Farnham Youth Choir has hit another high note as they’ve followed up a major UK accolade by showcasing their royal talents to a national audience.

When town musical Ordinary People was performed at the Maltings early this summer, one of the songs asked ‘what’s the greatest thing to come out of Farnham?”

Well, we have a strong candidate, as the Farnham Youth Choir has been declared the UK’s best and also one of the top 100 in the in the world.

That’s the opinion of Interkultur, organiser of the World Choir Games and the group behind many international choir competitions and festivals.

Interkultur ranks choirs according to criteria used by the international music body Musica Mundi and updates the rankings several times a year.

“Achieving the highest UK ranking with Interkultur is a momentous milestone for Farnham Youth Choir,” said Patrick Barrett, the choir’s artistic director.

“It reflects the extraordinary talent and commitment of our singers and our team’s passion for excellence in choral music.”

Their placement on the www.interkultur.com list is a testament to the dedication, talent, and hard work of the singers which have won the choir medals at international competitions.

These include double gold at the European Choir Games in Gothenburg in 2019, two first prizes in the Sainsbury’s Youth Choir of the Year competition, and the small matter of two golds at the World Choir Games in New Zealand in 2024.

Choir members themselves were absolutely delighted by the news with 14-year-old Sakura Fukushima-Choularton being a vocal fan and member.

She said: “Being part of Farnham Youth Choir and achieving this ranking makes me so proud.

“It’s amazing to see our hard work pay off!”

Fellow singer Ruby Marshall said: “This achievement motivates me to keep improving and inspires me to pursue my passion for music even further.”

Another singer, 15-year-old Dandan, added: “I love singing with the choir, and it's fantastic to see us recognised on such a big stage. It’s a real team effort!”

The announcement was perfectly timed as it came ahead of Friday’s appearance with the National Youth Orchestra at the BBC Proms.

And boy, they were amazing, with viewers around the country singing the praises of FYC following their prime time appearance. They sang their hearts out in a rendition of Neptune from Holst’s The Planets Suite in a performance met with universal praise.

Thirty singers, aged from 13 to 21, took part in the concert at the Royal Albert Hall with conductor, Pembroke College director of music, and guest curator Anna Lapwood calling the FYC performance “fearless.”

Speaking to the BBC the following morning, euphoric FYC member Iris Ward called the experience “incredible”.

She said: “It was beyond anything we thought it would be because we had expectations through the week.

“But we got there and it just blew everything away,” she added with “fabulous, fantastic” and “dynamic” being among the other words used by fans to describe their Royal Albert Hall performance.

(Additional reporting by Stella Wiseman)