The Occam Singers trace their roots back to 1980, when an enthusiastic group of friends formed " a small ad hoc chamber group, to sing at weddings and charity events". From these modest beginnings, the choir's reputation spread, and now the Occam Singers regularly promote full-scale concerts of choral music with professional orchestras, as well as continuing to enjoy giving smaller-scale performances.The choir takes its name from the Surrey village of Ockham, where many of its earlier performances took place. Ockham is the birthplace of the renowned mediaeval philosopher, William of Occam, best remembered for Occam's Razor, the philosophical principle which may be paraphrased as "don't overcomplicate" - a tenet which the choir endorses.
From its inception, the choir has aimed to raise money for local and national charities, including The St John Ambulance, Guildford Breast Cancer Appeal, local hospices, The Rainbow Trust and many others. In 1990 its impressive London debut raised almost £7,000 for Medical Aid for Free Romania, and in recognition of the £15,000 raised at a concert in May 1997, the St Luke's Cancer Appeal placed a plaque outside one of its new examination rooms to record the contribution of The Occam Singers. Since 1996, a Christmas concert has raised money every year for the Mayor of Guildford's Distress Fund. Since 1982, the Occam Singers has contributed nearly £100,000 to local and national charities and fund raising continues to be an important part of our programme.
To mark the millennium, the choir commissioned In Tenebris II from Nicholas O'Neill, which had its premiere performance in Guildford and which can be heard on the choir's CD recording.
On the occasion of our 25th Anniversary in 2005 we were delighted to welcome Patricia Rozario who gave an inspirational performance of Tavener's Lament of the Mother of God.
Since 2005, The Occam Singers has gone from strength to strength, extending and varying the repertoire and continuing to push the standard of singing ever higher. Despite difficult economic times, audiences have been steadily increasing, which is testament to the choir and its Musical directors and their commitment to maintaining and developing the choral chamber music tradition for the enjoyment of future generations
