In 1941 Portsmouth, England was subjected to intense attack from
the air. Officers of the Portsmouth City Police, together with War Reserve and
Special Constabulary colleagues were called upon to add Civil Defence and Emergency
duties to their conventional Police ones. Many hours were spent on stand-by
between air-raid alerts, and to raise their spirits and pass the time, a choir
was formed. It gradually improved to such a standard that the Chief Constable
approved the formal establishment of the Portsmouth City
Police Choir. Its' first conductor was Special Sergeant (later Inspector)
James Cracknell.
Very soon the choir was in demand to raise
morale and for fund-raising activities in the battered city. Many
concerts were given with the Band of H.M. Royal Marines, then, as
now, based in the city.
Invitations also followed to broadcast on the
Home and Overseas programmes of B.B.C. Radio. This activity
continued after the war and included appearances in "Friday
Night is Music Night."
After the rationalisation of Police Forces in
1967, the choir became the Hampshire Police
Choir. Its' size has remained at about 60, with serving
and retired police officers, special constables, civillian staff
and others associated with the service.
In recent years the choir has sung with choirs
from Duisberg and Kiel, Germany - Oslo, Norway - Le Havre, France
- as well as the Rhos Cwmtawe Choir from South Wales and the St
Colomba Choir from Cornwall. The choir has exchanged visits with
most of them.
The choir sang in both the British Police Male
Voice Choir concerts in the Royal Albert Hall, London in 1987 and
1990, and with the massed bands of four regiments of the Brigade
of Guards, directed by Owain Arwell Hughes, at Cardiff Arms Park
in Wales, in 1992 for the concert of the World Choir.
The choir has a long history of community
involvement and has raised tens of thousands of pounds for
charitable purposes. This was marked in 1991 by a notable 50th
Anniversary Concert with the Band of H.M. Royal Marines before a
capacity audience of 2,000 in Portsmouth Guildhall.
The choir is non-competitive, but in 1993 it was
invited to sing in the 5th Malta International Choir Festival
with choirs from many European countries. In the male voice
section the choir was placed first and received the Gold Award,
bearing testimony to its quality.
The choir has also been priviledged to visit the
States of Jersey by special invitation, and to have shared
platforms with the Band of the Scots Guards, the Central Band of
the Russian Army (formerly the Red Army Band) and the Band of the
United States Air Forces in Europe and many local amateur bands
like the Solent Concert Band, who have won many prizes.
The sustained quality and reputation of the
choir was marked by an invitation to join the massed choir in the
National 50th Anniversary of VE-Day Celebrations in Hyde Park,
before members of the Royal Family, Heads of State and an
audience reported to be about 200,000!
In 1997 the choir made a week long tour of
Croatia at the invitation of the government. The choir sang in
Zagreb, Pula and Dubrovnik in support of childrens' charities
looking after the many orphaned children, following the dreadful
civil wars in the region. The choir was overwhelmed with the
generosity and friendliness of the Croatian people and hopes to
host a Police Cadet choir in the near future. Despite the war,
Croatia is certainly an exceptionally beautiful country with many
ancient monuments. An excellent place for a holiday!!
For 21 years the choir was conducted by Trevor Ibbotson, but
in 1997 the choir appointed its first female Musical Director, Mrs Terri Barnett,
LTCL LRAM ISM.
The Choir continues from strength to strength with about 40 choristers,
singing in a concert almost once a month.
I am Geoffrey
Culbertson, the present vice-chairman. I have sung with the Hampshire Police
Choir since 1978.
Music in all forms is a
great way to relax and forget the worries of the world. It
is even better if your audience enjoys it as much as you enjoy
performing it!
If
you would like to get in touch with the choir please contact me here
Here are some links
to other choirs and choral sites:-
