Marianne Sumner takes a behind the scenes look at the work of Bradford Cathedral Choir

Choirmaster and organist Alan Horsey is tired. He is red-eyed and weary.

But he cannot hide the infectious enthusiasm which has made his singers the success story they are.

His choir, with about 40 children and 20 adult members, is in the middle of its busiest time of year.

"We have 15 engagements in 14 days and two of those dates are when the choir splits to appear in two places at once," he tells me.

Planning for Christmas starts well in advance, working out the music and booking concerts and appearances around regular services the city has come to rely on.

"The cathedral starts preparing for Christmas in the beginning of November and, as we begin singing the Christmas music, it is like meeting old friends that you don't see very often but you know very well."

Among the favourite dates in the diary is the lunch hour carol recital at 1pm on Christmas Eve.

"That one has been established for over 30 years. For many people in Bradford it's part of their traditional Christmas. It originated for people who worked in the city and finished at around midday so they could come to the cathedral and hear the choir."

The collection is given to charity. Last year it raised £1,060 for the Millennium Scanner Appeal. This year it is going to the Mayor's appeal for the district hospitals' Special Care Baby Units.

The choir is also much in demand outside the cathedral.

"We sang at City Hall twice last week, we sang at a dinner and we sang outside at Grassington's Dickensian Christmas Celebrations as we do every year," said Alan, choirmaster and organist since May 1986.

"I never cease to be amazed by how hard our choir are prepared to work over the Christmas period. Their commitment to each other and to the ministry and the outreach of the cathedral is inspiring.

"It keeps me going and the importance of what they do - singing the Gospel at this time where there is an increasing secular pressure - cannot be overstated. We don't sing Jingle Bells and White Christmas. What we are doing is singing the Gospel."

High on the agenda are visits to the BRI and Yorkshire Clinic.

"We have sung round the hospitals for decades," said Alan. "Nobody enjoys being in hospital, particularly at Christmas, so we go up to spread some goodwill and cheer."

The choir splits up and sings around the wards. Alan even takes a small group into the intensive care unit to sing for people who are fighting for life.

"We usually sing O Little Town of Bethlehem and always do Away in a Manger. Whenever we have gone in there, there have been people around the bedsides of the patients and our singing is as much for them as the patients themselves. It's also appreciated that people who are away from us because of illness can still hear, even if they can't respond."

And the choir's voices seem to have universal appeal.

"It's really appreciated by people of other faiths or no particular faith. We don't just sing for Christians, we are singing for everybody. We find it means something to people from all backgrounds.

"It's the looks on their faces when they realise the group has come from the cathedral simply to sing for them. It's a personal way of saying 'There are people who care about you, even if we don't know you'."

Inspired by the Queen's visit during last year's city centenary celebrations, they have released their first recording in nine years. The CD, Make A Joyful Noise, features music for all the year round and is available from the cathedral priced £10.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.