For decades, two legendary groups have set the gold standard for British vocal music. Now, the London A Cappella Festival presents an unprecedented opportunity to experience The King’s Singers and The Swingles in concert together over two evenings of collaborative music-making.

The Swingles and The King’s Singers Vol. 2: Evolution
The Swingles and The King’s Singers celebrate their musical legacies – the unmistakable group sounds that have each endured through more than five decades of creative change – and look ahead to the next chapter.

Each concert will be different and will celebrate the rich diversity of each group’s repertoire and their distinctive sounds. Experience the rare chance to hear both ensembles embracing each other’s musical styles, combining to express their shared belief in the power of singing – to foster harmony, bind communities and inspire change.

You might also like The Swingles and The King’s Singers Vol. 1: Finding Harmony on Friday 24 January at 7.30pm in Hall One.

The story of The Swingles spans almost six decades of creative change and renewal, from their 1963 debut to their status as one of today’s foremost contemporary vocal ensembles. Ranging from iconic Bach pieces to powerful original songs and audacious live-looping experiments, the five-time Grammy-winners’ repertoire also includes beloved pop and jazz arrangements, and haunting folk tunes from their international travels. Binding these strands together is the spirit of innovation and playfulness that has been in the group’s DNA from the beginning, and the signature Swingle sound – warm yet crystalline, effortlessly agile – that underpins everything they do.

The King’s Singers were founded on 1 May 1968 by six choral scholars who had recently graduated from King’s College Cambridge. What really distinguished the group in its early years was its musical diversity. The King’s Singers were a weekly fixture on prime-time television, celebrating popular music never usually touched by choral ensembles, and their unique British charm, combined with their precise musical craft, captured audiences’ hearts the world over. The world may have changed a lot since the original King’s Singers came together, but today’s group is still charged by the same lifeblood – one that wants to radiate the joy singing brings every day, and that wants to give life to audiences with their virtuosity and vision for an exciting musical future.