It is notable for being the oldest amateur choral society in Britain (and possibly in the world) with an unbroken record of performance.

[2] Late in 1817, at a dinner party Priestley discussed the possibility of a permanent choir rather than the gatherings of singers that had presented concerts in the district for many years previously.

In the twentieth century the choir was able to keep going through the two world wars, and exploited the technology of radio, TV, and the gramophone and its descendants, to reach new audiences.

[citation needed] The Choir made headlines[5][6] when it presented, for the first time in modern history, a fascinating orchestration of Handel's oratorio Judas Maccabaeus.

[9] The final concert of the season was a reprise of the first of the first: on 9 February 1818, in the Halifax Court House, this was Haydn's The Creation.