Chester Cathedral Choir
Encyclopedia
Chester Cathedral Choir is based at Chester Cathedral
, Cheshire
, England
. It is one of the only choirs where they are required to sing evensong
everyday.
, tenor
and bass positions available) sing both with the boys and the girls. In common with many other British cathedral choirs, the choir sings every day during the week and weekends (except for Wednesdays) together with a busy schedule of broadcasts, tours, recordings and concerts. There is also a mixed-voice adult choir - the Nave Choir (the longest-running cathedral voluntary choir in the country) - which is directed by the Assistant Director of Music.
Since 1997 the cathedral choir has recruited girl as well as boy trebles, both front rows singing regularly with the lay clerks. Occasionally, the girls and boys combine for special events.
The choir is directed and accompanied by Philip Rushforth (Director of Music), Benjamin Chewter (Assistant Director of Music) and an organ scholar.
and Radio 4
, and also recorded a concert for a broadcast on BBC Radio 2
during Christmas 2007.
, the Cotswolds and Warwick
.
Chester Cathedral
Chester Cathedral is the mother church of the Church of England Diocese of Chester, and is located in the city of Chester, Cheshire, England. The cathedral, formerly St Werburgh's abbey church of a Benedictine monastery, is dedicated to Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is one of the only choirs where they are required to sing evensong
Evening Prayer (Anglican)
Evening Prayer is a liturgy in use in the Anglican Communion and celebrated in the late afternoon or evening...
everyday.
Composition
The Lay Clerks (there are currently altoAlto
Alto is a musical term, derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" in Italian, that has several possible interpretations.When designating instruments, "alto" frequently refers to a member of an instrumental family that has the second highest range, below that of the treble or soprano. Hence,...
, tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
and bass positions available) sing both with the boys and the girls. In common with many other British cathedral choirs, the choir sings every day during the week and weekends (except for Wednesdays) together with a busy schedule of broadcasts, tours, recordings and concerts. There is also a mixed-voice adult choir - the Nave Choir (the longest-running cathedral voluntary choir in the country) - which is directed by the Assistant Director of Music.
Since 1997 the cathedral choir has recruited girl as well as boy trebles, both front rows singing regularly with the lay clerks. Occasionally, the girls and boys combine for special events.
The choir is directed and accompanied by Philip Rushforth (Director of Music), Benjamin Chewter (Assistant Director of Music) and an organ scholar.
Recording and broadcast
Notable recordings of the choir include: The Water of Life (2002); Love Eternal (2003); the Sing for Joy collection; and the Festival Evensong (2007). The choir also broadcasts regularly on BBC Radio 3BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
and Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
, and also recorded a concert for a broadcast on BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
during Christmas 2007.
Touring
Chester Cathedral choir toured the USA for the first time in October 2007, previously visiting DurhamDurham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
, the Cotswolds and Warwick
Warwick
Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England. The town lies upon the River Avon, south of Coventry and just west of Leamington Spa and Whitnash with which it is conjoined. As of the 2001 United Kingdom census, it had a population of 23,350...
.