St Helen with its excellent acoustics for music and voice hosts a Summer season of concerts and recitals. The church has an excellent organ built by JW Walker & Sons Ltd in 1959. It is used in our worship and for recitals.
We welcome visiting choirs and ensembles from the UK and abroad to perform during the summer season. Unless specified to the contrary the events are run on a "drop in" basis and are FREE to the public (but with a request for a donation on departure). In truth this is a fund raising opportunity for us as well as sharing the excellent space that is our church. St Helen is in the heart of the city and close to the Minster and all the other visitor attractions. Recently we have been pleased to host choirs from Australia, Scandinavia and the United States, for example.
2026 CONCERT PROGRAMME AT ST HELEN
Our summer season embraces the Festival of Ideas in early June
and continues through into early August
Tuesday 2 June: An afternoon concert at 2.30pm given by the 25 strong Elder High School Glee club. On tour in the UK from Cincinnati, Ohio USA this all male choir has a wide range repertoire of music, including American Folk and Pop, Broadway, Traditional Men's TTBB 4-part harmony and sacred music for Mass.
Thursday 4 June: The “Capriccio Five”, a York-based vocal ensemble, met while studying solo voice and ensemble singing at the University of York. United by a shared passion for high-level consort singing and a commitment to music-making, the five singers place great value on connection with audiences. Join them at 12.30pm for their programme “Masters of the Renaissance” to experience beloved early music pieces shared with openness and enthusiasm.
Friday 5 June: A lunchtime concert at 12.30pm given by "Sax Forte". This saxophone quartet has given rousing and very popular concerts at St Helen in recent years and we are delighted that they have agreed to return again.
Saturday 6 June: Youthful exuberance and considerable talent from the Kings Ely School Jazz band. A first appearance by this generation but we know they will be just as good as their predecessors a few years ago. Their foot-tapping session starts at 2.30pm.
Tuesday 9 June: Discover the organ as an instrument of place - shaped by architecture, ritual and memory. James Short presents a programme at 12.30pm ranging from Praetorius and Bach to works by Judith Bingham and Rachel Laurin. James is an organist, conductor and teacher based in Dublin. He serves as Assistant Director of Music at Christ Church Cathedral, where he is principal accompanist to the Cathedral and Girls’ Choirs and directs the cathedral’s organ outreach programme. James is a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists.
Friday 12 June: Galina Vale, the “Diva de la Guitarra” returns to give another spectacular performance in costume embracing her amazing repertoire of classical, modern and Flamenco pieces. A firm favourite, this will be her seventh appearance at St Helen. The concert starts at 12.30pm but come early – previous appearances have produced a full house!
Tuesday 7 July: Organ recital at 12.30pm Details tbc
Tuesday 4 August: Organ recital at 12.30pm Details tbc
Unless specified the events are FREE but we ask for a donation
when you leave.