St Michael's, Tenbury Wells

[ardcarp]

On Breakfast this morning, Martin Handley played a recording of Britten's Antiphon, sung by Tenbury, for whom it was specially written. At the end, MH said he wasn't sure whether Lucian Nethsingha was conducting or playing the organ. Well, I'm pretty sure he was conducting...I'm sure Roger Judd will know.

Lucian (who later was O&C at Exeter for many years) elicited the trad head-voice from his choristers, but that is not to say the Antiphon was in any way effete or lacklustre...on the contrary, it had plenty of oomph.

For me the Antiphon inhabits the same sound-world as Rejoice in the Lamb which, incidentally, is being included in a live broadcast by the BBC Singers this afternoon at 3.30pm from St Edmund's Church, Southwold. There is also another chance to hear Britten's P&F on a Theme of Vittoria in he same concert.

[Gabriel Jackson]

On Breakfast this morning, Martin Handley played a recording of Britten's Antiphon, sung by Tenbury, for whom it was specially written. At the end, MH said he wasn't sure whether Lucian Nethsingha was conducting or playing the organ. Well, I'm pretty sure he was conducting...I'm sure Roger Judd will know.

Lucian (who later was O&C at Exeter for many years) elicited the trad head-voice from his choristers, but that is not to say the Antiphon was in any way effete or lacklustre...on the contrary, it had plenty of oomph.

For me the Antiphon inhabits the same sound-world as Rejoice in the Lamb which, incidentally, is being included in a live broadcast by the BBC Singers this afternoon at 3.30pm from St Edmund's Church, Southwold. There is also another chance to hear Britten's P&F on a Theme of Vittoria in he same concert.

Definitely conducting - it's from a record released in 1965.

Jonathan Harvey first learned the special power of voices in a resonant acoustic as a chorister at St Michael's College, Tenbury.

[ardcarp]

Probably going a bit off topic, but if anyone's interested in the Jonathan Harvey connection:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cutandsplice/mortuos.shtml

[Roger Judd]

Actually, Lucian Nethsingha played all the accompaniments on that LP, which, as Gabriel Jackson says correctly, was released on the Argo label, in 1965 - the choir directed itself. St Michael's never had the luxury of an assistant organist, so the choir developed a very fine rapport which enabled it to perform a wide range of music undirected. It was like this when I was a chorister at Winchester Cathedral in the 1950s - again, there was no full-time assistant.

It was only in the last few years of the College (it was closed down in 1985) that I had the luxury (!) of an organ scholar to play the organ whilst I directed the choir. The first two were Martin Stokes, a chorister at the College, and now Professor of Music at King's College, London University, and Paul Brough, now a distinguished choral conductor.

Jonathan Harvey's connection with St Michael's was a source of great pride to the College, and he never stopped saying how much his time there meant to him. Another distinguished musician to have sung at St Michael's as a boy is Christopher Robinson.
RJ

[ardcarp]

For the O&C to be seen conducting the choir during a service is a relatively recent thing. I was privileged to know a couple of chaps (now long dead, alas) who had been choral scholars at KCC before the War. One had sung at the very first broadcast of The Nine Lessons and Carols under 'Daddy' Mann and both had served under Boris Ord. 'Flapping about between the choirstalls' was considered undignified and if any direction were needed it was provided by a discreet beat from the back rows, I think Willcocks' much-loved recordings of The Psalms of David were done thus. I can remember Richard Greening directing Lichfield Cathedral choir with the minutest finger movements from a position in the trebles' stalls.

Does anyone know when overt conducting became, as a matter of course, commonplace?

[DracoM]

The b/w videos of B.Ord seemed to show him standing actually with the trebles and making very small gestures.
IIRC, George Guest also stood with trebs sometimes. I could never follow GG's beat at all, but blimey, they knew all right, and the results..........!!

[Magnificat]

Does anyone know when overt conducting became, as a matter of course, commonplace?

ardcarp,

It must have been at some point during the 1960s.

Barry Rose always conducted and I seem to remember a talk he gave when he said that he and other O&Cs regarded eye contact with the singers, especially the boys, as being necessary to get them to communicate the words and music really effectively.

VCC

[Gabriel Jackson]

(Sorry, Roger, I assumed that because he was credited as "director"...)

At Canterbury at the beginning of the 1970s Allan Wicks conducted everything (when he was available to). He stood by the West end of Cantoris stalls; his gestures weren't big, the magic was all in the Wicks eyes, and facial expressions. On Thursdays, which were his and the men's day off, Philip Moore (later Stephen Darlington) played and the choristers just got on with it. Likewise the full choir if either of the organists were away, there being no organ scholar in those days.

[omega consort]

Richard Seal at Salisbury in the 80's was similar too....he stood at the West end of Cantoris, tiny gestures (including the slight raising of an eyebrow if the trebles were flat!)....He always went up to the canons stalls behind the choir at the creed and the two tenors beat time in the responses and collect Amens....
It seems that "less is more" sometimes doesn't it!