Farnham & Bourne Choral Society will celebrate the start of its centenary season with its autumn centenary concert entitled A Choral Celebration.

Taking place in St Thomas-on-The Bourne Church on November 9 at 7.30pm, it will feature works by Handel, Parry, Rutter and Wells, and a new Te Deum written especially for the centenary by society president Graham Ross.

Graham is a local boy whose mother used to sing in the choir and who has established an exceptional reputation as a sought-after conductor and composer of a very broad range of repertoire.

He is co-founder and principal conductor of The Dmitri Ensemble and director of music and fellow of Clare College, Cambridge, with whom his performances around the world and his extensive discography have earned consistently high praise.

His composition commissions have had premieres by the BBC Concert Orchestra, the City of London Sinfonia, the National Youth Choir of Great Britain, the Covent Garden Chamber Orchestra, O Duo, the Park Lane Group and the Solstice Quartet.

The lovely church of St Thomas-on-The Bourne makes the perfect venue and is very much the choir’s home turf.

Graham Ross will also be guest conductor, accompanied by John Evanson on the newly-renovated church organ.

A bucket collection will take place at the end of the concert for the choir’s charity of the year, the Farnham Lions, towards their Project Wenceslas Appeal to help families in the Farnham and Haslemere areas who will find it hard to stay warm and cook hot food this winter.

For tickets, priced £16 in advance (£18 on the door) or £5 for under-16s (unreserved), visit www.ticketsource.co.uk/fb or see choir members. Call 01730 268920 for more details.