Campaign for the Traditional Cathedral Choir

Howard's about • Big Bangor theories • Enchanting enterprises

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This page contains contributions from a variety of sources, and does not necessarily represent the views of the Campaign as a whole.

CHRISTMAS 2001 saw several cathedrals on the television - Southwell Minster was visited for Songs Of Praise on BBC1, and ITV went off to Brentwood Cathedral. However, the most prominence was given to Manchester Cathedral with their mixture of boys and girls for the "treble" line. Incidentally, you might think that Christmas In Vienna (BBC1) would feature the Vienna Boys' Choir somewhere, but you'd be wrong. It was Charlotte Church stealing the show, with contributions from other parties. Not a chorister in sight.

The Daily Telegraph splashed the above picture of choristers from St Paul's on their front page for Christmas 2001, while other papers decided to mix girls and boys together for some politically-correct shots.

Lent 2000 was heralded by a report on BBC Radio 4's Sunday programme that Bangor Cathedral were having difficulty finding choristers.

They have six places to fill at Bangor, and only three candidates for the posts. The director of the choir, Andrew Goodwin, said that when he was a chorister, there were 40 applications for four places, and now he is lucky to get three candidates for four places. Furthermore, when the director visits schools, he finds that children don't even know that Bangor has a cathedral - in fact, many of the pupils have never entered a church in their life!

The big problem for other choirs such as Lichfield, it was reported, is that many such choir schools are boarding schools, and 'boarding' is very much out of fashion.

Rochester Cathedral was visited the same day for Songs Of Praise on the BBC. Although the traditional choir was featured prominently and seen performing to a very high standard (pictured), the presenter joyfully announced that church music now enjoyed 'equal opportunities'.

After a brief report on the girls' choir, the programme continued with both choirs singing together in the stalls. To those watching, it probably now seemed 'normal' to see boys and girls presented together as 'the choir'. A mixed choir of boys, girls, and men, is the very thing that many people fear the most, and such a scenario is described in very negative terms by Dr Richard Seal, who formed the first cathedral girls' choir.

Howard Goodall (picured right), previously seen in Channel 4's Choirworks, was seen gracing our screens once more, this time with his new series, Big Bang Theories. As well as globe-trotting in search of the roots of musical notation, he headed off to Salisbury to try out some theories on 'musical whispers' with members of the choir.

His obvious respect for church music and his good rapport with the choristers was evident, as he experimented with further 'notation' issues.

In an article for The Independent, based on his new book, Big Bangs, Howard Goodall points out that parents no longer want to hand over their seven or eight-year-old children to someone else to educate and discipline. The choir school ethos is "powerful and mysterious", and many modern parents find it "threatening and strange".

He continues: "Boys of ten nowadays are not used to summoning the concentration required." Furthermore, there is a general shift among boys away from artistic, sensitive occupations such as music. A 12-year-old marching off to choir practice feels vulnerable and marginalised." As a former chorister educated at the renowned New College Choir School in Oxford, Howard Goodall is someone who knows what he's talking about.

Winchester Cathedral appeared on BBC1 in June 2000 singing a song from the shows with Lesley Garratt. They crooned their way through "Some Enchanted Evening" while managing not to look too embarrassed. Maybe this is what could be described as 'raising the profile of cathedral music' by taking their talents into the world of light entertainment.

Christmas 1999 and the entry into the year 2000 was woefully under-represented by the choral tradition. The Millennium Service from St Paul's in the presence of Her Majesty The Queen would have been an ideal occasion to make the most of the cathedral's all-male choir, but apart from the opening carol with faultless first verse solo, it would have been difficult to know that the choir even existed.

The only piece for which the choristers' services were required was a newly-commissioned work by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, a composition much in the 'Tavener' line. It was as if the powers-that-be found the choir an embarrassment. There were very few shots of them on television; indeed, most of the air-time was given over to the rows of schoolchildren performing 'modern' carols. Even the famous hymn "He who would valiant be" had been given new words for the congregation to sing.

Normally, the choir would have been on holiday at this time, so sitting twiddling their thumbs while the rows of girls (and a few boys) sang lightweight and transparent popular new ditties might well have made them wonder the worth of their returning during the holidays.

It should not come as any surprise that within the rows of schoolchildren singing these new carols - while the cathedral choir sat redundant - the girls outnumbered the boys several-fold.

Luckily, Christmas was heralded in the usual way with Carols from the famous King's College, Cambridge. The Head Chorister Oliver Potter (pictured above with the gentlemen from the choir) sang the traditional Once In Royal David's City to open the service which was broadcast on the Internet as well as being shown worldwide on television. People tune in to the service without realising the fragility of the entire choral tradition, emphasised by several broadcasts on how Salisbury girls were preparing to do not just the Christmas services but also those for the Millennium. The boys were also doing these services, but as usual, the emphasis was on the girls, as indeed it was in a similar documentary on France's TV5.

The boys' choir at Coventry Cathedral, who generally take the Tuesday Evensong, were to be seen outside the cathedral on 5th October 1999 straight after the evening service, when the Pilgrimage for Poverty marchers were holding a quick conference. The first person to speak at the gathering welcomed everybody with the following announcement: "Ladies and gentlemen..... and choirboys....." Well, it is becoming a bit difficult to know where you are these days, with the boys and girls singing together on two occasions in October alone.

The choristers stood on the steps for about 15 minutes (pictured right), staring with amusement as a pair of clowns blew bubbles. We're assured that the 'clowns' were not supposed to represent anything to do with cathedrals or clergy at all!

Mind you, it could be that the Coventry choirs are trying to raise their profile in order to compete with another group which is said to be 'based at' the cathedral - the St Michael's Singers. Their new CD is for sale at Coventry Cathedral, imaginatively entitled Swinging with the Saints (just don't ask). Maybe all the choirs could be combined, and then described as the 'Cathedral Swingers'!

A week before Christmas 1998, both The Times and The Times Educational Supplement published photos of boy choristers from Wells posing in front of 'artificial snow' to publicise their new CD. The boys in blue were pictured complete with scarves and woolly hats to complement their surplices. Unfortunately, both papers failed to mention that the powers-that-be at Wells had decided to dispense with the boys' services on Christmas Day - in every sense of the word. The girls sang all the Christmas Day services that year, as the boys had already have been sent home by then. This means that the girls also had the traditional Boxing Day Carol Service, which deprived the Head Chorister of his chance to sing the solo for Once in Royal.

However, the Independent on Sunday did mention that the boys had been sent home for Christmas, in a page 7 article entitled 'Requiem sounds for the all-male cathedral choir'. The story opened with the news that the '18 angelic voices' singing at Wells on Christmas Day would for the first time be girls, not boys. There followed quotes from Peter Giles, Chairman of CTCC, who predicted a dire future for the cathedral choir if this trend were to continue, while others claimed that there was not much difference in the sound.

A BBC documentary focused on the choir for its final episode of St Paul's (July 1999, pictured right). The life of the choristers who can work a 13-hour day was scrutinised in detail. We were treated to an intimate portrayal of life at the Choir School, which included the trials and tribulations of such a busy life in the centre of London. The film tended to dwell on the negative, the lowest point coming at the close of the programme when Edmund Melik-Mourad was finally appointed Head Chorister. He only survived a few weeks in the post, following problems with his throat which had dogged his previous term. The Head Chorister-in-waiting, Tom Cockett, who took over the post, said the final result was the worst of all worlds for everybody - "for Edmund, for me, and for Mr Scott." Oh, dear...

The Christmas 1998 issue of Country Life, the famous weekly magazine for armchair-squires, ran a four-page article asking whether there is an 'English' choral sound. The history of the Cambridge choirs and some famous Cathedrals was given, together with a full report of the issues surrounding the introduction of 'girl choristers'. The article finished with the news that "what matters is the music and its power to enrich  the lives of the choristers and their listeners".

Sky News reported on Easter Sunday 1998 that the 'Queen's favourite choristers' were a few boys 'short of a canticle'. Yes, according to choirmaster Jonathan Rees-Williams at St George's Chapel, Windsor, they are still three boy choristers short for the next academic year. The full complement should be 24 'lusty-lunged little 'uns' (sic) although headmaster the Rev George Marsh admits many people don't know the choir exists, or indeed just take choirboys for granted in such an establishment. Furthermore, he adds, many people don't realise that their son could apply for a place in the choir, which has now hired a PR agency in a bid to boost recruitment. They could always place some ads in the Beano.

Easter Sunday 1999 was greeted  by a spread in The Daily Telegraph on the choristers of the Chapel Royal. The youngsters who 'sing for their supper... and the Queen' continue their 1,000-year-old tradition without being 'burdened by the weight of history'. There was no mention of the modern threat of the fairer sex, although the parting shot of the article was a reminder of how times have changed: "When we go away for the Maundy service, we stop at a service station and get a fiver each for sweets and playing on arcade games," according to 14-year-old James Spillard. In the past, says the article, the money went on the servant for 'blacking shoes and cleaning' and the barber for 'Sunday dressing'.

The Franco-German channel television Arte(available all over Europe via Astra and Hot Bird satellites) showed an extraordinary documentary called L'Or des Anges (Engelschore). Directed by Philippe Reypens, a former chorister himself, the film highlighted the cream of the European boys-only choirs. Featured were Worcester Cathedral Choir, Knabenchor Hannover, the Vienna Boys' Choir, Les Petits Chanteurs a la Croix de Bois (pictured right performing the Cats' Duet in a scene from the programme), and Polskie Slowiki. This was a girl-free zone, which showed the daily routine of the members of the choirs, and the high level of training and self-discipline they are required to adopt. Had this been a documentary about English choirs, we can be quite sure that it would have been the now-obligatory self-conscious and embarrassed whirlwind shot of boys' choirs followed by a lengthy trip to the girls at Salisbury. It was proof that the European boys' choirs are very much alive and well, thanks to the excellence of their performance. This milestone production was shot in 16:9 PalPlus and features both colour and black-and-white sequence. The documentary was followed on Arte by a concert from the Vienna Boys' Choir. You can view stills from the programme and read details by clicking here.

The December 1998 issue of the BBC Music Magazine featured an article entitled 'Surplice to requirements?' Salisbury is once again the main subject of the debate, with quotes from Simon Lole, the new choirmaster, and Peter Giles, chairman of the Campaign for the Traditional Cathedral Choir.

Mr Lole describes scheduling as 'a nightmare' with a considerable increase in workload for the musical staff, but says he does not want 'this wonderful tradition' to put cathedral music 'in an ivory tower'. "We should service the community and reach out more: having two choirs helps me to do that."

The author of the article, Graeme Kay, notes that St Mary's, Edinburgh, and Manchester Cathedral have opted for mixed choirs. Peter Giles warns that cost-cutting could lead to the amalgamation of boys and girls' choirs, with the result that the tenors and basses of tomorrow could be lost. He points out that girls have the chance to sing at senior school, university and during the rest of their lives, in his bid to counteract the 'equal rights' argument.

Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4 featured a quick report that the heritage of cathedral music was being threatened by the arrival of girls. The article was triggered by the recent success in the Proms of 12-year-old St Paul's chorister Edward Burrowes, and went on to claim that boys and girls' choirs are never mixed, nor do they sing together. A shortage of adult male singers in years to come might be the result of girls singing with men, once the boys had decided that this now-female business was sissy.

Frances Harwood, former director of Ely Parish Church, argued that money was always in short supply in cathedral choirs, and that with two choirs, the boys might ultimately lose out as a result.

The former choirmaster at Salisbury Cathedral, Dr Richard Steele (sic) was asked if he regretted being the first to admit girls. He sounded stunned and declared that he rejoiced in it! He earlier stated that he understood why people thought the 1,000-year-old tradition was being put at risk, and added once again that in his view, the two choirs should not be joined together, pointing out the difference in tone of boys and girls' voices. If one could weigh a voice, he said, a boy's would be heavier, and a girl's was refreshing and light.

In the same programme, David Hill from Winchester Cathedral was cautiously enthusiastic about the imminent arrival of girls at Winchester. These would be from as wide a background as possible, without their being attached to any particular school. Entertaining both boys and girls in the rehearsal room was not on the agenda, he stressed. The boys would be 'playing conkers in the back row' and leaving the girls to do all the work!

David Hill was also interviewed by Chris Serle on BBC Radio 3 in November 1998, and asked about the new girls' choirs at Winchester. Mr Hill stated that he had always been 'very pro-girls' choirs' as he had a daughter at Salisbury Cathedral, but that he was very worried about the quality of music teaching in state schools. He was already seeing a shortage of boys for the choir, and although the standard was still good, he was concerned that other children's voices were being damaged by the 'shouting' mentality of music singing in state schools.

Some Winchester choristers were also asked for their opinions about girls' choirs. Not surprisingly, with Sir probably glaring down at them, 'Harry' said it was important for girls 'to have a chance', while 'Ben' added nervously that it did 'break the tradition'. Chris Serle tittered and referred to a 'diplomatic answer'. Oh dear, Ben - not quite the party line. You'll be singing scales during break for the next three weeks!

Meanwhile, Mr Hill added that the launching of the girls' choir for 10-18-year-olds had nothing to do with the fuss brought by a girl and her mother who claimed they were victims of discrimination. They had already been 'thinking about it' at Winchester for a long time! Don't worry, we believe you!

'Ben' said that his favourite music was that of Mozart, while 'Harry' opted for Stanford.

Whatever the future holds at Winchester, choir, organ and director surpassed themselves with the 1998 Christmas Day Evensong, which proved that at the moment, it is one of the top Cathedral choirs. A cello was even brought in to add extra novelty to the anthem!

Earlier in the summer, BBC Radio 3 conducted a quick interview with Peter Giles, the chairman of CTCC, and the Secretary Bernard Haunch appeared on Premier Radio, a Christian station based in London.

The British public was originally introduced to the politics of cathedral music in the BBC series 'The Choir', based on a novel by Joanna Trollope. In the plot, the city council and the cathedral (Gloucester was used as a location; Southminster was the invented name) are at odds over finance for the choir, and a commercial exploitation follows.

This seemed wildly implausible at the time of the programme, but since then, cathedral choirs around the country have been 'sponsored' by industry, while so-called political correctness threatens to wreck the heritage of cathedral music forever.

The record-buying public snapped up copies of the soundtrack for the television series, which included music by Stanford, Franck and Mendelssohn, as well as the mushy 'main theme', written specifically for the series. Suddenly, cathedral music had become pop music!  Indeed, when a further record was brought out, it really was categorised as pop music, because the classical charts would not recognise it as their sort of music.

The film's young star, Anthony Way, became a minor celebrity much in the style of Aled Jones, while a desperate attempt was made to cash in on his voice while it lasted - hence, some further CDs.

Meanwhile, the issues raised in the series were lost on the public, whose interest in cathedral music was short-lived. The commercialisation of the cathedrals continues, and the uncomfortable subject of girls' choirs lies unresolved.

Now that he is at senior school and out of the public eye, what does Master Way think of girls singing the top line, by the way? "Oh, girls are a good thing, if they are kept separate. I don't think they should be mixed."