Essendon Choral Society

09/06/2026

🎶🎶A fun and challenging sing tonight - lots of sight-reading🎶🎶

25/05/2026

At our "Concert to Celebrate our Volunteers" on Sunday we were given an envelope. Inside the envelope was a newspaper clipping from 1979 calling for a meeting to form what became Essendon Choral Society.
--
City of Essendon
Public Meeting for Formation of Choral Society
All interested in the formation of an Essendon Choral Society are invited to a meeting to be held in the Civic Centre, cnr Kellaway Avenue and Pascoe Vale Road, Moonee Ponds, on Tuesday, 13 March, 1979 at 8pm.
Business will include discussion of aims of Essendon Choral Society, election of office-bearers and time and place for rehearsals.
--
The first Secretary was John (Jack) Grant and his son, Bruce, was the bearer of this precious envelope! Thank you for looking after our history, Bruce!

Also at our concert was Pat Baudinette, one of those foundation members, along with her husband, Neil, who instigated the original meeting!

23/05/2026

Hoping you can join us tomorrow. We're so excited about this concert, both the chance to share this fabulous music with you, as well as an opportunity to celebrate our awesome volunteers!
Tickets in the link below

Join Essendon Choral Society during National Volunteers Week as we present an afternoon of our favourite choral music in celebration of our volunteers - the choristers who put their hand up to join a committee, or help to organise a fundraiser, or write a Grant proposal - the family members who do front-of-house for a concert. Without them we wouldn't have a choir.

Featuring works from Mozart, Handel, Vivaldi, Faure and Mendelssohn, including some sing-along items

Conductors:
Ellery Durrant - Musical Director
Nicholas Cowall - Interim Conductor

Soloists:
Catherine Koerner
Dannielle O'Keefe
Bruce Raggatt

Organist:
Christopher Cook

The concert will be followed by an afternoon tea supplied by CWA Essendon.

At St Thomas' Anglican Church Moonee Ponds.

🔗 Tickets: www.trybooking.com/DJXNU or at the door
Adults $40, Concession $30, Child 10 and under free.
Group discounts available (contact us for details).

This concert is proudly supported by Moonee Valley City Council.

20/05/2026

Introducing our Interim Conductor ...

🎶 Nicholas Cowall 🎶

Nick Cowall is the Head of Choral Music at Xavier College, overseeing seven ensembles and a lively massed singing program. He’s known for his expertise in Russian choral music and has conducted opera and choral groups both in Australia and abroad. With experience in Catholic and Independent schools in Melbourne, he studied at prestigious institutions including the Victorian College of the Arts and the Moscow Conservatoire. Nick regularly works with many of Melbourne's choirs including the Melbourne Symphony Chorus and has performed with Opera Australia, Victorian Opera and the Rolling Stones. He’s also involved as a lecturer, adjudicator,  workshop presenter and loves gardening and cricket.

We are immensely grateful to Nicholas for stepping in and conducting us while we were seeking a new Musical Director.

Come and see this talented conductor in action ...
Concert Celebrating our Volunteers
2:30pm Sunday 24 May
St Thomas' Anglican Church Moonee Ponds.

Tickets: www.trybooking.com/DJXNU or at the door [link in bio]

This concert is proudly supported by Moonee Valley City Council.

20/05/2026

It's National Volunteer Week - so there are programmes to fold and staple for our fabulous concert this Sunday!!
Come along and get your very own copy!!
2.30pm 24 May 2026
Tickets: www.trybooking.com/DJXNU [link in bio]

18/05/2026

Come to our Concert... includes a CWA Essendon afternoon tea!

17/05/2026

Introducing our Soprano Soloist...

🎶 Catherine Koerner 🎶

Catherine Koerner is a Castlemaine based soprano.
Catherine holds a Bachelor of Music and has performed as a recitalist, in concerts with friends and performed with choirs. She also embraces a wide repertoire, and her passions lie across a broad spectrum of genres from baroque to rock from Bach to Bush (Kate not George). Catherine has created and produced her own shows culminating in a life-long dream with the sell-out success of the recent series of shows Babooshka – The Best of Kate Bush with The KB Band for the Castlemaine State Festival in March 2026.

Come and hear Catherine's beautiful voice...
Concert Celebrating our Volunteers
2:30pm Sunday 24 May
St Thomas' Anglican Church Moonee Ponds.

Tickets: www.trybooking.com/DJXNU or at the door [link in bio]

This concert is proudly supported by Moonee Valley City Council.

13/05/2026

We are thrilled that Ellery Durrant will be conducting us for his first concert as our Musical Director...

Ellery Durrant
Ellery Durrant joins us in April 2026 as Musical Director. He is a singer, conductor, and pedagogue. He holds a Bachelor of Music (Distinction) from the University of Newcastle. Further training includes masterclasses in consort singing with The Song Company and conducting with The Australian Voices.

Ellery’s Choral experience is extensive, encompassing numerous international tours and eisteddfods with the award-winning Newcastle Chamber Choir. As Musical Director of The SeaSide Singers, he co-created their three-week tour of Japan in 2018, and was a grant recipient of the Australia-Japan foundation in that year.

An advocate of community music making, he currently leads the Laverton Community Choir, the Mosaic Community Choir, and now the Essendon Choral Society.

Ellery has extensive experience as a private music tutor. He specialises in working with changing voices, fostering confidence in his students. He has significant experience teaching neurodivergent students, tailoring lessons to support student-led objectives.

Beyond music, Ellery is an avid snowboarder and an aficionado of strategy games.

Join us in celebrating Ellery's inaugural ECS Concert...
Concert Celebrating our Volunteers
2:30pm Sunday 24 May
St Thomas' Anglican Church Moonee Ponds.

Tickets: www.trybooking.com/DJXNU or at the door

This concert is proudly supported by Moonee Valley City Council

[Photo: Tony Gravina, 2026]