History
The boys in the choir were all pupils at the college. There were 24 choristers and 18 choral scholars; included in these numbers there were traditionally a head and deputy head chorister and 6 senior choristers that were appointed every September at the start of the school's calendar year. All of the choral scholars had sung with the choir as choristers, and several of them would go on to achieve honorary chorister status which was achieved by spending all 7 school years in the choir.
The choir toured England and Continental Europe from 1995 to 2005, singing in many famous buildings across the continent, including 3 separate tours to Italy, where they twice met and sang for Pope John Paul II in 1999 and 2002. The Choir also had a 3-week tour of the Eastern United States in August 2004, singing in Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Washington D.C. In total the choir sang in an impressive 90 different cathedrals worldwide in just 11 years.
Starting with the summer of 2001 up to the summer of 2005, the choir were official guests at Windsor Castle as 'choir-in-residence' singing services in St. George's Chapel for a week; this particular tour would usually include singing a week's services in Westminster Abbey.
The Choir released 8 CDs and occasionally made radio and television appearances, including Christmas 2000, when they sang Carols 'live' on 6 consecutive evenings after Granada Reports evening news had finished. In addition they were frequently hired to sing at charity concerts, wedding and funerals. Also from 2001 to 2006 they led the Hillsborough Memorial Service at Anfield Stadium to some 7000 plus guests attending the memorial and also led the BBC Radio Merseyside Carol Service in Liverpool Cathedral which was broadcast every Christmas Eve. Also in 2001 the choir had the honour of singing a special version of "You'll Never Walk Alon" to 45,000 spectators before Liverpool's 4th-round second leg tie against AS Roma.
Perhaps their most famous moment was being part of England's Official Euro 2004 song, which was a special version of 'Alltogethernow' with the band 'The Farm'. The song reached #5 in the U.K. singles chart; the choir received a gold disc and performed the song live on Top of the Pops in June 2004; the song was also performed live at a friendly match between England and Iceland before Euro 2004 began.
The choir has a reputation as one of the leading choirs of its type in the country, a feat recognised in 2000 when they won the National School Choir Festival to become champions of England.
The choir was unique in that all 42 choir members were pupils at a comprehensive school, some coming into the choir without any real knowledge or experience at a high-level performance, which makes the choirs achievements all the more remarkable.
However, at the height of their success, due to premeditated and malicious accusations against the founder and director of music, the choir last sang in a cathedral in October 2005, when they were in residence at Canterbury Cathedral. It began 2 years of uncertainty for the long-term future of the choir, and in the months that followed the choir only sang on rare occasions; when the accusations were later quashed in court, the director of music resigned and the choir disbanded in the summer of 2007. He was later cleared of all charges and the still choir exists to an extent, under an alias name with many of the original choristers.
The Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Truro is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Truro, Cornwall. It was built between 1880 and 1910 to a Gothic Revival design by John Loughborough Pearson on the site of the parish church of St Mary. It is one of only three cathedrals in the United Kingdom with three spires.
Westminster Abbey Choir School is a boarding preparatory school for boys in Westminster, London and the only remaining choir school in the United Kingdom which exclusively educates choristers. It is located in Dean's Yard, by Westminster Abbey. It educates about 30 boys, aged 8–13 who sing in the Choir of Westminster Abbey, which takes part in state and national occasions as well as singing evensong every day and gives concert performances worldwide. Recent tours include to America, Hungary and Moscow. Other tours have included Australia, America and Hong Kong. The school is one of only three choir schools that educate only the male trebles of the choir, the others being Saint Thomas Choir School in New York City and Escolania de Montserrat in Spain. The headmaster is Peter Roberts, former assessment co-ordinator of St George's School, Windsor Castle. The organist and master of the choristers is James O'Donnell, former Master of Music at Westminster Cathedral.
Henry Yevele was the most prolific and successful master mason active in late medieval England. The first document relating to him is dated 3 December 1353, when he purchased the freedom of London. In February 1356 he was sufficiently well known as a mason that he was chosen as one of a commission of six cutting masons who were to inform the mayor and aldermen about the acts and articles of the craft.
Cathedral schools began in the Early Middle Ages as centers of advanced education, some of them ultimately evolving into medieval universities. Throughout the Middle Ages and beyond, they were complemented by the monastic schools. Some of these early cathedral schools, and more recent foundations, continued into modern times.
Alexander of Lincoln was a medieval English Bishop of Lincoln, a member of an important administrative and ecclesiastical family. He was the nephew of Roger of Salisbury, a Bishop of Salisbury and Chancellor of England under King Henry I, and he was also related to Nigel, Bishop of Ely. Educated at Laon, Alexander served in his uncle's diocese as an archdeacon in the early 1120s. Unlike his relatives, he held no office in the government before his appointment as Bishop of Lincoln in 1123. Alexander became a frequent visitor to King Henry's court after his appointment to the episcopate, often witnessing royal documents, and he served as a royal justice in Lincolnshire.
Paul Miles-Kingston, is a British singer who achieved fame as a boy soprano classical singer.
The Choir of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle exists to sing services in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.
Events from the 1320s in England.
English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed arches, rib vaults, buttresses, and extensive use of stained glass. Combined, these features allowed the creation of buildings of unprecedented height and grandeur, filled with light from large stained glass windows. Important examples include Westminster Abbey, Canterbury Cathedral and Salisbury Cathedral. The Gothic style endured in England much longer than in Continental Europe.
The medieval cathedrals of England, which date from between approximately 1040 and 1540, are a group of twenty-six buildings that constitute a major aspect of the country's artistic heritage and are among the most significant material symbols of Christianity. Though diverse in style, they are united by a common function. As cathedrals, each of these buildings serves as central church for an administrative region and houses the throne of a bishop. Each cathedral also serves as a regional centre and a focus of regional pride and affection.
Events from the 1130s in England.
Events from the 1100s in England.
Events from the 1070s in England.
The Southern Cathedrals Festival is a 5-day music festival held on rotation among the cathedrals of Chichester, Winchester and Salisbury in England, in the penultimate week of July. The festival was restored in 1960 after initial attempts to create the annual occasion - such efforts led to 28 years without it. The directors of music act as festival director when it is their cathedral's turn to host the event - currently, they are Charles Harrison, Andrew Lumsden and David Halls.
Robert Quinney is Director of the Choir of New College, Oxford, and was formerly Sub-Organist at Westminster Abbey and Director of Music at Peterborough Cathedral. In addition to his work at New College, he has a busy freelance career as soloist, ensemble player, and writer on music. From October 2009 till 2014 he was Director of Oundle for Organists, whose residential courses provide inspiring tuition for young organists.
St Albans Cathedral Choir is an English Cathedral Choir based in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England. It is made up of around 20 boy choristers aged 7–14 and 12 adult lay clerks. In 2003 it appeared in the coronation scene of the film Johnny English.
The Choir Schools' Association is a U.K. organisation that provides support to choir schools and choristers, and promotes singing, in particular of music for Christian worship in the cathedral tradition. It represents 44 choir schools attached to cathedrals, churches, and college chapels.
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