Choir of St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
Encyclopedia
The Choir of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...

 exists to sing services in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.

It has been in existence since 1348 and, with the exception of the Commonwealth
Commonwealth of England
The Commonwealth of England was the republic which ruled first England, and then Ireland and Scotland from 1649 to 1660. Between 1653–1659 it was known as the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland...

 period (1649–1660), has sung services in the Chapel continuously ever since.

The choir today

The choir comprises 23 boy choristers (6 of whom are probationers or training choristers) and 12 professional Lay Clerk
Lay clerk
A lay clerk, also known as a lay vicar, song man or a vicar choral, is a professional adult singer in a Cathedral or collegiate choir in the United Kingdom. The Vicars Choral were substitutes for the Canons...

s, singing Countertenor
Countertenor
A countertenor is a male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of a contralto, mezzo-soprano, or a soprano, usually through use of falsetto, or far more rarely than normal, modal voice. A pre-pubescent male who has this ability is called a treble...

, tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...

 and bass.The director of music is Timothy Byram-Wigfield. The Choir sings daily during term-time.

The boys are educated at St George's School, Windsor Castle
St George's School, Windsor Castle
St George's School, Windsor Castle is a coeducational independent Preparatory School of some 410 children, aged from 3 to 13, in Windsor, near London....

 which is situated in the Castle grounds. The Lay Clerks live in the Horseshoe Cloister and on Denton's Commons.

The choir sings regularly in the presence of the Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

 and other members of the Royal Family
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...

. Significant recent events have included:
  • the annual service for the Order of the Garter
    Order of the Garter
    The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...

    , Britain's highest order of chivalry
  • the marriage of Peter Phillips
    Peter Phillips
    Peter Phillips is the son of Anne, Princess Royal of the United Kingdom.Peter Phillips or Philips may also refer to:* Peter Philips Peter Phillips (born 1977) is the son of Anne, Princess Royal of the United Kingdom.Peter Phillips or Philips may also refer to:* Peter Philips Peter Phillips (born...

     and Autumn Kelly in 2008
  • the thanksgiving service for Edmund Hillary
    Edmund Hillary
    Sir Edmund Percival Hillary, KG, ONZ, KBE , was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953 at the age of 33, he and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers known to have reached the summit of Mount Everest – see Timeline of climbing Mount Everest...

     in 2008, televised live in New Zealand
  • the baptism of James, Viscount Severn
    James, Viscount Severn
    James, Viscount Severn is the second child and only son of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, and the youngest grandchild of Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh...

     in 2008
  • the thanksgiving service for HM The Queen
    Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
    Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

    's 80th birthday in 2006
  • the Service of Prayer and Dedication on the marriage of Charles, Prince of Wales
    Charles, Prince of Wales
    Prince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay...

     and Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall
    Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall
    Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall is the second wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, and is the current holder of the titles of Princess of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall, Duchess of Rothesay and Countess of Chester...

     in 2005
  • the funeral of Princess Margaret in St George's Chapel and the thanksgiving service for her life held in Westminster Abbey
    Westminster Abbey
    The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...

     in 2002
  • the marriage of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex
    Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex
    Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex KG GCVO is the third son and fourth child of Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh...

     and Sophie Rhys-Jones in 1999


Concerts are also given from time to time, some collaborating with ensembles such as the London Concert Orchestra, the London Handel Orchestra, Southbank Sinfonia
Southbank Sinfonia
Southbank Sinfonia describes itself as "Britain's Newest Orchestra and one of the most exciting projects in music for decades."...

 and the London Mozart Players
London Mozart Players
The London Mozart Players is a British chamber orchestra founded in 1949. The LMP is the longest-established chamber orchestra in the United Kingdom whose performances and recordings focus largely on the core repertoire from the Classical era...

. The choir also broadcasts regularly on BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...

 and BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...

.

The choir is directed by the Director of Music and accompanied an Assistant Organist, plus an organ scholar
Organ scholar
An organ scholar is a young musician employed as a part-time assistant organist at an institution where regular choral services are held. The idea of an organ scholarship is to provide the holder with playing, directing and administrative experience....

 who is selected by audition on an annual basis.

Tours

  • 2007 - United States
    United States
    The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

     (the Choir sang in Boston and Washington DC)
  • 2006 – United States
    United States
    The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

     (the Choir sang in New York
    New York City
    New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

     at the official opening service of The British Memorial Garden
    British Memorial Garden
    The British Garden at Hanover Square is located in Hanover Square in downtown Manhattan. It commemorates the 67 British victims of the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center...

     on the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The Choir also sang at a Gala Dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
    Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
    The Waldorf-Astoria is a luxury hotel in New York. It has been housed in two historic landmark buildings in New York City. The first, designed by architect Henry J. Hardenbergh, was on the Fifth Avenue site of the Empire State Building. The present building at 301 Park Avenue in Manhattan is a...

     to raise money for the New York Downtown Hospital
    New York Downtown Hospital
    New York Downtown Hospital is a not-for-profit, acute care, teaching hospital in New York City and is the only hospital in Lower Manhattan...

    , where many of the casualties were taken following 9/11 as well as singing Evensong at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, New York
    St. Thomas Episcopal Church, New York
    Saint Thomas Church, located at the corner of 53rd Street and Fifth Avenue in the borough of Manhattan, New York, New York in the United States, is an Episcopal parish church of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. It is also known as Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue or as Saint Thomas Church in the...

    . This was the first appearance of the Choir in the US for over 20 years.)


Other overseas appearances include Norway, France, Holland, Poland, Spain and Switzerland

Recordings

Recent recordings include:
  • 2006 - O How Glorious is the Kingdom
  • 2006 - W H Harris Anthems
  • 2005 - Music for a Royal Celebration
  • 2005 - Abide with Me
  • 2003 - Carols from Windsor Castle
  • 2002 - Carols from Windsor Castle
  • 2001 - Tomkins Cathedral Music
  • 2001 - Carols from Windsor Castle
  • 2000 - Magnificat & Nunc Dimittis Vol 21
  • 2000 - The Glory of St George's
  • 1999 - Mathias: Lux Aeterna
  • 1996 - David Fanshawe
    David Fanshawe
    David Arthur Fanshawe was an English composer, ethnomusicologist and self-styled explorer. His work is situated at the crossroads of traditional and modern music. His best-known composition is the 1972 choral work African Sanctus.- Life :Fanshawe was born in Paignton in Devon in 1942...

    : African Sanctus
    African Sanctus
    African Sanctus is a 1972 choral Mass and is the best-known work of British composer and ethnomusicologist David Fanshawe.In African Sanctus the Latin Mass is juxtaposed with live recordings of traditional African music, which the composer had recorded himself between 1969 to 1975 during a journey...

     (with Bournemouth Symphony Chorus)
  • 1994 - Parry Cathedral Music
  • 1994 - Taverner Sacred Works
  • 1993 - Saint Nicolas & Hymn to Saint Cecilia (with Corydon Singers)

List of Organists and Master of Choristers

  • Walter Whitby 1406-1415
  • Laurence Dreweryn 1415-1441
  • John Wederby 1441-1461
  • Thomas Rolfe
    Thomas Rolfe
    Thomas Rolfe was the only child of Pocahontas by her English husband, John Rolfe. His maternal grandfather was Wahunsunacock, the chief of Powhatan tribe in Virginia.-Early Life:Thomas Rolfe was born in Virginia...

     1461-1469
  • Robert Cotyngham 1469-1473
  • William Browne 1473-1476
  • Thomas Rolfe
    Thomas Rolfe
    Thomas Rolfe was the only child of Pocahontas by her English husband, John Rolfe. His maternal grandfather was Wahunsunacock, the chief of Powhatan tribe in Virginia.-Early Life:Thomas Rolfe was born in Virginia...

     1476-1489
  • Tuke, Bell, Bowyer, Bednall and Rede (acted jointly)
  • Richard Wood 1496-1531
  • John Marbeck
    John Marbeck
    John Marbeck, Merbeck or Merbecke was an English theological writer and musician who produced a standard setting of the Anglican liturgy. He is also known today for his setting of the Mass, Missa Per arma justitiae....

    , 1531–1547
  • George Thaxton 1547-1559
  • Preston 1559-1563
  • Robert Golder 1563-1564
  • Richard Farrant
    Richard Farrant
    Richard Farrant was a composer of English church music, also a choirmaster, playwright and theatrical producer noted for creating the Blackfriars Theatre that hosted children's companies.Very little is known about him...

    , 1564–1580
  • John Mundy
    John Mundy (composer)
    John Mundy was an English composer, virginalist and organist of the Renaissance period.-Life and works:...

     1581-1585
  • Nathaniel Giles
    Nathaniel Giles
    Nathaniel Giles was an English Renaissance organist and composer. He was the organist for Worcester Cathedral and did Anglican anthems. While Master of the Children of the Chapel Royal he took over Blackfriars Theatre and there he worked with Ben Jonson on a children's company...

     1585-1632
  • William Child
    William Child
    William Child was an English composer and organist.Born in Bristol, William Child was a chorister in the cathedral under the direction of Elway Bevin. In 1630 he began his lifetime association with St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, becoming first a lay-clerk and, from 1632, Master of the...

     1632-1697
  • John Golding 1697-1719

  • John Pigott 1719-1756
  • Edward Webb 1756-1788
  • Theodore Aylward Sr.
    Theodore Aylward Sr.
    Theodore Aylward was and English organist.He was an Organist, successively of St Lawrence Jewry and St Michael, Cornhill , in London, and of St. George's Chapel, Windsor . As well as these appointments, he was the Gresham Professor of Music...

    , 1788–1801
  • William Sexton
    William Sexton (organist)
    William Sexton, born in 1764 and died in 1824, was an English organist.He was a chorister of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle and in Eton College....

     1801-1824
  • Karl Friedrich Horn 1824-1830
  • Highmore Skeats 1830-1835
  • George Job Elvey
    George Job Elvey
    Sir George Job Elvey , English organist and composer, was born at Canterbury on the 27th of March 1816. He was a chorister at Canterbury Cathedral under Highmore Skeats, the organist...

    , 1835–1882
  • Sir Walter Parratt
    Walter Parratt
    Sir Walter Parratt KCVO was an English organist and composer.-Biography:Born in Huddersfield, son of a parish organist, Parratt began to play the pipe organ from an early age, and held posts as an organist while still a child...

    , 1882–1924
  • EH Fellowes, 1924–1927, with GS Kitchingman and later Malcolm Boyle
    Malcolm Boyle
    Malcolm Boyle was a British organist and composer. He was born in Windsor, England, and as a boy served as a chorister at Eton College. He became an organ pupil of Sir Walter Parratt of St. George's Chapel, Windsor. After taking his BMus at Queen's College, Oxford, he became Assistant organist to...

    , as organist
  • Sir Henry Walford Davies
    Henry Walford Davies
    Sir Henry Walford Davies KCVO OBE was a British composer, who held the title Master of the King's Musick from 1934 until 1941.-Early life and education:...

    , 1927–1932
  • Charles Hylton Stewart
    Charles Hylton Stewart
    Charles Hylton Stewart was an English cathedral organist, who served in Rochester Cathedral and St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.-Background:...

    , 1932
  • Sir William Henry Harris
    William Henry Harris
    Sir William Henry Harris was an English organist and composer, affectionately nicknamed 'Doc H' by his choristers.Harris was born in Fulham, London and died in Petersfield. He was a chorister of Holy Trinity, Tulse Hill...

    , 1933–1961
  • Sidney Campbell
    Sidney Campbell
    Sidney Schofield Campbell, , was an English organist.-Education:He studied organ under Ernest Bullock and Harold Darke. In 1931 he was awarded the FRCO.-Career:He was*organist of St...

     1961-1974
  • Christopher Robinson
    Christopher Robinson (musician)
    Christopher John Robinson CVO CBE is a British conductor and organist. After being organ scholar at Christ Church, Oxford he worked as Organist and Master of the Choristers at Worcester Cathedral. In 1974 he became Organist and Choirmaster at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle a position he held...

     1974-1991
  • Jonathan Rees-Williams
    Jonathan Rees-Williams
    Jonathan Rees-Williams is an English cathedral organist, who served in Lichfield Cathedral and St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.-Background:He was born in St. Helier, Jersey on 10 February 1949...

     1991-2002
  • Timothy Byram-Wigfield
    Timothy Byram-Wigfield
    Timothy Byram-Wigfield is an English organist and conductor.Timothy Byram-Wigfield was a chorister at King's College, Cambridge under David Wilcocks and Philip Ledger...

    , 2003-date


Sub organists

  • Richard Frank Martin Akerman 1908 - 1924
  • Malcolm Boyle
    Malcolm Boyle
    Malcolm Boyle was a British organist and composer. He was born in Windsor, England, and as a boy served as a chorister at Eton College. He became an organ pupil of Sir Walter Parratt of St. George's Chapel, Windsor. After taking his BMus at Queen's College, Oxford, he became Assistant organist to...

     1925 - 1932
  • Reginald Alwyn Surplice 1932 - 1945
  • John Morehen 1968 - 1972

Assistant Organists

  • G.F. Huntley 1875 - 1880
  • Henry Walford Davies
    Henry Walford Davies
    Sir Henry Walford Davies KCVO OBE was a British composer, who held the title Master of the King's Musick from 1934 until 1941.-Early life and education:...

     1885 - 1890
  • Richard Frank Martin Akerman 1900 - 1908
  • Harold William Rhodes 1908 - 1910 (later organist of Coventry Cathedral
    Coventry Cathedral
    Coventry Cathedral, also known as St Michael's Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry, in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The current bishop is the Right Revd Christopher Cocksworth....

    )
  • Reginald Alwyn Surplice 1927 - 1932 (afterwards Sub organist)
  • John Charles Stirling Forster 1941 - 1945
  • Philip Harold Moore 1946 - 1949
  • Lionel Frederick Dakers
    Lionel Frederick Dakers
    Lionel Frederick Dakers was an English cathedral organist, who served in Ripon Cathedral and Exeter Cathedral.-Background:Lionel Frederick Dakers was born on 24 February 1924 in Rochester, Kent...

     1950 - 1954
  • Richard George Greening 1955 - 1959
  • Clement McWilliam 1959 - 1965
  • John Porter 1972 - 1985
  • Roger Judd 1985 - 2008
  • Ben Giddens 2008 - 2009 (Acting)

Organ Scholars

  • Graham Elliott 1960–1963
  • John Porter deceased 1963–1965 (later sub organist)
  • John Taylor 1965–1967 (then Assistant Organist of St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh)
  • Terence Atkins 1967–1969 (now Organist and Choirmaster at St John the Baptist Parish Church, Chipping Barnet)
  • Jason Smart 1969–1972 (Acting Assistant Organist January – April 1972)
  • Francis Grier 1972–1973 (afterwards organ scholar of Kings College, Cambridge; later Organist and Master of the Choristers at Christ Church, Oxford)
  • Colin Walsh 1973–1974 (afterwards organ scholar of Christ Church, Oxford; now Organist Laureate Lincoln Cathedral)
  • Christopher Brayne 1974–1975 (later Organist and Master of the Choristers of Bristol Cathedral; now Director of Music at Christ Church, Charlotte, North Carolina)
  • Thomas Trotter 1975–1976 (afterwards organ scholar of Kings College, Cambridge)
  • Adrian Partington 1977–1978 (afterwards organ scholar of Kings College, Cambridge and now Director of Music Gloucester Cathedral)
  • Harry Bicket 1978–1980 (Director, The English Concert)
  • Wayne Marshall 1980–1983
  • Iain Simcock 1983–1984
  • Neil Kelly 1984–1986
  • Andrew Nethsingha 1986–1987 (then organ scholar of St John's College, Cambridge, now Director of Music at St John's College, Cambridge)
  • Roger Muttitt 1987–1988 (currently Director of Music at Durham School)
  • Philip Scriven 1988–1990 (then organ scholar of St John's College, Cambridge, now Lichfield Cathedral)
  • Mark Wardell 1990–1991 (currently Assistant Organist of Chichester Cathedral)
  • Jonathan Lilley 1991–1992 (later Sub-Organist at Leeds Parish Church, currently Assistant Organist at Ely Cathedral)
  • Christopher Allsop 1992–1993 (afterwards Trinity College, Cambridge, assistant at St. Philip's Cathedral, Birmingham, currently Assistant Organist of Worcester Cathedral)
  • Matthew Raisbeck 1993–1994
  • Greg Morris 1994–1995 (now Associate Organist Temple Church, London)
  • Iain Farrington 1995–1996 (then organ scholar of St John's College, Cambridge)
  • Myles Hartley 1996–1997
  • Teilhard Scott 1997–1999
  • Jonathan Vaughn 1999–2000 (afterwards Organ Scholar at St John's College, Cambridge, now Assistant Organist Wells Cathedral)
  • Robert Kwan 2000–2001 (currently Assistant to the Organist-Choirmaster, Christ & Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Westport, CT)
  • Francesca Massey 2001–2002 (Acting Assistant Organist September–December 2001; then Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge and Manchester Cathedral, currently Assistant Director of Music at Peterborough Cathedral)
  • Tom Winpenny 2002–2003 (Acting Assistant Organist; then organ scholar of Kings College, Cambridge; then Sub-Organist, St Paul's Cathedral; now Assistant Master of the Music, St Albans Cathedral)
  • Henry Parkes 2003–2004 (Acting Assistant Organist September–December 2003; then organ scholar of Christ Church, Oxford now Associate Director of Music All Saints, Margaret Street, London)
  • Ben Giddens 2004–2005 (then organ scholar Norwich Cathedral; subsequently Acting Assistant Organist at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle; now Assistant Organist Magdalen College, Oxford)
  • Peter Stevens 2005–2006 (currently organ scholar of Westminster Cathedral)
  • John Challenger 2006–2008 (currently organ scholar of St John's College, Cambridge)
  • Laurence Williams 2008–2009 (currently reading Music with a Choral Scholarship at Trinity College, Cambridge)
  • Alexander Binns 2009–2010 (currently studying at the Royal Academy of Music, London)
  • Ben Bloor 2010–2011

Notable alumni

  • Sir Henry Walford Davies
    Henry Walford Davies
    Sir Henry Walford Davies KCVO OBE was a British composer, who held the title Master of the King's Musick from 1934 until 1941.-Early life and education:...

  • Francis Grier
    Francis Grier
    Francis Grier is an English choral and vocal classical composer and psychoanalyst.He was a chorister at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle , music scholar at Eton College, and organ scholar at King's College, Cambridge, then Assistant Organist and then Organist of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...

    , classical composer
  • David Fanshawe
    David Fanshawe
    David Arthur Fanshawe was an English composer, ethnomusicologist and self-styled explorer. His work is situated at the crossroads of traditional and modern music. His best-known composition is the 1972 choral work African Sanctus.- Life :Fanshawe was born in Paignton in Devon in 1942...

    , classical composer
  • John Lubbock, conductor

External links

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