In 18th-century England, Derby was no more than a reasonably-prosperous market town with a few pioneer industries established. The new idea of public concerts was first recorded on 3 September 1788 with a programme consisting mainly of music by
Handel. It seems probable that the choir formed for this event remained in existence until the next known public concert held on 5 September 1793. But by the 1860s, the face of Derby was changing rapidly with the
Midland Railway and other industries bringing prosperity to the town. In 1866, the New Market Hall – as a new artistic venture – was completed and officially opened on Tuesday 29 May 1866. The official ceremony took place in the morning and was followed by a performance of Handel's
Messiah. The orchestra consisted of players from
Nottingham, Birmingham,
Leicester and
Burton, as well as from Derby and district; the choir too was drawn from far afield but a local group also took part. At the performance, the combined strength of the choir and orchestra was 500. The local singers were "fired by their success" (according to page 4 of), and suggested the founding of a regular choral society. A meeting was held, at the invitation of the then Mayor, on 22 June 1866. This preliminary meeting decided to start the Derby Choral Union. A second meeting was called a week later, "for the purpose of receiving the names and entrance fees of any Vocalists who may wish to enrol themselves as Members of the [Derby Choral] Union". The first rehearsal of the new society was held on 21 September 1866, with an arrangement to hold weekly practices in the Old Assembly Rooms, Full Street. By this time the society had about 120 members. The
Derby Mercury, dated 26 September 1866, recorded that: "We trust that the gentlemen of the Town will come forward liberally with subscriptions in aid of the society’s funds; for, although the Choral Union is to a certain extent self-supporting, it must be borne in mind that unless a goodly number of honorary members are enrolled the committee will not be justified in incurring the heavy expenses inevitable on a Grand Oratorio performance." On 1 February 1867, the choir gave an "open rehearsal" of Handel's oratorio
Judas Maccabaeus at the Corn Exchange. A second "open rehearsal", this time of
Haydn's
Creation, was given on 3 May 1867 to round off the first season's activities. In the interim, the choir had recruited many more members and the orchestra included, in addition to local players, "several members of Mr.
Charles Halle's celebrated band". A total of 230 singers and players took part. The
Derby Mercury of 8 May 1867 recorded this as an "unqualified triumph". After remarking that Derby could no longer be called an "unmusical town", it goes on: "not only was the largest hall in the town (the Corn Exchange) crowded to excess but we are informed that scores were turned away from the doors for whom the managers were unable to find room." Within a few years some of the novelty of the Choral Union had worn off. Less than capacity audiences were reported and the reviews in the press became more critical: a good sign that for the first time musical standards were being used to judge performances. == The 20th century ==