The Belfast Philharmonic Choir rehearses every Wednesday from September to May starting at 7.30pm and finishing at 9.45pm in St Bride's Hall, Derryvolgie Avenue just off the Malone Road in South Belfast.
Highlights of the 2024-2025 season count many events which have marked this massive milestone in our history: Carryduff, Budapest and Esztergom, Elijah, Messiah, Magic of Christmas, Come & Sing St Nicholas, Carmina Burana, and the three really excellent final performances in Belfast, Enniskillen and Limerick, the premiere of The Offing not to mention the wonderful Civic Reception and Dinner.
Open Rehearsals for the 2025-26 Season
This September, the Belfast Philharmonic Choir is opening its doors for two Open Rehearsals, giving you the opportunity to join us for an evening of music-making, meet our members, and experience the magic of singing together.
📅 Dates:
-
Wednesday 3 September – 7:30–9:45pm
-
Wednesday 10 September – 7:30–9:45pm
📍 Venue:
St Bride’s Hall, Belfast
💡 Thinking of joining?
If you enjoy the rehearsal and want to take the next step, we can arrange an audition for you afterwards.
📩 Reserve your place
Email manager@belfastphilharmonic.org.uk to let us know you’re coming — we’d love to see you there!
Auditions
We try to make the audition process as comfortable as possible for all singers* - we welcome members who sing regularly with church or work/organisation/college choirs, as well as strong singers who are confident learning new music and performing. Sight singing is helpful but not a requirement if you are willing to put in the time to learn the music outside rehearsals.
The audition will last approx. 15 minutes and will be with our Chorus Director James Grossmith and Accompanist Gail Evans. During the audition you will be asked to:
- sing one piece of your own choosing (accompanied, classical in style and about 3 minutes max - if you would like feedback on your chosen song please contact Clíona)
- sing an extract from the piece which will be covered in the open rehearsal
- complete a simple sight-reading test (assistance will be given to test aptitude)
- potentially undertake a range test to assess which section of the choir you would join
1. Full membership of the choir
2. Probationary period with another audition scheduled after 6 months or a year
3. Unable to offer membership and feedback given so that you can audition again
To audition for the choir in late August or early September 2025, email manager@belfastphilharmonic.org.uk or follow us on social media to hear about the open rehearsals when they are confirmed.
*If you require any adjustments to be made to enable you to audition, please confirm this in advance and we will do all that we can to make the process accessible.
Membership Fees 2024-25
If you are successful in your audition you will be invited to become a member of the Belfast Philharmonic Society - an annual membership fee of £225 applies with £110 for full-time students and 50% of this will be applicable to new members joining in 2025. However, we do not want anyone to be dissuaded from auditioning because of fees - if you are successful and have difficulty paying, please contact the manager confidentially by email (manager@belfastphilharmonic.org.uk).
Membership
Membership of the SymphonyChoir (and of the Belfast Philharmonic Society) is by audition with the Chorus Director. We aim to perform at a professional standard and all members are reauditioned every two-three years in order to make sure the whole choir is always at the performance level we need to sing at our concerts and alongside the Ulster Orchestra and other professional musicians and soloists.
Please click here for more information about joining the Phil Youth Choirs
