As tour dates approached, choristers also found that they were being asked to rehearse five nights a week. To achieve his goal of a fully professional company that could attract opera lovers from around the world, Smith knew that the amateur chorus had to be dropped.

It was not an easy decision to take and it produced considerable resentment among those who felt the company had been taken out of the hands of people for whom it had been started. Nevertheless in 1968 a thirty-strong professional chorale was formed. Ten amateurs decided to throw in their day jobs and join; these included Gordon Whyte, a former steelworker in the bass section. He later recalled that the only difference after they turned professional was they no longer sang on the bus.