Guild of Church Musicians

Last updated

The Guild of Church Musicians is a charity to help encourage high standards in church music. [1] [2] It offers members examinations, courses, and awards. The guild is a fellowship of those who sincerely desire to offer the best in music to the service of the church: amateur and professional musicians unified in a common ideal. [3]

Contents

The guild was founded in 1888 as the Church Choir Guild. It was incorporated in 1905 to become known as the Incorporated Guild of Church Musicians. The founding patrons were Archbishop Frederick Temple and Sir George Elvey, organist of St George's Chapel, Windsor.

Although the organization was mainly Anglican since its founding, in 1988 in the centenary year of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Catholic Archbishop of Westminster was invited to become a joint patron, and the guild's openness to all branches of the Christian Church was affirmed.

Examinations

Since 1961, the guild has been charged with the responsibility of administering and examining for the Archbishop of Canterbury's Certificate in Church Music. After 1988, the Certificate was renamed The Archbishops' Certificate in Church Music, incorporating the Archbishop of Westminster's patronage. The guild now offers five levels of professional awards plus a preliminary award for young people new to church music.

Leadership

Patrons

President

Vice Presidents

The guild leadership also includes:

The guild church is St Michael, Cornhill, in London.

Publications

The Guild of Church Musicians have published two member study guides, which help the members pass the examination:

  1. Landmarks in Christian Worship and Christian Music
  2. Correspondence Course, to prepare for examinations

See also

Related Research Articles

Anglican church music

Anglican church music is music that is written for Christian worship in Anglican religious services, forming part of the liturgy. It mostly consists of pieces written to be sung by a church choir, which may sing a cappella or accompanied by an organ.

Royal School of Church Music Christian music education organisation

The Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) is a Christian music education organisation dedicated to the promotion of music in Christian worship, in particular the repertoire and traditions of Anglican church music, largely through publications, training courses and an award scheme. The organisation was founded in England in 1927 by Sir Sydney Nicholson and today it operates internationally, with 8,500 members in over 40 countries worldwide, and is the largest church music organisation in Britain.

T. Tertius Noble British organiast and composer (1867-1953)

Thomas Tertius Noble was an English-born organist and composer, who lived in the United States for the latter part of his career.

Royal College of Organists United Kingdom non-profit, founded 1864

The Royal College of Organists (RCO) is a charity and membership organisation based in the United Kingdom, with members worldwide. Its role is to promote and advance organ playing and choral music, and it offers music education, training and development, and professional support for organists and choral directors.

Philip Duffy British composer and conductor

Philip Edmund Duffy KSG, GRSM, ARMCM, PGCE, Hon FGCM, FHEA, FRSCM was the Master of the Music at the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral from 1966 to 1996, and lectured at Liverpool Hope University from 2000 to 2013. He is the founder and director of the Liverpool Bach Collective.

Francis Jackson (composer) British organist and composer (1917-2022)

Francis Alan Jackson was a British organist and composer who served as Director of Music at York Minster for 36 years, from 1946 to 1982.

Gerre Edward Hancock was an American organist, improviser, and composer. Hancock was Professor of Organ and Sacred Music at the University of Texas at Austin. He died of cardiac arrest in Austin, Texas, on Saturday, January 21, 2012.

Grayston (Bill) Ives is a British composer, singer and choral director.

Royal Canadian College of Organists

The Royal Canadian College of Organists (RCCO), founded in 1909, is a national association of organists and church musicians in Canada, with 28 centres from Victoria, British Columbia to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. The National Office is in Toronto.

Philip John Moore is an English composer and organist.

John Derek Sanders OBE, FRCO was an English organist, conductor, choir trainer and composer. He was organist of Gloucester Cathedral from 1967 to 1994, and director of the Three Choirs Festival from 1968 to 1994.

Alan John Thurlow is an English organist. He is best known as having been Organist and Master of the Choristers of Chichester Cathedral between 1980 and 2008.

John Walker (organist)

John C. Walker, more familiarly known as John Walker, is an American concert organist, choirmaster, and CD recording artist. He is also a former president of the American Guild of Organists, elected in May 2014 to a two-year term of the 16,000-member organization. Walker has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Asia, and Europe. He is "widely recognized for his flawless technique and execution as well as his controlled and passionate playing," said Duke University in announcing a John Walker recital at Duke Chapel. Since 2006 he has served on the faculty of the Peabody Institute and George Mason University.

Andrew Emerson Unsworth is an American organist who has served an organist for the Salt Lake Tabernacle since 2007, which includes being an organist for the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, which is the principal resident musical organization there.

James Bennett Lancelot was master of the Choristers, and cathedral organist at Durham Cathedral from 1985. He retired in 2017 and was appointed canon organist emeritus by the bishop of Durham.

Paul Hale is an English organist and Organist Emeritus of Southwell Minster, Nottinghamshire.

Organist Musician who plays any type of organ

An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational hymn-singing and play liturgical music.

Anthony John Cooke British organist and composer (1931–2012)

Anthony John Cooke FRCO was a British organist and composer.

John Ewington was a British insurance underwriter who was the general secretary of the Guild of Church Musicians for 35 years from 1978 to 2014, and is widely credited with saving this 19th-century body from extinction.

The Lambeth Awards are awarded by the Archbishop of Canterbury. In addition to the Lambeth degrees, there are a number of non-academic awards. Before 2016, these awards consisted of the Lambeth Cross, the Canterbury Cross, and the Cross of St Augustine. In 2016, these awards were expanded with six new awards named after previous Archbishops of Canterbury.

References

[4] [5]

  1. "Church Musicians". 2012.
  2. "Christian Today". November 12, 2007.
  3. "Church Musicians Examinations". 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-03-24. Retrieved 2012-03-31.
  4. https://gcm.org.uk/
  5. https://gcm.org.uk/examinations/ Guild of Church Musicians Examinations