HIGH NOTES. Music News Autumn Term The Director of Music, Peter Nardone, Lay Clerks in brief

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1 HIGH NOTES Music News Autumn Term 2015 The Director of Music, Peter Nardone, writes Whilst we 21 st century humans seem to have an obsession with the subject, communication is not always our strongest point. I rarely send an or leave a telephone message expecting a reply or return call, but then perhaps I shouldn t judge others by my own standards! This is one of the reasons why I hope that our music department at Worcester Cathedral will be able to sustain the production of a termly newsletter that will strive to be both interesting and informative. In High Notes we aim to give prominence to those things which we believe to be as important to you as they are to us, and we will try to cover areas that might otherwise be left unnoticed what the journal The Week calls boring but important. Here is the first of these editions and I hope that within its pages those who follow the work of the cathedral musicians will find a wellspring of information about the life and work of the place, its singers, organists, instrumentalists and instruments. It is intended that High Notes will be available online as well as in paper and ink format for those, like me, who enjoy having something that can later be used to light a fire, swat a fly or rest a gin & tonic on. This is November, the season of remembrance, and in this edition you will find information about what s on in November as well as through the coming seasons of Advent, Christmas, Epiphany and Lent. It is not our intention to cover every music-related event in the cathedral but rather to focus on the particular output of the cathedral music department. We also aim to produce the publication just after half-term, in November, March and May each year and my desire is that High Notes will be complimentary to Cathedral News, which offers a broader coverage of the cathedral s work, worship, mission and ministry. Please do let me know, as the editor, if you have any comments, suggestions or information that you feel may be helpful in the production of future editions of High Notes. The Cathedral Choir with Old Choristers, July 2015 Lay Clerks in brief This term we welcome Wil Gee (bass) and Piers Kennedy (bass) together with Daniel Antrobus (tenor). Wil has filled the vacancy left by Edward (Woody) Seymour who moved to Ripon to be Head of Music at the Grammar School there. Piers has stepped up to the post left following the death of Ian Bell last term, and Daniel has come to fill a position which has been vacant for some years now. The Lay Clerks are now up to strength and are working on the possibility of combining with the gentlemen from the choirs of Hereford and Gloucester to arrange a concert of music to raise money for charity watch this space! Maintaining this special Three Choirs Festival link, Jonathan Woodhouse (alto) and Piers have just returned from a tour of Canada with Gloucester cathedral Choir. In October we sang at the baptism service for the son of our senior Lay Clerk, Stephen Shellard. Despite a lunch party and presumably a glass or two of fizz, Mr Shellard, true to form, was back in the cathedral by 4pm the same day to sing Choral Evensong. Those who have yet to enter the refurbished Song School may be unaware that following the death of their

2 colleague, Ian Bell, the Lay Clerks named their robing room after him. Ian s generous legacy has endowed a day of music at the cathedral, and a further 200 has been gifted to enable the Director of Music to purchase a set of music for the choir. includes the re-boxing and re-ordering of the Cathedral Choir Library as well as bringing into the space the libraries of the Voluntary Choir, the Chamber Choir and the Worcester Festival Choral Society. Jason has already undertaken a similar job in Portsmouth Cathedral over the past two years and is well equipped for the task in hand. Piers Kennedy Daniel Antrobus Boys Zone Wil Gee Jonathan and Sarah Woodhouse at their wedding The Bollen Library Since the refurbishment of the Judge Song School earlier in the year, work has begun on the ordering of the music library. The legacy left to the cathedral following the death of Connie Bollen, wife of Derek and life-long supporter of the Voluntary Choir, has been recognised in the naming of the library The Bollen Library. To oversee this task we have appointed Choral Scholar, Jason Stanbridge- Howard (pictured below) as Librarian. The massive task On Wednesday 21 October the boys, with some of the gentlemen from the Cathedral Choir, gave a short recital at the Masonic Centre in Rainbow Hill for the Worcester Lodge, by way of thanks to the Lodge for their ongoing financial support of our choristers. George Walker, now Head Chorister, wore the Masonic Medallion presented by the Lodge for the evening. Following the concert the boys had to leave and get back home to bed, but not before entertaining those present with the highlight of the evening, their singing of Lift thine eyes from Mendelssohn s Elijah, for unaccompanied upper voices. This was by special request of the choristers and brought back memories for them of singing the piece in Leipzig and Dresden earlier in the year. After the choristers departed, the Canon Precentor, Revd. Dr Michael Brierley led the assembled order of Freemasons, Lay Clerks and guests, in grace, before all enjoyed a most convivial meal together. The musicians of the cathedral extend our warmest thanks to those at the Worcester Lodge who so generously support the cathedral s music and, not for the first time, have entertained us lavishly. In the next edition of High Notes there will be a feature on the refurbishment of the Judge Song School, a project funded by the Freemasons of Worcestershire and a bequest from the estate of the late Derek J. Bullivant. In the first Purely Bach concert, former Head Chorister Benedict Madden sang Bach s solo cantata, Jauchzet Gott in allen landen accompanied by the Musical and Amicable

3 Society and conducted by Dr Nardone. It was very encouraging to see, in an audience which packed the cathedral quire, most of Ben s senior chorister colleagues and their parents. The boys and men will be singing concerts of cantatas and motets in Purely Bach II & III next year. Girls Corner At the start of September Martha Dunster and Isabelle Palmer were made our new Head Choristers, and Rebecca Winter was awarded the Friends of Cathedral Music Medallion. We also welcomed three new choristers into the choir Louisa Kenny, Natasha Heaysman and Samantha Maylor-Wrout. New Head Choristers George Walker and Nathan Williams, November 2015 New Head Choristers, Isabelle Palmer and Martha Dunster, with Friends of Cathedral Music medallion holder, Rebecca Winter New Choristers Oliver Perkins, Patrick Thomas, Robert Foskett and David Marlow, September 2015 New Choristers Louisa Kenny, Lara Maylor-Wrout and Natasha Heaysman The girls spent the first part of the Autumn Term carefully learning all the notes for the first Purely Bach concert. Although initially a little daunted by the complexities of Bach s musical invention, they all quickly grew to love spending time on the music each week, and were delighted that the concert was such a huge success. Preparations are under way for the celebrations in 2016 of the 10 th anniversary of the Girl Choristers at Worcester more news in a future edition of High Notes! Benedict Madden

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5 Voluntary Choir (The Vollers) The Voluntary Choir, now in its 141st year, continues to provide training for a broad range of boys from all over the county. The men similarly travel from all corners of Worcestershire and beyond, and range from teenagers to long-serving and experienced singers. The back row provides a unique opportunity for choristers with broken voices from both the Cathedral Choir and Voluntary Choir to carry on singing alto, tenor, and bass. The boys rehearse on Tuesdays and they are joined by the gentlemen on Fridays. The choir normally sings the 6.30pm Sunday service, and they occasionally join the Cathedral Choir for a special service or concert. Choir tours are another chance to work together for a more extended period, while having fun in an exciting new place. Last year the choir had the opportunity to sing in London and Windsor Castle, and next year we plan to travel to Germany to sing with our twin cathedral in Magdeburg. We also hold many social events including barbecues and race nights. choir quickly established itself as an integral part of cathedral life, taking part in services, and the wider county music scene through its concerts. Highly acclaimed CD recordings have garnered praise from some of the foremost classical music magazines and been played on BBC Radio 3. David Mellor simply told his Classic FM listeners about the choir s Rise Heart CD: If you want to hear good choral singing, then listen to this! Fresh from its successful Hope and Remembrance concert (Fauré s Requiem and Bach s Jesu Meine Freude) and recent participation in the All Souls eucharist, the choir is now turning its thoughts to its Love Came Down at Christmas performance in Cradley, on 13 December, and singing in the Cathedral s 21 December eucharist service. You can keep up with the choir s activities on Facebook, Twitter (@WCCC2) and Google+. Worcester Festival Choral Society (WFCS) The Vollers on the steps of St. George s Chapel, Windsor Castle, July 2015 The choir also made a new publicity video last year which gives a glimpse into the life of the choir. It can be found on the cathedral website and YouTube. You can also keep up with the choir on our Facebook page Worcester Cathedral Chamber Choir Eight years before girl choristers were admitted into the Cathedral Choir, Stephen Shellard founded the Chamber Choir in 1998, introducing female voices to singing regular cathedral services at Worcester for the first time. The The Worcester Festival Choral Society, founded in 1861, has a membership of approximately 150 members. Through the year we perform three concerts, in the glorious surroundings of the cathedral. Many people are unaware that the society is independent, even if closely linked to the musical life of the cathedral. The cathedral s Director of Music always directs the chorus, and generally we rehearse as well as perform in the cathedral. Generally we perform large choral works: in recent years we have performed Verdi s Requiem, and Bach s Mass in B minor. We also bring to the public less known works; one particular success last year was Jonathan Dove s There was a Child. Every year, in December, we perform Handel s masterpiece, Messiah. This wonderful work proves that however well a singer might think they know a piece, there are still many hurdles to cross!

6 We are now in the 21 st century and have a comprehensive website. Do look up to find out more. Friends of our music John de la Cour, Director of the Elmley Foundation - grandson of the late Countess Beauchamp, he was Lord Beauchamp s godson, and has been closely involved with Madresfield since moving from Denmark to England in It is our intention to bring to notice, in each edition, particular friends of our music at the cathedral. This term we wish to speak of the work of the Elmley Foundation. In a special ceremony last year a newly struck medallion was presented to Charles Pillman, named by Dr Nardone as the Elmley Scholar for the year. It was decided that each year the Organist would select a chorister that he felt, for whatever reason, was particularly worthy of receiving the medallion. As Charles is moving up through the choir the time has come for another boy to be chosen to wear the medal. It represents a generous annual donation to the cathedral towards the funding of a chorister, and places us in an enviable position amongst cathedrals in receiving such an award. The Elmley Foundation was endowed by the late Countess Beauchamp of Madresfield Court near Malvern. She was the Danish-born widow of the eighth and last Earl Beauchamp who was known as Viscount Elmley until he succeeded his father to the House of Lords in Elmley and Mona, as they were known to all their friends, lived happily at Madresfield for 45 years until he died in 1979, leaving her the majority of Madresfield s contents. She died 10 years later and in the intervening period gave increasing thought to the best way of providing public access to the house and its contents, and how its traditions as a patron of the arts could be revived. Celebrating twenty years this year, The Elmley Foundation is one of the results. Its objects are to encourage all forms of arts, crafts and design in the counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire, upon which the occupants of Madresfield have had a large influence over many generations. The Elmley Medallion Whatever happened to Sebastian? On a freezing cold day in January 2015 a seventeen yearold tenor from Medellín in Colombia arrived at 5A College Yard, together with his chaperone from the charity Let the Children Live. After thawing out, the young Sebastian Palacio, went straight to bed for five hours following his gruelling flight from Colombia via Florida, and wondering whether his luggage would catch up with him after being lost in the system. Over the next six months he became quite a figure in and around the cathedral, singing with the Voluntary Choir and the WFCS, the Birmingham City Choir, and helping sixthform students at King s with conversational Spanish. He also spent much time travelling the country to help raise funds for the charity that had sustained him and his choir in Medellín. On 6th July his visa expired and he returned to Colombia where he is now studying music at the university. During his stay with us he started learning the piano with local musician, Robin Walker, and even passed Grade 3 from a standing start. He also sang with various choirs at King s School, where he was fed each day at

7 lunchtime in return for what he was able to offer the school. Many individuals and charitable organisations were responsible for funding his time in Worcester, not least Sing UK, The Bransford Trust, the Harrison Clark Rickerbys Charitable Trust, Let the Children Live, and the many individuals who supported through the Tenner for a Tenor scheme in the cathedral and WFCS. We hope that this six-month stay in our community, living with the choral scholars and making music in a foreign country, has given Sebastian an experience that will remain with him for the rest of his life. Richard Cook, Organ Scholar Wayne Marshall and the Organ s 7 th Birthday Sebastian at the end-of-year Choir barbecue in July 2015, in conversation with Dr Peter Nardone, Canon Alvyn Pettersen and Fr Peter Walters of the charity Let the Children Live When the new cathedral organ was completed in 2008 we began the tradition of inviting an international celebrity performer to give the anniversary recital each year. This October we had the pleasure of the company of Wayne Marshall, who not only entertained us with his dazzlingly virtuosic playing on the Saturday night, but also played for all three Sunday services on our Harvest Festival too. This included improvising a voluntary at the end of the County Harvest service while a vintage tractor was driven down the Nave (by former chorister-parent Geoff Sansome). Organ Scholarship In early 2014 I was contacted by some old friends in Dorset, Margaret & Raymond James. They had, for a number of years supported the organ scholarship at Chelmsford cathedral and, keen to see a scholarship at Worcester, sent a cheque for 1000 to encourage us to reinstate the position here. Unable to look a gift-horse in the mouth, we managed to find further funds to add to their generous donation and now we can offer a modest scholarship and housing for a keen youngster. The first recipient, , was William Parkinson who has moved on to study at Birmingham Conservatoire. This year we have been fortunate in attracting Richard Cook, whose aim it is to pass both RCO examinations during his time with us this year. This is no small task and we wish him good luck in his endeavours. In the next edition of High Notes there will be more information on the work and history of the Michael James Trust. Dr Peter Nardone and Wayne Marshall What s Coming Up The biggest excitement on the horizon is the invitation by HRH Prince Charles to singers from the Three Choirs Festival, in this its 300th anniversary year, to sing an early evening concert at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday 24 November. Girls, boys and men will leave Worcester by

8 coach early in the morning clutching their invitations and their security papers. Upon arrival at the palace at 2pm they will join with coaches from Gloucester and Hereford before a rehearsal and concert in the Ball Room before the Prince and an audience of 400 invited guests. 14 November 19:30 Elgar The Music Makers, Stanford The Revenge WFCS at the Cathedral 21 November 17:30 Diocesan Choirs Festival Evensong at the Cathedral 29 November 18:30 Candlelit Advent Service Cathedral and Voluntary Choirs at the Cathedral Christmas Shopping Ideas CDs The Cathedral Choir, Voluntary Choir and Chamber Choir all have CDs available from the Cathedral Shop. Voluntary Choir Puddings Pick up an order form at the Welcome Desk in the Cathedral to order your delicious fund-raising puddings! Christmas Fayre Stalls Support our choirs by visiting the Christmas Fayre in College Hall and the Cloisters on Saturday 28 November. 12 December 19:30 Handel s Messiah WFCS at the Cathedral 13 December 19:30 Love Came down at Christmas Christmas Concert Chamber Choir at Cradley Church 19 December 19:30 Love is Born Christmas Concert Cathedral Choirs and WFCS at the Cathedral 21 December 19:30 Worcester News Carol Service Cathedral Choir at the Cathedral 22 & 23 December 18:30 Service of Nine Lessons and Carols Cathedral Choir at the Cathedral Regular Choral Services in term-time Sundays Eucharist Evensong Evensong 10:30 (Cathedral Choir) 16:00 (Cathedral Choir) 18:30 (Voluntary Choir) Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays Evensong 17:30 (Cathedral Choir) Please always check the published Music Scheme to check service times and details worcestercathedralchamberchoir.co.uk Contact the editor Peter Nardone, Worcester Cathedral Chapter Office, 8 College Yard, Worcester WR1 2LA peternardone@worcestercathedral.org.uk