Philip W J Stopford (born 1977) is an English organist and composer best known for his choral works. [1]
Philip W J Stopford (born 1977) is an English organist and composer best known for his choral works. [1]
Stopford began his musical career as a chorister at Westminster Abbey from 1986 to 1990, during which time he also took up the piano, organ and violin. He was awarded a music scholarship to Bedford School, [2] which he attended from 1990 to 1995. [3]
Later he studied for a Bachelor of Arts in music at the University of Oxford, where from 1996 to 1999 he also served as organ scholar at Keble College. [1] [4]
From 1995 to 1996 Stopford was organ scholar at Truro Cathedral, where he worked under Andrew Nethsingha and published his first choral works. After university he was organ scholar at Canterbury Cathedral from 1999 to 2000 before becoming Assistant Organist at Chester Cathedral.
In 2003 he moved to Northern Ireland, where he served as Director of Music at St Anne's Cathedral in Belfast until the post was closed in 2010.
For the next few years Stopford pursued a career as a composer and conductor before being appointed Director of Music at Christ Church in Bronxville, New York, in 2016, having spent part of the previous year there as composer-in-residence. [1]
In 2021 he returned to the United Kingdom, [1] where he currently serves as President of the Leighton Buzzard Festival Singers. [5]
Stopford is known for his contemporary a cappella and accompanied settings of traditional Latin and English prayers and hymns, including "Ave Verum Corpus", titled "Ave Verum"; "Lullay, My Liking"; the Coventry Carol, titled "Lully, Lulla, Lullay"; and "In My Father's House". Three of Stopford's works appeared in the Classic FM Hall of Fame in 2014, [6] after he made his first appearance on the chart in 2013. [7]
He has composed numerous other works, including a Te Deum, a Latin Mass titled "Missa Deus Nobiscum" and various Latin canticles. Missa Deus Nobiscum was commissioned to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Methodist College Belfast; its first performance was in the Waterfront Hall, Belfast, on 14 March 2019. [8]
Stopford also serves as director of the professional choir Ecclesium, which has released many CDs of his works.
Ave verum corpus is a short Eucharistic chant that has been set to music by many composers. It dates to the 13th century, first recorded in a central Italian Franciscan manuscript. A Reichenau manuscript of the 14th century attributes it to Pope Innocent
James Healey Willan was an English and Canadian organist and composer. He composed more than 800 works including operas, symphonies, chamber music, a concerto, and pieces for band, orchestra, organ, and piano. He is best known for his church music.
Samuel Wesley was an English organist and composer in the late Georgian period. Wesley was a contemporary of Mozart (1756–1791) and was called by some "the English Mozart".
Herbert Whitton Sumsion was an English musician who was organist of Gloucester Cathedral from 1928 to 1967. Through his leadership role with the Three Choirs Festival, Sumsion maintained close associations with major figures in England's 20th-century musical renaissance, including Edward Elgar, Herbert Howells, Gerald Finzi, and Ralph Vaughan Williams. Although Sumsion is known primarily as a cathedral musician, his professional career spanned more than 60 years and encompassed composing, conducting, performing, accompanying, and teaching. His compositions include works for choir and organ, as well as lesser-known chamber and orchestral works.
(James) Frederick Stocken is a British classical composer, organist and musicologist.
Bernard William George Rose was a British organist, soldier, composer, and academic.
David John Briggs is an English organist and composer.
Sir Richard Runciman Terry was an English organist, choir director, composer and musicologist. He is noted for his pioneering revival of Tudor liturgical music.
Malcolm Archer is an English composer, conductor and organist. He was formerly Organist and Director of Music at Bristol Cathedral, at Wells Cathedral and at St Paul's Cathedral and Director of Chapel Music at Winchester College.
Diana Elizabeth Jane Burrell is an English composer and viola player.
Peter Anthony Togni is a freelancer Canadian composer and broadcaster based in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Kenneth Leighton was a British composer and pianist. His compositions include church and choral music, pieces for piano, organ, cello, oboe and other instruments, chamber music, concertos, symphonies, and an opera. He had various academic appointments in the Universities of Leeds, Oxford and, primarily, Edinburgh.
Rupert Edward Elessing Jeffcoat is a Scottish organist, composer and Anglican priest.
Nicholas O'Neill is an English composer, arranger, organist and choral director.
Professor Christopher Wood is a Welsh-born composer of sacred choral music, best known for his setting of the Requiem Mass, his Missa Brevis, the Easter Oratorio "Holy Week" and the string orchestra piece "Aberfan", commissioned for the Last Night of the Welsh Proms in 2016.
Christopher Tambling was a British composer, organist and choirmaster. From 1997 to 2015 he was Director of Music at Downside School and organist and Choirmaster of the Schola Cantorum at Downside Abbey, leading the choir to international success.
Ronny Krippner is a German-born British organist, conductor, teacher and composer who currently serves as Director of Music at Ripon Cathedral.
Gerald Mills Hendrie,, is an English scholar, composer, organist, pianist and harpsichordist.
William Fox is an English organist, currently Director of Music at St Albans Cathedral.
The Mass in A major, Op. 126, is a setting of the mass ordinary in Latin by Josef Rheinberger. He composed it in 1881, originally for a three-part choir (SSA) with organ. When he conducted the first performance at the Allerheiligen-Hofkirche in Munich on Christmas Eve, he added a flute and a string quintet. He wrote a version with orchestra later.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
