James Davey - Musical Director and Conductor

James Davey is one of this country’s most distinguished and respected young choral conductors, in demand throughout the UK as a conductor, choir trainer and education practitioner.

Since graduating from the Birmingham Conservatoire, James has studied conducting under many eminent choral figures; attending the Voices International Conducting Symposium, taking the Association of British Choral Directors Conducting Course and the MA Choral Education Course at Roehampton University. During his career James has worked at St Paul’s Cathedral School as Music Assistant, and also at the BBC as chief choral advisor for the sheet music archives. He has since held posts working for the BBC in the BBC Singers Education Department, as well as conducting and preparing choirs for broadcasts on TV and Radio.

James is conductor of Chantage (BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year), of the Guardian’s Angels (the choir of the Guardian newspaper) based at the new Kings Place concert venue, and of the Aylesbury Festival Choir. He has also been invited to conduct performances for the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain, The Royal College of Music Junior Department, Junior Trinity College of Music, The Conservatoire in Blackheath, the Canford Summer School of Music and Cranleigh Choral Week.

Piers Maxim - President

Piers was appointed as our first professional Musical Director and Conductor in 1995 – a post he held for 6 years. He subsequently became our President. During his busy international career he has worked regularly in the opera houses and theatres of Europe, including Staatsoper Berlin, La Monnaie Brussels, Le Theatre des Champs Elysees Paris, and the Netherlands Nationale Reisopera, with whom he conducted Orfeo et Euridice (Gluck), and performances of operas including Cosi fan Tutte (Mozart).

As conductor of several choirs and choruses in England, Piers has conducted most of the choral and choral-symphonic repertoire. Piers made his USA debut conducting Die Zauberflute at the Brooklyn Academy of Arts, New York in April 2007. This same production then toured to Cape Town and Johannesburg in September 2007, where he received glowing critiques. He was Chorusmaster at La Monnaie Opera House in Brussels for 5 years and now combines work as a freelance conductor and singer with composing, returning from time to time to lead workshops with the choir. To find out more about Piers, visit his website – www.piersmaxim.com

David Aylett – Founder

David, an architect by profession, founded the choir in 1958 as an informal group giving concerts of carols and Christmas music. This soon grew into a permanent choir originally named the December Festival Choir which he conducted for 27 years. He then sang in the tenor section until 2009 and continued to organise and conduct our carol concerts for many years.

He was Music Adviser to Aylesbury Vale District Council and organised and conducted a regular series of Music for Everyone concerts, combining choral and orchestral works. In 1975 he organised and conducted a performance of Handel’s Messiah to mark the opening of Aylesbury Civic Centre. In 2004 in recognition of his services to amateur music for over 50 years, Making Music gave him the national Lady Hilary Groves Award.

David composes choral and orchestral music and in November 2008 the Aylesbury Festival choir premiered With Voice Divine, a work for choir, soloists and orchestra which David composed to celebrate our 50th anniversary season. You can hear an extract on this web site.

Thelma King - Accompanist

Thelma has accompanied Aylesbury Festival Choir for the last five years.

She was born in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire and became the official accompanist for Leamington Male Voice Choir and Warwick and Kenilworth Choral Society while still at school. She studied at the Royal Academy of Music and moved to Buckinghamshire where she taught for twenty years in Chesham. Thelma is now a full-time accompanist living in Aylesbury.

Since coming to the county Thelma has played for Princes Risborough Music Society, Marlow Choral Society, Chesham Musical Theatre Company, Halton Singers, Oxford Welsh Male Voice Choir, Wycombe Orpheus Male Voice Choir and many festivals and master classes.