The Farrant Singers is the longest-established chamber choir in Salisbury, with close links to the medieval city, the surrounding Wiltshire villages and the Cathedral, where the choir often sings the services in place of the Cathedral Choir.  The group was founded in 1958 by the composer Richard Lloyd, and conductors since then have included Mark Deller, Richard Shephard, David Halls and Colin Howard. Daniel Cook took up the baton as the current conductor in January 2009.

The Farrants established its own Youth Orchestra in 1998 with Lottery funding, which enables our singers to work regularly with talented young players from the city’s schools and from the Royal College, Academy, Guildhall, Trinity and Royal Northern College of Music.  Works performed with the Orchestra include JS Bach - Magnificat and St John Passion, Brahms – Requiem, Honegger – King David (with Simon Russell Beale as narrator), Monteverdi – Vespers and Vaughan Williams - Flos Campi and An Oxford Elegy.

The choir recently celebrated its fiftieth anniversary with the commissioning of The Farrant Singers Collection, seven pieces by composers associated with the choir: Barry Ferguson, David Halls, Sam Hanson, Philip Lawson, Richard Lloyd, Howard Moody and Richard Shephard.  The Collection has now been recorded, and is available on CD along with other favourites from the choir's repertoire. Three tracks were broadcast on Classic FM in September 2009, as part of a programme showcasing recordings by members of the Making Music organisation.