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Cliff van Tonder BCAa (born 28th March 1957) is the Founder, CEO and Musical Director of Surrey Community Music Society (known as Surrey Music), a community music society based in Cobham, Surrey, UK.

Early musical history

Born in Cape Town, South Africa, van Tonder spent 25 years directing and conducting congregational and regional choirs in Southern Africa. Despite a passion for music and his experience of leading choirs, van Tonder has no formal musical training.

In 1984 founded the first ever Choir Festival in Durban South Africa when over 40 church choirs comprising 1,983 choristers and three brass bands of over 50 musicians combined for a day of music festivities and a mass choir grand finale singing the Hallelujah Chorus in the Durban City Hall, Kwa Zulu Natal, South Africa.

In 2002 he founded the Sandton Choir which remains true to its original founding ethos and supports local charities.

van Tonder moved to Surrey, England in 2004 with his partner Brendon Perold.

Surrey Community Music Society

In 2005, a year after arriving in the UK, van Tonder formed Elmbridge Choir, a community mixed-voice choir based in Cobham, Surrey, England. van Tonder’s aim was to provide a way for people from all walks of life, regardless of their musical ability, to share their passion for singing whilst giving something back to their community by raising funds for charity through concerts and performances. By 2009 Elmbridge Choir reached a membership capacity of 130 with a long waiting list.

In 2009 van Tonder started a second choir, Elmbridge Ladies Choir. He also launched Elmbridge Big Band, a community band of local amateur musicians playing traditional jazz and swing. Both sections were formed with the same principles and ethos of Elmbridge Choir, to provide a musical opportunity for anyone with an interest in singing or playing an instrument.

With the two choirs and big band, together with Elmbridge Young Musicians, a local group of young instrumentalists aged 8 - 14, van Tonder founded Elmbridge Community Music Society, an amateur music society totalling around 300 volunteer members.

Elmbridge Community Music Society was renamed Surrey Community Music Society in 2012.

Brooklands Radio

van Tonder presented a weekly local radio show on Brooklands Radio devoted to choral and big band music where he used the opportunity to promote other local choirs and musical organisations, inviting guests in to the studio to talk about their work.

Charity Work

van Tonder’s musical leadership and society management is delivered on an entirely voluntary basis, which he manages alongside his current career as Global Head of Partnerships at Finastra

Concerts performed by Surrey Music choirs have raised in excess of £200,000 for many diverse local and national charities, and the society’s music grants scheme Get Music Going! funded local music-related projects totalling £14,000

In 2012 van Tonder managed a project to record and promote a charity single celebrating the 2012 Paralympic Games, raising funds for two charities, Get Kids Going!, which encourages and enables disabled young people to participate in sport, and Get Music Going!, the society’s own music grants scheme. ‘Light the Flame’ was written by author Judith Kelly and arranged by van Tonder. Featuring X-Factor runner-up Andy Abraham, the single was recorded at Sky Studios by Elmbridge Choir and achieved UK and worldwide sales from the I-Tunes and Amazon download chart.

Awards and nominations

For his community and charity work van Tonder was nominated in 2011, 2016 and 2017 for the BBC Surrey ‘Community Hero of the Year’ Award and was shortlisted in 2011. He was also shortlisted to carry an Olympic Torch in London 2012 Olympic Games.

In January 2019 van Tonder was honoured with a British Citizen Award for services to the Arts at a ceremony at the Palace of Westminster.

Personal

In 2011 van Tonder moved to Peacehaven, East Sussex, with his partner Brendon Perold.

After same-sex marriage was legalised in the UK in 2014, van Tonder and Perold were married in 2015 in a combined celebration incorporating the wedding and the 10th Anniversary of Surrey Music.

As a result of his support of the LGBTQ+ community, in December 2018 van Tonder accepted an invitation to become a Patron of Pride in Surrey.

Career

See my CV enclosed, perhaps mention the highlights?

References

External links

Surrey Music website

Get Music Going website

You Tube videos