Willcocks welcomes new appointment

The well-known choral conductor, Sir David Willcocks, has welcomed the appointment of Lindsay Gray as the next Director of the Royal School of Church Music. Mr Gray, 54, currently Headmaster of The Cathedral School, Llandaff, Wales, will take over leadership of the RSCM from Professor John Harper during Spring 2008.

Sir David Willcocks (88) was Director of Music at King’s College Chapel, Cambridge for many years, and accepted Lindsay Gray to be a choral scholar there in the early 1970s. Sir David, himself the most senior former student of the RSCM, has welcomed the appointment. 'Lindsay Gray is an excellent musician and a man who readily gains everyone's trust and respect. He will prove to be a worthy successor in the distinguished line of RSCM Directors.'

Originally from Nottinghamshire, Lindsay Gray also studied at Durham University, where he sang in the cathedral choir and directed a parish church choir.  He was Director of Music at Queen’s College, Taunton (where he also directed the Somerset Youth Choir) and at Cheltenham College, before moving into educational leadership and management.

Mark Williams, Chairman of the RSCM Council, said, ‘The Council is enormously pleased to be able to appoint a person of such wide experience and high achievement. Lindsay Gray impressed the selection panel with the combination of skills he can bring to the role. We have every confidence that he will be able to build on the important work by John Harper over the last decade.’

The conductor and composer Bob Chilcott, who was a choral scholar at King’s at the same time as Lindsay Gray, said, ‘Lindsay is not only a fine multi-faceted musician but also a man with the vision and energy to move the RSCM ever forward. This is a very exciting appointment.’

4 October 2007

Notes to Editors

A photograph of Lindsay Gray can be downloaded from the picture gallery on this website.

The Royal School of Church Music (RSCM), which is celebrating the 80th anniversary of its foundation this year, is an educational charity and promotes the best use of music in worship, church life, and the wider community. The RSCM also publishes music and training resources, and organises courses, short workshops and activities. With over 8,500 affiliates, members and friends in over 40 countries it is an international network, supported by over 750 volunteers and small team of staff based throughout the UK.

Lindsay Gray will be the sixth Director of the RSCM since its foundation in 1927; his predecessors are (in chronological order) Sydney Nicholson, Gerald Knight, Lionel Dakers, Harry Bramma, John Harper.  Professor Harper, 60, steps down from the role at the end of this year to become the first director of the new International Centre of Sacred Music Studies at Bangor University, where he will concentrate on research, teaching and writing.  

PDFs of RSCM news releases are generally available here (go to "News Releases").

Photographs for media use are available from the Media & Picture Gallery (go to "RSCM picture gallery").

For further enquiries contact:
Stuart Robinson:
RSCM Media Relations Organiser
srobinson@rscm.com
T: 01492 556378 / 07831 827701

or

Heather Bamber
RSCM Marketing & Communications Administrator
E: hbamber@rscm.com
T: 01722 424847 or 07786 331364