Ripon Cathedral Choir School

[DracoM]

Ripon are singing R3 live CE on Nov 14th.

[terratogen]

Does anyone with a Ripon connection know how things have been with the choir this term? I know that they're due to broadcast a CE in the coming weeks, and I've been looking forward to hearing from them, but I've just stumbled across an article that, while it makes no mention of the back row, reports that Ripon are still looking for a number of boys and girls to complete the treble lines.

From the article:

While the choir has recruited a number of choristers since September, the cathedral’s director of music Andrew Bryden said auditions would be held on Saturday, November 10, in a bid to complete 24-strong choirs of boys and girls... Mr Bryden said he hoped to find boys in years three to six and girls in year five with a good ear, a natural voice and enthusiasm.

Additionally, the music list suggests that the visiting choirs, the lay clerks, and the Cathedral Consort are picking up a great deal of the services—though this might have more to do with half-term than with anything else—and that when the choristers do sing, it's still generally the boys on the top line, with girls some weekends and mixed trebles for big services.

All of this could, of course, be a matter of having 20 choristers per line but wanting 24—a situation that I imagine is not terribly uncommon—and it's possible that the article might have meant that Mr Bryden is hoping to audition children for next year's choir, but the article makes me worry that the closing of the Choir School has left Ripon missing great swathes of its top line. Difficult for the choir and terrible for any children who may have had to give up their choristerships due to the loss of the School. Say it ain't so?

I sincerely hope that the newly restructured music department is coping well with what must have been a very trying situation. Hoping, too, for a stunner of a broadcast from Ripon in November. Good luck, Ripon.

[Bucinator]

Hi y'all. Terratogen asks, terratogen gets.

The closure of the Choir School forced some wholesale changes, including the withdrawal of scholarships for boys and girls and the 'equalisation' of commitments between the two choirs. It also led to the departure of at least two choristers, one a strong Y6 who has resurfaced at St Pauls. Numbers for the boys are therefore at a historic low of 11, and the numbers per year are patchy, especially at the top end. One new chorister has been able to join as the need to attend the Choir School no longer applies. One more existing chorister may go. I do not know how successful the recent voice trials were, but there remain vacancies throughout the choir, and the music department is very keen to add new boy choristers. I very much hope that they succeed, because three Y8's will leave in July 2013.

The girls choir is in a stronger position, though there is only one Y8. Some of the younger voices are very strong, at least on a par with the boy trebles. The girls choir will be doing two evensongs and a Sunday service w.e.f. the New Year, I think, and the boys now do two evensongs and the other Sunday service. Saturdays, as my earlier post stated, are devoted to practice and vocal and theory coaching and lessons, as the Choir School used to do this. So the weekly line-up will be four weekday evensongs and two services on Sunday - one evensong less (Saturday) than before, with the choirs commitments split 50/50. Where special services occur, there may be need for extra practice which can only be done in the Cathedral, and on such occasions, the boys or girls will have a Cathedral-based practice and be supplanted by the Lay Clerks or a visiting choir.

Like the curates egg, it is good in parts, and I am looking forward to Advent and the Christmas services. Traditionally, the Britten Ceremony of Carols is more than competently done, and I'm sure this year will be no exception. I remain concerned however about the lack of engagement with schools. It seems that successful non-Choir School DOM's have one thing in common - they devote a lot of time to outreach in local schools - and I have not seen much change in this area since July. These are of course early days, and the music department have had a lot to do. The creation of the Consort was an inspired idea, but they do have to handle it carefully, as their focus on 8-13 allows them to mix when needed, and they cannot add 14-18 into this melting pot without changing the whole sound. I also remain concerned about the boys. Traditionally, their higher commitment, their more frequent practice and the excellent musical standards at the Choir School meant that they were all music scholarship material at 13. Consequently, they acted as a pace-setter for the girls, who rose to the occasion. With the requirement for two musical instruments gone, less frequent practices and lower musical standards, they will not be able to set the same pace, and it remains to be seen if the girls can take over the baton. It is interesting to observe that there is a distinct cluster of girls at a nearby girls independent school with a very reasonable music department, and I very much hope that engagement by the DOM with the school will deepen and further strengthen the girls choir thereby.

[DracoM]

Many thanks for above.

[interested]

New Choristers

"One new chorister has been able to join as the need to attend the Choir School no longer applies"

This isn't true - there have been 2 new boy choristers join the choir this term. Both were pupils at the Choir School.

"Traditionally, the Britten Ceremony of Carols is more than competently done"

I actually think it's usually brilliant and hope that this will continue.


I agree with your concern about outreach. The choir school implemented some outreach in 2011 but had to stop this due to staffing. The cathedral has done no outreach recently and this is what they need to do so that boys, especially, get used to singing and see it as something fun to do. They need some inspirational leaders to go into local schools.

"The creation of the Consort was an inspired idea"

This was done before the closure of the school was known. It is a great idea as it keeps the ex-girl choristers singing and as part of the cathedral community.

"I also remain concerned about the boys. Traditionally, their higher commitment, their more frequent practice and the excellent musical standards at the Choir School meant that they were all music scholarship material at 13"

This is also my concern. The musical standards at the Choir School were such that the boys (and girl choristers) were fully supported as choristers as well as being taken through their theory grades and prepared to high standards of instrumental performance - this was shown by their scholarship success last year. This is no longer the case for the vast majority and will, surely, have a detrimental affect.

"It is interesting to observe that there is a distinct cluster of girls at a nearby girls independent school with a very reasonable music department, and I very much hope that engagement by the DOM with the school will deepen and further strengthen the girls choir thereby"

I can't see this happening.

What I can say, as an interested outsider, is this; hats off to them for not throwing in the towel when the choir school closed, and for continuing to provide excellent music in the cathedral.

[ardcarp]

Bucinator and Interested

Your posts, brimming with inside knowledge, are both of great pertinence to the future of cathedral music and the unique tradition that we must maintain.

As regulars will know, I am a believer in opportunities for girl choristers. I am pleased that girls in my family have had an opportunity to sing in good choirs, which in an earlier generation they would not have had. It is however, because of changes in society's attitudes, going to be increasingly difficult to recruit non-choir-school boy choristers especially in areas away from large urban populations. I worry that where the boys' choir is not seen as the 'main' choir (i.e. where they don't bear the principal responsibility for providing the music) the boy chorister may become a threatened species. I know many were against the introduction of girl choristers from the start, and for the reason I have just outlined. I disagreed with them at the time. I just wonder, given the trend we are seeing at Ripon and in other places, whether they had a valid point.

On the subject of 'outreach' it will certainly take charismatic figures, backed by church authorities, parents and schools to cut the mustard. So a music degree an FRCO and 'form' as an organ scholar are not necessarily going to be the prime requirements of the new breed of DOMs.