February 2008 Archives
Gainful Employment
I got a phone call this afternoon from one of the recruitment consultants I’ve been dealing with recently. And it’s some tentative good news.
One of the companies I had an interview with earlier this week is planning to make me an offer. The details won’t come through till Monday, and there are some formalities to go through as well, but I’m really pleased.
February 29, 2008
Singing in Christ Church Dublin
The choirs of Christ Church Cathedral Dublin are highly regarded throughout Ireland and beyond for their beautiful music making. Both the adult cathedral choir and girls’ choir both work hard throughout the year to to support the worship in the cathedral; delighting visitors and regular members of the congregation alike.
However, singing in the choir of Christ Church Dublin is not like being in a typical Anglican cathedral choir. There are a few differences which set the music at Christ Church apart from the traditional cathedral set up.
Demanding and Varied Repertoire
Many cathedrals rely on the regular rotation of well-known pieces of music, including lots of ‘old favorites’ from the Victorian era. However, in Christ Church the repertoire is quite varied; the music list regularly containing lesser-known but nonetheless very worthwhile pieces spanning five centuries, but with a particular emphasis on renaissance and modern music.
Attention to Detail
The Christ Church choir enjoys the enviable reputation of being one of Ireland’s finest choirs. Precise phrasing and an attention to detail result in a carefully balanced ensemble and tone. The time dedicated to preparation and rehearsal is slightly greater than in other cathedral choirs, and this investment pays dividends.
There is a half-hour rehearsal before Evensong on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, and a full hour before Eucharist and Evensong on Sundays. This generous allocation of time enables the choir to run all the music for the forthcoming service, and to polish the music.
Opportunities for Adult Women
The main cathedral choir is entirely composed of adult singers; comprising female sopranos, male and female altos, and male tenors and basses. Opportunities for adult women to sing church music at this level beyond the collegiate system are very rare, and Christ Church prides itself on the high calibre of female church musicians who perform during the five services a week. In fact it is the only Anglican professional mixed-voice cathedral choir in the British Isles.
Many of the current choir members have had previous experience singing in college choirs, both in Ireland and the UK, and enjoy the chance to further their musical experience in a cathedral choir. Some join the choir as choral scholars, during gap years or while studying in Dublin. Others perform with us for a couple of years after leaving college, or join from other church and cathedral choirs.
Balanced Commitments
The Christ Church choir sing five choral services a week: Evensong at 6.00pm on Wednesdays and Thursdays, Evensong at 5.00pm on Saturdays, and Eucharist at 11.00am and Evensong at 3.30pm on Sundays. The mid-week commitment is obviously less than that of other cathedrals who sing every day. The service start times during the week are also a bit later in the evening than other choirs, meaning that it’s easier to balance the commitment of singing with that of another career.
Choir members are also offered a variety of different contracts, based upon the commitment a singer can give; typically requiring attendance at 3, 4, or 5 services each week.
Supportive Environment
The Christ Church choir are very lucky to enjoy the full support and encouragement of the clergy and board of the cathedral. Musical excellence is a firm priority within the cathedral, and the music team occupies a central role in the worship and life of the church.
There are around 20 Lay Vicars Choral engaged by the cathedral, forming a choir with the general configuration of 8 sopranos, 4 altos, 4 tenors, and 4 basses - however numbers obviously vary over time. There are also four members of staff in the music department: Judy Martin, Director of Music; Tristan Russcher, Assistant Director of Music; John Mountford, Organ Scholar; and Peter Parshall, Music Development Officer.
Extensive resources are provided to support singers, in addition to the generous rehearsal time. Recordings of music are available on request, as are weekly note-bashing sessions with the organ scholar. An additional allowance is also set aside for voice lessons.
Exciting Opportunities
In addition to the normal weekly services, the choir performs regular concerts throughout the year, and has an active recording, broadcasting and touring schedule. Other musical opportunities exist beyond the cathedral throughout the rest of the city, such as depping at St Patrick’s Cathedral, and performing in Dublin’s numerous choirs, choral societies, opera companies, and orchestras.
To read more about the music at Christ Church Dublin, visit the music department section of the cathedral website.
New Dean
It was announced at the start of the Eucharist on Sunday morning that the archbishop has appointed the Venerable Dermot Dunne as the next Dean of Christ Church.
Dermot Dunne is the current archdeacon of Ferns, and was formerly dean’s vicar of the cathedral under Dean John Paterson from 1999 to 2001. His installation as Dean of Christ Church will take place on Thursday 29th May 2008 at 8.00pm.
- Statement by Archbishop Neill on the new appointment
- Statement by Archdeacon Dunne outlining his vision for the cathedral
Howells CD
The choir are doing a CD recording this weekend, of lesser-known choral works by Howells. We’ve got a mass setting and a batch of anthems to record - with sessions on Friday night, all day Saturday, and Sunday afternoon.
However, we’re not recording in the cathedral itself. Any visitor to one of our services would be able to tell you about the traffic noise and sirens of passing emergency services vehicles - and as such, it’s almost impossible to get a ‘clean’ take of a piece. And editing together lots of bits from multiple takes gets a bit too complicated and expensive. So we’re all decamping to a church in the Dublin suburbs, which should hopefully be free of extraneous noise.
This is my first recording with the cathedral choir, and I’m rather looking forward to it. I’ve done a couple of CDs with other groups, but I guess you would call most of them vanity recordings, rather than commercial releases.
And best of all for me, I get to do a solo on it. However, it’s only about a dozen notes long, so you could possibly miss it if you cough.
Recorded Works
Here’s a list of some of the Howells works we recorded; some or all or which may make it onto the final CD, due to be released on the Signum Records label in a few months:
Missa Aedis Christi
Thee Will I Love
I Love All Beauteous Things
Sweetest Of Sweets
Heac Dies
A Maid Peerless
Hills Of The North
Lent Begins
On this day - Ash Wednesday - every year I make some kind of public proclamation about what I’m planning to give up (or take up) for Lent.
Last year it was booze and caffeine - and I managed to avoid both for the full six and a half weeks. The year before I gave up alcohol and also went on a diet - the diet actually extending past the end of Lent for 6 months in all; helping me lose a total of almost 5 stone in weight.
This year, because my weight has been gradually creeping up over the last year or so, I’m going to go back on the diet. I’ll be using an online food diary called nutra check to record everything I eat and drink over the next 46 days, and will be limiting myself to 2000 calories a day (which is a reasonable target for a guy my size). I’ll also do 30 minutes of moderate exercise every day. And the plan is to lose at least a stone in weight before Easter - and hopefully more.
I’m not giving up alcohol as such, but I’ll be cutting right back. After all, booze can contain quite a lot of calories, and I’ll be wanting to reserve most (if not all) of my daily calorie allowance for food. I’m also not giving up on the caffeine either, as the withdrawal gives me awful headaches, and I get very sleeping - and I just don’t need any of that at the moment.
I am, however, considering a new thing - but I’m not sure whether I’ll manage it. I was thinking of going vegetarian for one day a week, just to see if cutting down on my meat intake will make me more healthy. I just don’t know at the moment whether my culinary skills are good enough to be able to prepare tasty and nutritious vegetarian meals.
Qualifications
There’s a job specification circulated today for two Lay Clerk roles in Winchester Cathedral choir. I’m not interested in moving myself, but I did notice something unusual in the job requirements. It says that candidates will be Preferably educated to post-graduate level.
I’ve never seen this kind of requirement for a singing job before. People are often required to be expert musicians, good sight-readers, and be experienced in church music. Some lay clerkships are also combined with teaching roles in the cathedral school, and as such require some kind of teaching qualification and experience.
However, I’ve never seen a request for post-graduate education before - which is all the more puzzling, as the job spec doesn’t qualify why this requirement is in place. I can only think that the Director of Music is used to witty intellectual conversation in the pub after Evensong, and doesn’t want standards to slip.
Winchester Cathedral/Alto (Counter-tenor) & Bass/Baritone Lay Clerk
They will be involved in the daily sung liturgy at the Cathedral, as well as concerts, and tours. Suitable voice, at least three years’ choral experience and advanced sight-reading skills required. Preferably educated to post-graduate level.
Full details of remuneration and position available in information pack obtainable from: Sue Armstrong, Choir Administrator. Auditions will be held in Winchester on: Friday 7 March 2008. Closing Date: 29/02/2008
Contact Phone: 01962 857219
Contact Address: The Cathedral Office, 1 The Close, Winchester SO23 9LS
Contact Email: sue.armstrong@winchester-cathedral.org.uk
Give it up for Lent
With Ash Wednesday fast approaching next week, I’m trying to decide on what to give up for Lent.
In recent years I’ve given up alcohol and caffeine - both of which have been quite hard to do, particularly the caffeine one. And a few years back I took up something for Lent: being completely honest with people. But that one turned out to be a bit of a disaster, and almost lost me some friends.
This year, for some reason, I don’t think I want to give up the booze. But I guess I can still cut down. I might try the caffeine thing, which will be okay as long as I can get past the week-long cold turkey of headaches, shaking, and sleepiness.
I’ve also decided that I’m going back on a diet. I’ve let my weight creep up over recent months, and really need to do something about it. And a daily calorie allowance will help me limit the alcohol consumption (because, when it comes down to it, food based calories are always better than liquid based ones).
Subscribe to the Atom
feed