Choir of the Month

The Choir of Westminster Abbey is renowned worldwide as one of the finest choirs of its type. Comprising some 30 boys (all of whom attend the Abbey's dedicated residential Choir School) and 12 professional adult singers (known as Lay Vicars), the Choir plays a central role both in the daily choral services in the Abbey and in the many royal, state and national occasions which take place there.

In addition to fulfilling its responsibilities in Westminster, the Choir undertakes an extensive programme of broadcasts, recordings, concerts and tours, travelling in recent years to Australia, the Far East, the United States, Russia, Hungary and Spain. In June 2012 the Choir was invited by Pope Benedict to sing with the Sistine Chapel Choir at the Papal Mass for the Solemnity of St Peter and St Paul in St Peter's Basilica, Rome, and autumn 2014 saw another major tour of the USA, including performances in Washington DC, Dallas and New York. Closer to home, the Choir gives regular concerts in the Abbey and has appeared at many major festivals including the Lufthansa Festival of Baroque Music and the BBC Proms.

The Choir of Westminster Abbey’s celebrated series of recordings for Hyperion includes the complete Great Service by William Byrd, choral works by Edward Elgar, and the critically acclaimed Mary and Elizabeth at Westminster Abbey, chosen by Gramophone as a Critics' Choice.

During the choir's vacations, the Abbey welcomes visiting choirs to sing.

There are seven choirs who sing for services:

The Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys, The Girls' Choir, The Young People's Choir, Schola Cantorum, Cathedral Consort, The Renaissance Singers, and Lantern Voices.

All details of these ensembles, and scholarships, as well as how to join, can be found HERE.

York Minster has one of the leading UK choirs, with a tradition going back over 1000 years. The boy and girl choristers share the weekly services equally, and are all students at the neighbouring Minster School.

N.B.  For music details, please follow the link above, then scroll down to Choir, and click on Service Scheme.

St Asaph Cathedral Choir has a proud history dating back to the late thirteenth century and continues to play a central role in the liturgical and musical life of both the Cathedral and the Diocese. The choir consists of boys aged 7–13 and girls aged 8–16 who share a love of music and a commitment to high standards of choral singing. While previous musical training is not essential, choristers are encouraged to develop their talents through regular participation in worship and music-making. The choir sings frequently at Cathedral services and has gained national recognition through appearances on radio and television, including live broadcasts and two editions of the BBC's Songs of Praise recorded at St Asaph Cathedral.

Visiting Choirs

During choir holidays we welcome visiting choirs to sing on Sundays at the Choral Eucharist at 11.00am and Choral Evensong at 3.30pm. 

Beverley Minster is proud of its choral tradition that stretches back many centuries. Its current choir, one of the largest parish church choirs in the country,  comprises separate top lines of Boys, Girls, Consort (older girls) and adult sopranos supported by a ‘back row’ of altos, tenors and basses. We also have a Junior choir for children aged 5-8. The choir’s usual schedule is to sing two choral services on a Sunday and evensong on a Thursday night. In addition to this we sing in special services, concerts, record CD’s (available in the Minster shop!) and generally get involved with all things choral that we can. Recently, we performed the whole of Handel’s Messiah with the East Riding County Choir and the Black Dyke Band. Many of our choristers do exams in Choristership and you will see the medals of differing levels that our choristers wear.  

The choir perform Morning Prayer Monday to Friday at 08.15am and Holy Communion at 10:00am on Thursdays as well as Choral Evensong at 19:30pm. Choral Evensong is also performed at 17:30pm on Sundays.

Music is an important part of our worship at Hampstead Parish Church. Many of our services are enriched by fine and varied music from the Anglican cathedral tradition and beyond, including music by formerly under-represented groups.

The Cathedral Choir consists of up to 20 choristers (boys and girls) and 6 full-time Lay Clerks, who are all professional singers in and around Manchester. The Choir is directed by the Organist & Master of the Choristers, Christopher Stokes.

The earliest reference to choristers at St Davids Cathedral was in 1132. Thomas Tomkins was born in St Davids in 1572 and he became a chorister in the cathedral while his father was the Organist and Master of the Choristers.

The present Cathedral Choir is unique in the UK in that its top line consists of girls aged 8-18. The lay clerks of the choir work locally in a variety of occupations. There is also a Boys’ choir and ‘The Cathedral Singers’ choir.

Tuesdays & Fridays fortnightly, Boys' Choir & Lay Clerks

Please note:  Choral Evensong (or Evening Prayer) is at 4pm during the Winter months.

There are both boy and girl choristers, together with ATB lower voices.  The Cathedral also has an active Parish Choir and Voluntary Choir who sing on occasion.

Sunday and Thursday services are sung by the Cathedral Choir (Boys and ATB) who also sing on Tuesdays (Boys only) and Fridays (ATB only) each week.

Monday and Wednesday services are sung by Llandaff Cathedral School Girl Choristers.

The Girl Choristers occasionally join with the Cathedral Choir for major services in the Christian year and for Diocesan events. They often undertake outreach events in the Diocese and make visits to other Cathedrals. To celebrate their 20th anniversary in 2016, the girls sang services at Westminster Cathedral and Westminster Abbey. In 2017 the girls enjoyed a 4-day stay in Edinburgh where they sang at both St Mary’s and St Giles’ Cathedrals and in 2018 have sung at St Paul’s Cathedral and Gloucester Cathedral.

The Cathedral Parish Choir is a mixed, voluntary choir who sing principally at the 9.00am Parish Eucharist every Sunday morning and the occasional special services throughout the year.  They are trained and led by the Parish Organist, David Thomas.  The choir has an important role to play in the collective worship of the Cathedral Community.

Both boys and girls from the age of seven are accepted; adults who have a reasonable singing voice and can read music are also most welcome. 

The Director of Music is Stephen Moore.

N.B.  For the Music List, please follow the link above - the 'Weekly Music' (blue text) appears in a menu on the left-hand side of the screen.

The Cathedral Choir, the resident liturgical choir at the Cathedral, draws its members from the most distinguished musicians in the DC-area region. Employing nine regular singers, the ensemble performs alongside the student choristers for weekly worship services, events of national or ecumenical significance, and an annual concert series that champions a breadth of historical and contemporary repertoire.

The flagship University of St Andrews choir, St Salvator's Chapel Choir consists of around 30 choral scholars from the student body. They undertake annual tours and record 1/2 CDs per annum. They can be found on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram (@sschapelchoir)

Evensong is sung on Wednesdays and Sundays in TERM TIME. Evensong may also be sung by St Salvator's Singers (a mix of staff and choral scholars) or St Katherine's choir (another university choir of women's voices).

Boys, Girls and Men choirs with a professional director of music, an assistant organist and director of girls' choir, and organ scholar. Boys and girls are drawn from schools throughout London. There are six professional Lay Clerks in the Cathedral Choir and up to six Choral Scholars.