Sing for Music Sunday
in association with
and featuring St Martin’s Voices from St Martin-in-the-Fields
The Royal School of Church Music and the SIC have partnered to bring you a short course to learn and record “GOD OF ALL CREATION” by Chris Totney, this year’s RSCM Music Sunday Anthem. This rousing, short anthem was chosen out of over 200 entries to the RSCM’s composition competition. Chris is Director of Music of St John’s Church, Devizes and he spent two years as Organ Scholar at Durham Cathedral.
In addition, we shall learn CANTIQUE DE JEAN RACINE by Faure, although this will not be recorded.
The RSCM was Founded by Sir Sydney Nicholson in 1927, the Royal School of Church Music is an educational charity committed to promoting the study, practice and improvement of music in Christian worship. Its support for singers include the VFL programme which is based on graded training and awards for singers of all ages. Find out more at https://www.rscm.org.uk/start-learning/
Join us for
Sing for Music Sunday
How it will work
From 10th May to 15th May we shall learn Chris Totney’s anthem “God of all Creation” and Faure’s “Cantique de Jean Racine” in live-streamed sessions.
On 15th May, we shall be invited to record our own voice for the anthem ONLY. Please send this to us by 21st May. We shall then combine all voices in the studio for the premiere on Music Sunday itself.
This full SIC version will be played in a live SIC Concert on the afternoon of 6th June and will also form part of the online RSCM Big Music Sunday Service at 6pm BST. The service will be coming from Lichfield Cathedral and you can find out more about participating in the whole event here https://www.rscmshop.com/features/music-sunday-2021
Course Director
For this short course we are delighted to welcome a new Course Director, Hugh Morris, who is the CEO of the RSCM.
Hugh Morris has been the Director of the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) since August 2018. An experienced and accomplished choir trainer, organist and trained teacher, with a passion for a wide range of music both sacred and secular, he has worked in a number of different Cathedrals, churches and schools up and down the country.
Hugh spent eight years at Hexham Abbey as Assistant Organist, combining this post with teaching at the King’s School, Tynemouth, and Newcastle University, before moving to become Director of Music at Christchurch Priory in Dorset in 2009. At Christchurch, he founded a new Priory Music and Arts Festival, acting as Artistic Director for its inauguration in 2014; during this time, he also taught music at Bournemouth School for Girls. Hugh moved to Derby as Director of Music at the Cathedral in January 2015, immersing himself in the life of the Cathedral, city and further afield, until moving to the RSCM in 2018.
As an organist, Hugh has given many solo recitals at venues across the UK and Europe, competed in the finals of two international organ competitions, and accompanied a large number of choirs. Hugh is an ex-pupil of Abingdon School, a graduate of Cambridge University (as organ scholar from Magdalene College) and holds the Fellowship and Choral Direction diplomas of the Royal College of Organists. Hugh and his family continue to live in rural Derbyshire where the pleasures of walking in the Peak District, eating his wife Sarah’s cooking, and trying to keep the garden under control keep them all happily occupied.
Backing Tracks
All backing tracks for God of all creation and Cantique de Jean Racine (with each voice part louder) are sung by:
St. Martin’s Voices
St Martin-in-the-Fields is an English Anglican church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London.
There has been a church on the site since at least the medieval period. When its old structure was found to be near failure, the present building was constructed in an influential neoclassical design by James Gibbs in 1722–1726.
The church is one of the visual anchors adding to the open-urban space around Trafalgar Square.
Timings
The sessions will be held at 12:30 UK time for 1 hour (approx) as follows and links to these sessions will be sent to you by email:
Monday 10th May - Start of course for Full Choir
Tuesday 11th May - Basses
Wednesday 12th May - Sopranos
Thursday 13th May - Tenors
Friday 14th May - Altos
Saturday 15th May - Full Choir sing through
Course Fee
All proceeds after card processing and sound engineering costs will go to the RSCM. The SIC are providing their services for free.
The cost of the course is £15 and this will include:
All scores
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Backing tracks by the St. Martin’s Voices
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All teaching sessions
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Sound Engineers
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Concert Performance
