The Symphony Choir of Johannesburg has its roots in the original SABC Choir, founded in 1947 by Dr. Edgar Cree. It had been dormant for a number of years when, in 1980, the SABC asked Richard Cock to start it again and the choir thrived under his leadership and the SABC umbrella for years.

Later, when the SABC disbanded the National Symphony Orchestra and with it the SABC Choir, Richard Cock and the members of the choir decided to ‘go it alone’ – and the fact that the choir under the leadership of Richard Cock celebrates its 46th birthday this year, shows that the secession from the SABC, which at the time might have looked like the end, was in fact a glorious new beginning.

At the end of November 2024 Richard announced that he wanted to retire at the end of 2025 after 45 glorious years of building up the SCJ to the superb standard and reputation we now enjoy and concentrate on the many other facets of his fantastic music career. We thank Richard for 45 joyful years of wonderful music making. An advertisement for a new Music Director went out. There was no shortage of applicants and a very long and very thorough selection process began. In this, one applicant stood out as being “the whole package” – an accomplished and experienced musician, composer, arranger, conductor of choirs and orchestras, music teacher, and choir trainer – and now 18 months later – we are thrilled to welcome Susan Cock as the new Music Director of the SCJ.

Repertoire

Susan Cock has a wealth of new and interesting ideas. The focus will still be on choral performances, large scale classical works like the J S Bach passions, Handel’s Messiah, Requiems by Mozart, Verdi, Fauré, works by Rachmaninoff, Walton, Orff will not be forgotten, but the possibilities within the genre are very wide and exciting, there is a treasure trove of other works we can select from in order to enhance your and our own experience in the concert hall. Over the years the Choir has premiered many choral works in Johannesburg, and a must for many Jo’burgers are the family Christmas Concerts. The SCJ has sung with the Three Tenors, Luciano Pavarotti and Andrea Bocelli and has been conducted by a number of high-profile overseas conductors – Sir David Willcocks, Simon Preston and composer/conductor John Rutter to name but a few. Click here to view previous performances.

Membership

To join the SCJ singers have to pass an audition. The choir maintains a very high standard and is considered to be one of the best – if not the best – choir of its kind in the country. The choir members get no remuneration but pay a yearly membership fee, and what is very clear from experiencing the choir in concert – they’re there because they love singing and wish to bring their love of music to the audience.

The choir is always on the look-out for new blood (particularly tenors and basses) to keep its strength up to about 100 voices. The scope of the repertoire means that choir members should have a reasonable ability to read music in staff notation. Anyone interested in joining should contact the choir administrator, Debbie Kruger, at admin@symphonychoirofjohannesburg.co.za or on 0828539709 to arrange an audition.