Director's Blog
Lindsay Gray, Director of the RSCM, shares his personal views
and experiences of life at the Royal School of Church Music,
with regular messages on this page.
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A Christmas gift
Friday 18 December 2009
In this season of Advent, I send good wishes to our members and to all involved in church music across the world. I am aware of the immense amount of time and energy that goes into preparing and delivering the music for Advent and Christmas services – thank you!
2009 has been a busy year for the RSCM. Much has been achieved thanks to the hard work of our staff, volunteers and members. On a personal note, I have enjoyed meeting so many church musicians in the UK and, earlier in the year, in Australia.
In 2010 I intend to travel even more widely, visiting areas of the UK which I have not been able to include so far and touring South Africa in March with the intention of providing support for church musicians in a range of cities across that country. I will also speak on behalf of the RSCM at a major conference in Washington, DC in July.
One piece of excellent news is the very generous donation we just received from the Liz and Terry Bramall Trust. Their grant will enable us to provide more support for church musicians across the regions of England and help us to find new ways of bringing more people – and especially the young – to church music in forthcoming years.
With every good wish for Advent, Christmas and for 2010
Lindsay Gray
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Conference season
Wednesday 27 May 2009
May has been an extraordinary month of activity! It is the most popular time of year for conferences, and I have spent much of the last four weeks travelling from one group to another. It has been a terrific way to meet lots of people at one time, and to spread the news of the work of the RSCM to those who may not have known about us before.
I was very glad to be invited to Liverpool to a conference of the ‘CCDM’ – the Catholic Cathedral Directors of Music. This recently-created group is already proving to be an excellent forum for sharing expertise between those directing music at cathedrals with established traditions and those that are developing new choirs and building up musical resources.
I then went on to Chichester for the annual meeting of the Choir Schools Association. There were many familiar faces here that I knew from my days as Headmaster of Llandaff Cathedral School, and it was good to catch up with them, as well as to hear that the RSCM is significant in the daily life of many cathedral schools.
Back across the south of England to Wells, and the conference of the Cathedral Organists Association. This year’s focus on new music coincided with the “New Music Wells” festival, and included a workshop and performance by the consort ‘Fretwork’ and the first performance of a commissioned work, Jonathan Dove’s Missa Brevis, sung superbly by the Great Choir (boys, girls and men) of Wells Cathedral.
On home ground again, it was a great pleasure to host the RSCM’s annual Celebration Day in Salisbury. Singers from choirs across the south of England joined the RSCM Midlands & South West Cathedral Singers and the Salisbury Cathedral Choir for a service which included Haydn’s The heavens are telling the glory of God and pieces by several of those receiving honorary awards, such as Malcolm Archer, Noël Tredinnick and Philip Wilby. Diplomas were also presented to five students who have completed the Sacred Music Studies course.
I am also continuing to meet as many as possible of the volunteers and members of the RSCM around the country; recent visits have included Liverpool and Sussex. We welcome visitors at the RSCM office in Salisbury Cathedral Close; do call in if you are passing!
Lindsay Gray
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Sacred music 'down under'
Monday 16 February 2009
During January 2009, I was lucky enough to be in the sunshine of Brisbane, Australia, for the RSCM’s International Festival of Sacred Music. Participants had travelled from all over Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea to attend the course, which was also an occasion to celebrate the 150th anniversaries of the State of Queensland and the Anglican and Catholic Dioceses in Brisbane. I also spent some time afterwards in Sydney meeting leading church musicians in New South Wales.
The range of workshops, rehearsals, services and concerts at the Brisbane Festival was very impressive, including training streams focusing on singing, composition, instrumental groups, liturgical issues and much more. It was particularly inspiring to see the large number of young people involved in the different strands of activity.
Special highlights for me included the concerts in Brisbane’s Anglican and Roman Catholic Cathedrals, the excellent performances of the three choirs (the central ‘core’ ensemble, the vocal academy and the youth course) throughout the Festival, the compositions produced by delegates and the opportunity to work with student singers, including some who hope to spend a gap year here in the UK.
I must express my appreciation to Course Director Dr Ralph Morton and all who worked so hard and took part in a wonderful week of music-making, worship and friendship. It is good to see that the training and education of church musicians is in such good hands in Australia and New Zealand, and I was very glad to have a chance to meet so many of those who tirelessly work to maintain high standards of music Sunday by Sunday in the churches.
Lindsay Gray
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"Sweet singing in the choir"
Thursday 18 December 2008
As we approach Christmas, I am very conscious of the many services and activities taking place during this season of Advent and it is always good to hear stories of inspiring worship, carol singing, overflowing congregations and, above all, occasions where music has played an important part in the wonderful message which shines through at this time of the year.
From a personal point of view I shall be taking part in the music at Midnight Mass in our local church at Tisbury in Wiltshire where there is an RSCM choir and Charpentier’s Midnight Mass will be sung. In recent weeks I have visited a range of places on RSCM business including Bristol, Southwell, Preston, Leeds and London; in January I travel to Australia to speak at the International Summer School which takes place in Brisbane and to meet RSCM members in Sydney.
I should like to thank all staff, volunteers and members who have made me so welcome this year and who contribute so much to the RSCM both during working hours and in their spare time. Please continue to spread the word about the work and activities of the RSCM; we would like to recruit more affiliates, individual members and friends so that we can increase the amount of work we do, especially in education and outreach.
With best wishes for a joyful Christmas and a happy and successful 2009,
Lindsay Gray
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The best of Friends
Monday 10 November 2008
Much of the past three months has been spent travelling, meeting as many as possible of those who work so hard for the RSCM around the country. Although this is naturally taking time, I am gradually getting to know more about the volunteers, committees and events which take place in all corners of the British Isles and beyond. It has been fascinating to see the broad range of activities and the excellent work being done at a local level.
As I write, the autumn season of Area Festivals is in full swing, and I am greatly looking forward to attending the events in Bristol Cathedral and Southwell Minster. This has been an excellent opportunity for me to make personal contact with the area committees and membership, and specifically to promote membership recruitment. We are focussing on recruitment of Friends this autumn, and hope that many of those who sing with church choirs at the festivals will wish to join as a Friend and personally support the work of the RSCM.
I have also been meeting some of the organisations with which we have some common goals, and looking at the possibilities for partnership in various projects. For example, I am already familiar with the Choir Schools’ Association from my days as a Headmaster, and have been talking to them on behalf of the RSCM in the hope of developing some joint outreach projects.
The highlight of the summer was undoubtedly the International Summer School and Conference at Canterbury. It was so good to meet delegates from around the world, and representatives of the overseas branches in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and the USA. It was a busy week (especially as I managed to call briefly into more than 30 of the 35 workshop sessions!), but also inspiring and uplifting. The strongest memories I brought home with me included working again with Bob Chilcott (we had sung together on a daily basis in the 1970s in our days as undergraduates) and attending the inspirational sessions led by James MacMillan and Ken Burton. I could include many other memories, but three highlights particularly come to mind: the superb range of workshops and services, the excellent concert by the MYC, and the vocal performances of delegates from all over the world in impromptu national songs at the final dinner! You can read a fuller report of the December 2008 edition of CMQ.
We also had a chance at Summer School to say a personal thank you to Gordon Appleton, who is stepping down from his role as Director of Voluntary Networks. Since 2002 Gordon has co-ordinated communication with the UK Area Committees and the overseas Branches. I know that many of you will have come into contact with Gordon over the years and will be aware of the tremendous work he has put in around the UK and beyond. We are all extremely grateful for the dedication he has brought to this role, and are glad to announce that he will be leading a new education project for the RSCM in the north of England. Our thanks also go to Julian Elloway, who has edited Church Music Quarterly for the last six issues. He hands over to the new Communications Officer, Cathy Markall, for the next edition.
Lindsay Gray
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On the road
Wednesday 6 August 2008
At the time of writing, many of us are about to take part in the International Summer School and Conference at Canterbury, and the office is a hive of activity as the final preparations are made. I shall be present in Canterbury myself for the complete week from 11th to 17th August. This is an excellent opportunity to meet delegates from all over the world and I am personally delighted that there has been such a good response.
There is a wonderfully wide-ranging programme of lectures, practical sessions, discussions and services which provide a great opportunity for those involved in sacred music to meet and work together. Some of the sessions are open to the public – such as the workshops by Bob Chilcott and Ken Burton, and the keynote address by James MacMillan.
During the last few weeks I have spent some time travelling around the UK meeting RSCM co-ordinators and volunteers. It is really good to see the variety of activities which are taking place and I look forward to attending more events in the autumn.
We regularly receive new applications for membership or affiliation to the RSCM but we always need to be on the look out for new members. I am often greeted with 'We didn't know that our choir was eligible to be affiliated to the RSCM!' In the autumn we shall be launching a major recruitment drive since I believe that there are many choirs, ensembles and other groups performing sacred music which could benefit from RSCM membership and thus contribute towards the cause of helping the development of sacred music across the world. If you would like to help in this recruitment drive or if you have thoughts on how you could support this initiative in your area, please do not hesitate to let us know.
You may also like to consider giving a Friends subscription as a gift to any of your family or friends who are interested in church music – see the next edition of CMQ for details, or call us for an application form.
Finally, we are very pleased to announce that Cathy Markall will be taking up a new post of Communications Officer from the autumn. Cathy will be particularly involved in developing this website and our e-mail systems so that we can continue to improve our communication with members and others who have an interest in sacred music.
Lindsay Gray
See highlights of the Director's address to the Summer School here.
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Getting to know you
Friday 6 June 2008
Having just completed my first month at the RSCM, I should like to thank the many people who have made me so welcome, especially the staff at the office in Salisbury, as well as the many volunteers from the UK and beyond who have sent good wishes. It is clear to me that an immense amount of hard work takes place and I feel very fortunate to be working for the RSCM.
Naturally, a great deal of my first month has been spent learning about the systems which are in place in the office as well as getting to know the staff individually, something I consider to be of great importance. I have had discussions with each of the Co-ordinators and meetings with both Council and the Shadow Voluntary Forum. I look forward to meeting as many volunteers and members as possible during forthcoming months.
Celebration Day in Liverpool was a wonderful event; to see and hear over 600 singers taking part in Stanford's Te Deum under Brian Kay's direction in the magnificent Anglican Cathedral was an exceptional experience, and it was a privilege to read out the citations relating to the honorands who have given so much to the RSCM and to church music in general. It was a particular pleasure to chat to the singers taking part and to see the enthusiasm of the individuals both for their own choral tradition and for the opportunity to be involved in such a special occasion. I heard a number of great 'success stories' reflecting strong, flourishing choirs and I believe that we should continually remind ourselves of this - especially when we seek inspiration to help choirs which are going through difficult times.
Earlier that week I spoke about the RSCM at the combined annual conferences of Heads of Choir Schools and Cathedral Organists, also held in Liverpool. I came away with a great feeling of optimism about Liverpool as a place which is really flourishing after some difficult times; it is heartening to know that so much is taking place musically in the area and that there is considerable RSCM activity and involvement there.
During forthcoming months I hope to travel around the UK meeting RSCM representatives and attending some events; I very much look forward to attending the International Summer School and Conference at Canterbury in August and also an international RSCM conference in Australia next January which will give me further opportunities to meet members from different countries and hear about their activities. Please let me know if there is a special event in your area which you would like me to attend; although my diary is already filling up, I shall make every effort to support it if I can.
Lindsay Gray