Boys’ Choir

Portsmouth Cathedral Choir is made up of 24 boy choristers, and 12 Lay Clerks and  Choral Scholars who contribute to the pattern of daily cathedral worship.

The choristers rehearse on weekday mornings before a normal school day in preparation for the week’s music. In any normal week, the Cathedral’s Choirs sing for at least 6 services.

The choir also sings at various special services and events both locally across the diocese and internationally, and has toured Holland, France, Estonia, Sweden and more recently Denmark and Belgium. At home in the UK, they have also sung at St Paul’s Cathedral and at Westminster Abbey.

Our links with the Royal Navy and Seafaring Community

The Cathedral Choir maintains strong links with the Royal Navy and takes part in a number of services for them. Highlights include the annual Royal Marines Band Service and the Second Sea Lord’s carol service on HMS Victory and we were particularly delighted to board HMS Queen Elizabeth for her commissioning in the presence of the late Queen.

Choir Recordings

The Choir has also made a number of recordings, including a reconstruction of music from Admiral Lord Nelson’s Funeral and ‘I look from afar’ – a recording of Advent and Christmas carols- all of these are available through the HeraldAV label.

More recently, we released ‘Sing Nowell’ on the Signum label; a selection of Advent and Christmas carols from our choirs. And in 2025 we released ‘A Year in Portsmouth’ on the Regent Records label. A sequence of music through the liturgical year with special emphasis on our place in Portsmouth’s history and traditions.
 

Reviews of choir albums

‘This disc captures the experience of sitting in Portsmouth Cathedral: the choir’s intimacy, the space for the music to breathe, and a vibrancy that carries through from the first track to the last. A fitting tribute to David Price’s thirty years’ work and a thoroughly recommendable addition to the Regent catalogue.’

‘Carries the listener in 18 tracks of spiritual authenticity, with lovely tone from both boy and girl trebles and tenderly shaped interpretations’

…’affectionate interpretations, immediacy and above all, engagingly youthful sound.’
Gramophone

Choir Tours

Our choir has traveled around Europe and other places further afield, performing at many prominent churches and Cathedrals. These trips wouldn’t be possible without the help of the PCCA and your donations.