Choir of New College Oxford

The Choir of New College Oxford is part of the collegiate foundation of New College, Oxford, established by William of Wykeham in 1379.[1] It is one of England's oldest choral foundations and is the oldest of its kind in Oxford and Cambridge, predating its sister college in Cambridge by more than sixty years. Consisting of approximately 16 boys and 14 men, it is one of the main choral foundations of the University of Oxford and is regarded as one of the leading choirs of the world. Under Edward Higginbottom, the choir was characterised by a robust sound that allowed individual voices to be heard,[1] and has two Gramophone Awards to its name.

Choir of New College Oxford
Choir
New College Chapel, Oxford
Founded1379
FounderWilliam of Wykeham
GenreChoir
Members
  • 16 boy choristers aged 7–13
  • 14 adult male singers
Music directorRobert Quinney
Websitehttps://www.newcollegechoir.com/

Membership

The choir is made up of choristers aged eight to thirteen who attend New College School,[2] undergraduates (known as academical clerks) from the age of 18 who study at the college, and lay clerks - older, professional singers.[3] The choir sings in the usual collegiate format of Decani and Cantoris, with seven men on either side. Historically, the gentlemen of the choir were solely lay clerks. It was only in the 1960s that the choir admitted its first undergraduate member - the young countertenor,[4][5] James Bowman.

Recordings

The choir has a reputation as one of the finest Anglican choirs in the world, and is known particularly for its performances of Renaissance and Baroque music.[6]

Under the directorship of Edward Higginbottom, the choir rose to particular prominence in the 1990s with their platinum best-selling and award-winning Agnus Dei disc which includes Allegri's famous Miserere mei.[7] The choir's discography rapidly grew under Higginbottom and now totals over 110 discs. A new chapter in the choir's recording life began in 2010 with the launch of its own label, Novum. Recordings represent a of music from the core of the English choral tradition (Howells, Stanford, Wesley, Blow, Britten, Ludford, Tomkins, Boyce, Croft, Taverner, Tye, Locke, Handel, Gibbons, Tallis and Byrd).[8] Further projects include Bach's St John Passion and Motets, Monteverdi's Vespers, Haydn's Creation, as well as recordings of the music of Poulenc, MacMillan, Copland and the music of their contemporaries. Reflecting the interests of Edward Higginbottom, the choir has made important contributions to the performance and recording of French baroque music - in particular the music of Du Caurroy, Charpentier, Delalande, and Couperin. The choir has made numerous recordings of continental polyphony including Lassus, Palestrina, and de Monte.

In 2008, the choir won its second Gramophone Award in the early music category for their recording of Nicholas Ludford's Missa Benedicta.[9]

Tours

The choir began touring overseas in the 1960s under David Lumsden, who recognised the benefits it would bring to the choir as well as the reputation of the college.[10] To compliment their considerable recording activity, New College Choir established a busy schedule of concerts and international touring taking the choir to countries as far afield as America, Australia, Japan, and Brazil. European tours have been a mainstay of the choir's international activity, with particular emphasis on France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, The Netherlands, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. On 29 June 2015 and 2016, at the invitation of the Holy See and the Cappella Musicale Pontificia Sistina, the choir sang at the Papal Pallium mass for the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul in St. Peter's Basilica.[11][12][13]

Recent sabbaticals have allowed the choir to benefit from the musical direction of Paul Brough and Dr James Lancelot.

Organists and directors of music

Organ Scholars

Former organ scholars include:

Distinguished former members

References
  1. Kozinn, Allan (21 April 2010). "Robust Collection of Singing Visitors". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  2. "New College Choir". New College School, Oxford. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  3. "About Us". Choir of New College Oxford. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  4. Macdonald, Kyle. Leading countertenor James Bowman, who "inspired a generation", has died aged 81, ClassicFM, 28 March 2023
  5. Blyth, Alan. "Bowman, James (Thomas)", in Grove Music Online (2001)
  6. Stevenson, Joseph. "Edward Higginbottom". Allmusic.com.
  7. http://www.gramophone.co.uk/awardstemplate.asp?id=128&award_year=1997
  8. "Recordings". Choir of New College Oxford.
  9. http://www.gramophone.co.uk/awardstemplate.asp?id=998&award_year=2008
  10. Beeson, Trevor (2009). In Tuneful Accord: The Church Musicians. SCM Press. ISBN 978-033404193-1.
  11. "Pope welcomes Orthodox delegation for feast of Sts Peter and Paul: Choristers of the Anglican choir of New College, Oxford, sing during Mass". Efpastoremeritus2.com. Archived from the original on 13 August 2015. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  12. Glatz, Carol (30 June 2015). "Archbishops who attended pallium Mass struck by sense of unity". Catholic Herald. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  13. "Papal Pallium Mass – St. Peters Basilica". Allevents.in.
  14. "History of Oxford New College school - of choristers ancient and modern". www.ofchoristers.net. Archived from the original on 9 January 2005. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  15. "ARCHIVE RECORDINGS — Remastered 78 rpm recordings from 1927-1951". The Choir of New College Oxford. Archived from the original on 3 December 2008. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
  16. "David Hurley (Counter-tenor) - Short Biography". Bach Cantatas. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
  17. "The King's Singers' David Hurley: Final Performance with the Choir". www.thetabernaclechoir.org. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
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