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For over seven decades, a powerful piece of British musical heritage has sat in the shadows. But this July, the all-female vocal ensemble Corra Sound is set to change that. In a landmark project, the choir will perform and produce the world-first professional recording of Ruth Gipps’ dramatic cantata, Goblin Market.

The concert will take place on Friday, 3rd July at Holy Trinity Church, Guildford. A pre-concert conversation with Gipps’s daughter-in-law Dr Victoria Rowe and prominent writer and critic Jessica Duchen, offering a rare glimpse into the life of a composer who was once a “formidable force” in a male-dominated industry. The musical programme will also feature settings of Christina Rossetti’s poetry by other notable 20th-century composers, celebrating a threefold celebration of female creativity.

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The landmark recording, partnering with the Great Little Orchestra and Convivium Records, will take place on Saturday 11th July with a release date scheduled for early 2027. Corra Sound has launched a crowdfunding campaign to support the production costs of the performance and recording, inviting the public to contribute to the project, helping to bring this important work to a global audience.

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This venture marks the historic and long-awaited world premiere recording of this powerful masterpiece, rich in themes of temptation, sisterhood, and female solidarity, and will be only the second UK performance of the work in 70 years. The project stands as a threefold celebration of female creativity bringing together the iconic poetry of Christina Rossetti, the masterful and long-overlooked choral writing of Ruth Gipps, and the voices of Corra Sound – an upper voice ensemble dedicated to bringing the works of female composers out of the shadows.

Ruth Gipps was a child prodigy and a prolific composer of five symphonies and numerous concertos, yet she faced significant institutional resistance throughout her career.

“Ruth Gipps was a formidable force – a composer, conductor, and advocate who carved out space for women in a profession that frequently excluded them,” says Dr Amy Bebbington, Corra Sound Founder and Director. “By performing and recording this work, we are highlighting a lineage of female creativity that has been side-lined for too long. Goblin Market is brimming with colour and emotional intensity and demands to be heard.”

“Corra Sound is an outstanding ensemble, brilliantly led,” says Neil Ferris, Director of the BBC Symphony Chorus. “This project forms an important part of their pioneering mission to uncover new repertoire and celebrate the works of often little-known female composers. The work they do is both ground-breaking and utterly essential to our choral music landscape.”

Dr Leah Broad, award-winning British musicologist says: “Gipps was prodigiously gifted and fearlessly determined and yet her impact on British music as both conductor and composer is still yet to be fully realised. This vital project by Corra Sound is a much-needed step towards redressing some of this historical imbalance, and bringing to light an important work in our musical heritage.”

Ruth Gipps’ Daughter-in-law, Dr Victoria Rowe, says “We are so grateful to Corra Sound for their vital role in preserving and championing Gipps’ musical legacy, bringing her work to a wider audience and ensuring that she finally gets the recognition she deserves.”

This ambitious undertaking is a grassroots effort to preserve a musical legacy. Corra Sound has launched a crowdfunding campaign to help cover the production costs of this historic recording.

About Goblin Market
Composed in 1953, Goblin Market is a cantata for two soprano soloists, three-part female chorus, and string orchestra. Based on Christina Rossetti’s 1862 sensuous poem, the work is noted for its lush, late-Romantic harmonies and dramatic storytelling. Despite its exceptional quality, following its premiere in the mid-20th century, Goblin Market fell into obscurity. This is the first time Goblin Market has been performed in the UK for 70 years.

About Ruth Gipps (1921–1999)
A child prodigy who performed at the Wigmore Hall at the age of eight, Ruth Gipps was one of the most prolific British composers of the 20th century. She composed five symphonies, numerous concertos, and choral works and even founded her own orchestra so that her works could be performed. Despite her brilliance, she faced significant gender discrimination throughout her career, particularly as a female conductor and composer in a male-dominated classical music world. While a recognized prodigy, her career was marked by missed opportunities, institutional resistance, and critical marginalization.

    Ruth Gipps composing at her Steinway piano
    Goblin Market score
    Ruth Gipps
    Corra Sound
    Amy Bebbington

    (source: press release)

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    SING HER TUNE 6-7pm, Sunday 18th May 2025, St Mary’s Church, Guildford GU1 3UA

    Corra Sound, conducted by Amy Bebbington

    Corra Sound, an all-female choir and dedicated advocate for upper voice music, announces its May concert, Sing Her Tune – a unique opportunity to experience a stunning medley of dynamic compositions from some of today’s most talented choral composers.

    Taking place on Sunday 18th May 2025 at St Mary’s Church, Guildford, this performance will proudly unveil the top three winning works from Corra Sound’s 2023 ‘Call for Scores’ competition. From a total of 90 submissions, these outstanding compositions were selected not only for their musical artistry but also for the powerful themes they portray. Composers were invited to write music based on themes of female power, strength, flowing energy, survival, and/or parental advocacy, and the winning pieces offer deeply creative responses to this remit.

    The concert will feature the premiere of A Mother’s Farewell by British composer and jazz pianist Kate Hill. With text by Scarlett Palys, this work reflects upon the enduring power and vulnerability of maternal love, exploring a mother’s final question about the sufficiency and recognition of her love. The piece showcases jazz-inspired voicings and an emotive, rich yet accessible sound-world, led by an elegiac soprano line.

    The audience will also hear The Land of no more Night, an evocative piece by Seattle-based composer and pianist Kari Kruver Medina. Setting text by Christina Rossetti, the work briefly opens with a ponderous tone filled with darkness and despair, before quickly shifting to joyous proclamations of creation singing its hymn anew with the promise of a new day.

    Completing the trio of winning compositions are two humorous musical settings by American composer and organist Erik Meyer: Unfortunate Coincidence and Social Note. These works bring the dark, sarcastic wit of Dorothy Parker to life, demonstrating her penchant for social protest against patriarchal convention through acerbic derision.

    In addition to these exciting premieres, the programme will include equally illuminating and uplifting repertoire by both new and established composers. Audiences can look forward to hearing Eriks Esenvalds’ beautifully evocative Only in Sleep, Elaine Hagenberg’s rousing Measure me sky! and magnificent Shadow River, Don MacDonald’s ethereal Moonset and optimistically powerful She is the river, and Alexandra Olsavsky’s What happens when a woman?.

    The concert will also feature two pieces that were winners in Corra Sound’s workshops last year: Hope is the thing by local composer Barbara Cobham, a heartfelt tribute to her niece who sadly passed away, and Air, Heart by Amanda Dean, scored for voices and boomwhackers, celebrating the tenacity and adventurous spirit of Amelia Earhart.

    Corra Sound invites you to join them for this dynamically diverse programme celebrating new and established composers, thought-provoking and remarkable repertoire, and challenging yet accessible music for upper voices.

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    Corra Sound is an outstanding ensemble, brilliantly led, and their programming is inspiring and imaginative. They sing with commitment and artistry, with clarity and colour, and are a joy to listen to.

    Neil Ferris (Director, BBC Symphony Chorus, Sonoro)

    Corra Sound is a remarkable group of singers with a love for performing, discovering new repertoire and celebrating the works of talented and often little known female composers.

    Comprising a blend of professionally trained and high level amateur voices, the members of Corra Sound each have their own story to tell, but share a passion for music written by and for women, exploring the reach and versatility of the female voice.

    Corra Sound has a unique identity which encompasses a broad range of vocal styles, bringing a deeply-rooted sense of heart, connectivity and passion to their performances. Corra’s mission is to bring works by (predominantly) female composers out of the shadows and into the spotlight, and the choir is gaining a reputation for high quality performance across a wide range of repertoire.

    It is incredibly refreshing to be part of a group where musical excellence and well-being are held in equally high regard. This is a group of women who bring everything to the table and Corra Sound’s resulting performances are imbued with life-affirming and infectious emotion, passion and joy.

    Katherine Bond-Smith (Corra Sound member)

    Corra Sound was founded and is directed by Dr. Amy Bebbington, a passionate advocate for choral singing and conductor training, known for championing marginalised musicians through choral programming, Discovery Days and mentoring, and sought after for her engaging teaching style and wealth of pedagogical experience.

    The choir is based in the south-east of England.