by Dr. A. F. Wilson-Gunn and the accompanist was Mrs Elizabeth Fishwick.  Our musical director now is Ashley Barker and our accompanists are Graham Lee and Sheila Flower.

The town of Wadebridge was twinned with Langueux, Brittany, in 1989 and the choir travelled to France to perform with the Langueux choir as part of the celebrations.  In 1990 a return visit by the French choir was celebrated with a concert in Wadebridge.  In 1997 the choir was privileged to give a concert in Guildford Cathedral after having performed in Aldershot the previous evening.  The Guildford concert was such a success that the choir was invited back to the cathedral to give a concert for the British Heart Foundation in May 1999.  The choir has also given concerts in Winchester Cathedral and Romsey Abbey.

Each year the choir gives many concerts to help raise funds for charities, both local and national.  It has also taken part in Music Festivals where it has been very successful. Also, the choir has taken part in combined events such as the World Choir performances in Cardiff Arms Park (now known as the New Millennium Stadium) in 1992 and 1993, and the Festival of Cornish Choirs on each of the three occasions in the Royal Albert Hall.

In 1996 the choir was featured singing with Tintagel Orpheus Male Voice Choir in BBC TV's programme "Bookworm".  More recently, the Choir joined many others of the Cornish Federation of Male Voice Choirs in a concert at the Royal Albert Hall in October, 2000 and one of the highlights for us was singing an original Cornish piece written by one of our Choir members. 

In 2003 the Choir was invited to visit Toronto, Canada where together with our friends in St Columba Celtic Male Voice Choir who joined us for the tour we performed two concerts at the North America Cornish Cousins Biennial Gathering.  The Choirs received a tumultuous reception with standing ovations at their concerts.  Earlier in the year the Choir also paid a visit to Langueux, Brittany.

The members of WMVC come from a wide area of North Cornwall and the Wednesday evening rehearsals in the Wills Hall, Wadebridge, are filled with enthusiastic voices practicing hard. The repèrtoire of the choir is varied and includes many classical and popular pieces as well as spirituals and sacred items.