History of the Adelaide Male Voice Choir
The Adelaide Male Voice Choir was founded in 1884 after several letters had been written to the papers deploring the fact that the only male choir music performed in Adelaide at that time was sung in the German language. A meeting of interested men was held at premises in Rundle Street, near where the Regent Arcade now stands, and it was decided to form a male voice choir to be known as the Adelaide English Glee Society. The first conductor was Mr H Evans, a master at Prince Alfred College.
After some months of rehearsal, the first concert took place in the Norwood Town Hall on 24 March 1885, in aid of the Library for the Norwood Young Men’s Club. The concert was under the patronage of the Premier, the Hon T Playford, and the Choir sang Excelsior by W H Birch, and Serenade by J Hatton, with words by Henry Longfellow. In February 1886 members travelled by bullock dray to the Coromandel Valley Institute to present a concert, and in September of the same year they sang at the Noarlunga District Hall.
By 1889 the Choir had changed its name to the Adelaide Glee Club and Mr A Walmsley took over as conductor, a post he held for the next 22 years. The Choir sang at increasing numbers of venues, including trips to Hills towns and outlying suburbs such as Salisbury. The Adelaide Town Hall, the Victoria Hall and the Exhibition Hall were popular venues for the choir’s major concerts, several of which were benefit concerts, raising funds to assist promising young performers in the community to go overseas for further study.
During the Depression years in the early 1930s, it became evident to the choir that some of the members were going through particularly hard times. A decision was made to waive the membership fee for anyone who had lost his job or whose business was struggling. Such members were also entitled to free tram tickets, paid for by the Club, to enable them to attend rehearsals and performances. What comes strongly through all the choir documentation over the years is the spirit of friendship and supportive fellowship among the members. Tougher economic times in the 1930s meant that audiences were harder to find, so in 1933 the choir turned to broadcasting for the ABC on station 5CL, preparing and presenting 5 direct-to-air broadcasts in that year, each member in full concert dress in the studio. After the Second World War the choir resumed its extensive program of performances in the community and began to include at least one concert in a country area each year
In the 1950s Mr R Mellish was the conductor of the choir, which presented about 8 concerts per year and supported a range of charities in metropolitan Adelaide and in country towns, as well as participating in community events, for example the Royal Music Festival and River Pageant in Elder Park in 1958, when the choir sang from a barge moored in the river.
During the second half of the twentieth century there was a rapid rise in the availability of commercial entertainments and a related decline in the popularity of choir performances in the community. Several choirs folded, due to declining membership numbers and difficulty in attracting audiences. By the time Bill Shaw was invited by the Adelaide Glee Club in late 1984 to become the conductor of the choir, it was struggling to keep going, with a membership of around 16 active singers.
Mr William (Bill) Shaw took up the position of Music Director and conductor in 1985 when he set to work on several fronts to expand the Choir’s repertoire and performance opportunities. In 1986 the Choir changed its name to the Adelaide Male Voice Choir, since the term “Glee” was no longer well understood.
One of the popular measures which Bill developed was to present themed concerts : for example, songs from operettas and musicals; sacred music; jazz-era melodies; sea-shanties; highlights of opera (which later included an annual sold-out opera dinner event); songs of love and travel; Gilbert and Sullivan songs, and many others. Accomplished guest vocalists and instrumentalists contributed to the quality of the programs, which were soon attracting large and enthusiastic audiences. The morale of the singers rose accordingly, membership numbers increased, and the reputation of the choir rose in the community. Ten years later, the membership had doubled, and the choir had a full house at its 110th anniversary concert at the Adelaide Town Hall, in the presence of the choir’s Patron Her Excellency, The Honourable Dame Roma Mitchell AC DBE Governor of South Australia.
Bill recognized the importance of strengthening the choir’s place in the Adelaide community, so that it would become known and respected for its role in supporting significant commemorative occasions. For example, he consolidated the choir’s role in leading the singing at the Anzac Day service at the Cross of Sacrifice, arranged for the choir to participate for several years in the program of lunch-time concerts in the foyer of the Royal Adelaide Hospital, and liaised with the Mary Potter Foundation for the choir to participate in the Loving Tree Christmas Carols evening. The future of choral music in Australia was at the front of Bill’s mind, and one of the ways that he saw for promoting continuing interest was through a mentorship program for aspiring young conductors. He instituted a scheme whereby a selected young musician could gain practical experience in choral conducting and repertoire by joining the choir for a few years as a chorister and assistant conductor. The program started in 2004, and by the end of 2023 there had been six such “apprentices”, who all continued in music-related fields.
In the Australia Day Honours list in 2011, Bill was awarded an OAM (Order of Australia Medal) for his services to music in the community, especially through the Adelaide Male Voice Choir. On 31 January 2024, Bill retired from his position as conductor and director of music of the Adelaide Male Voice Choir, after completing 39 years in that role. He was the choir’s eighteenth conductor since its establishment in 1884, and the longest serving. During his time as conductor, Bill was fortunate to have the support of three talented accompanists: Clem Gracie, Margaret Lambert and Edward Kriek.
Read about "William Shaw OAM: Service to the Community through Music" ( download as a PDF).
Jonathan Leske took on the role of Music Director from 2024 following Bill's retirement, and Edward Kriek continues in the role of accompanist.
The Choir has long maintained a tradition of supporting charities in the local community and further afield. In the early years the Choir raised money for groups such as the widows and orphans from the Broken Hill mine disaster (1895), the St John Ambulance Association, the Fire Brigade and the Red Cross. Later charities included the Minda Homes, the Lord Mayor’s “Food for Britain” Appeal, the YMCA, the Tubercular Soldiers’ Aid Society, and the Royal Institute for the Blind. The proceeds of the Choir’s 125th Anniversary Celebration Concert in 2009 were donated to The Freemasons Foundation Centre for Men’s Health, which is an innovative partnership between The University of Adelaide and the Freemasons Foundation, promoting life-changing research into ways of improving men’s health. The performance year has often included several concerts which were fund-raisers for charitable causes or institutions, for example, the Anti-Cancer Foundation, the Lions Child and Youth Health Project, the Parkinson’s Syndrome Society of SA, the Prostate Cancer Association, the Women’s and Children’s Hospital Foundation. Commitments such as these, plus other regular concerts at retirement villages and for church groups were an important bonding influence for the choir.
The Choir has maintained a fine tradition of fellowship and good singing throughout its history and its members have always sought to provide musical delight to its audiences. A love of music is the strong bond between them, and they unite with great enthusiasm in living up to the Choir's motto: "Celebrating Choral Excellence". The annual schedule has been augmented every year by special events such as tours to SA country areas (eg Meningie, Penola, Naracoorte); interstate trips (eg Melbourne, Brisbane, Orange); hosting visiting choirs (eg the Harvard Glee Club, the Buderim Male Choir); concerts for the National Trust in the State Dining Room at Ayers House; lunch-time concerts at the Flinders Street Baptist Church; evening concerts for the Adelaide Music Club; the national Australian Choralfest in Adelaide in 2004; singing at the launch of the Freemasons Foundation Centre for Men’s Health; filming a concert of Christmas carols for TV Channel 44; performing concerts at the Adelaide Fringe; presenting sea-shanty concerts at the SA Maritime Museum for the annual SA History Festival; and many more such events.
During its long history, the choir has been privileged to have as its Patrons some of the most distinguished members of the Adelaide community. These have included Governors of South Australia, Chief Justices of South Australia, Lord Mayors of Adelaide, Premiers of South Australia and a Minister of the South Australian Government. In 2022 the new Governor of South Australia, Her Excellency The Honourable Frances Adamson AC, arranged to share her patronage duties with her husband Mr Rod Bunten, and the choir was pleased to welcome Mr Bunten as its Patron. He quickly developed a rapport with the choir, and in May 2023 he sang in the bass section of the choir at its concert Sailors, Settlers and their Songs at the SA Maritime Museum for the SA History Festival. The choir has also been fortunate in having prominent members of the South Australian community as its Vice Patrons. The current Vice Patrons are media personality Peter Goers OAM and concert pianist and retired music teacher Jeffrey Kong./span>
In 2024 the choir celebrates its 140th anniversary secure in the knowledge that it has weathered many storms in the course of its existence, including two World Wars, the Depression, and the Covid pandemic, and that it continues to provide joyful music experiences for the community.
This page contains an abridged version of a more detailed history written by Bill Shaw, entitled "History of the Adelaide Male Voice Choir to 2024 " ( download as a PDF).
