As part of the 4 “Voices” choirs, of the UK branch of the international organisation Royal School of Church Music (RSCM), we are a non-denominational adult choir who sang our first service together in January 2009. We meet on Saturdays six times a year to sing in significant and historic churches, abbeys and cathedrals around Scotland and very occasionally beyond.
Our members are primarily, but not exclusively, Scotland based and are experienced church choir singers who want to expand their personal repertoire, often beyond what can be achieved in a small local church choir. Additionally, they want to take advantage of the tuition obtained from singing under our professional musicians who are our Musical Director Frikki Walker, Director of Music at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow, and the various organists who work with us.
The repertoire we sing is wide ranging, from early music such as Tudor church music to modern pieces by living composers. Choir members are expected to purchase and bring their own music, or download it free and print it when this is an option. We don’t meet to rehearse between the service days making both sightreading skills and everyone learning the music themselves beforehand very important. The fact that we only meet on the day of a service means that there is no weekly commitment to rehearsals, which suits most people.
For the service each singer wears the robes of his/her home church, or an academic gown over smart clothes, or just smart clothes, all dependant on what he/she has available, and this diversity reflects the various church choirs to which we each belong. We’re a friendly bunch, and after each service we always socialise together in a local pub, which isn’t compulsory but it’s certainly encouraged!
In addition to the seven core annual events (made up of six services and a residential rehearsal weekend) there are occasional opportunities to take part in ad-hoc events throughout the year. Our annual residential weekend is a chance to learn some of the repertoire for the following 12 months and to socialise together.
We have an annual subscription plus there is a fee payable on the day for each of our six core services. Although it’s assumed that everyone will be at every meeting, it’s recognised that we’re all adults who lead busy lives. Inevitably there are times when singers aren’t available, which is fine as long as it’s notified as far in advance as possible. There are usually 40-50 people in the choir, and on average there are generally around 30-40 singers at each service.
If you would be interested in joining the choir, please fill in the following short form, and our Administrator will be in touch:
In addition to our website we use Facebook (@RSCMScottishVoices) and Twitter (@RSCMScotVoices) and our events are publicised there. Click on the links below to join us there:
