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5
Annual Review
2010/11
T
he much anticipated Keble
Chapel Choir Tour proved
to be an incredible two weeks
on the East Coast of the USA.
Twenty-one members of the choir
represented the College on this
tour, which included concerts at
St Paul’s Cathedral in Boston, St
Patrick’s and St John the Divine
Cathedrals in Manhattan, and the
National Cathedral in Washington
DC, where former Organ
Scholar Jeremy Filsell is Artist-in-
Residence. The choir, conducted
by our Director of Music Simon
Whalley, offered a programme
of music reflecting the repertoire
usually sung in the weekly
services in the Chapel including
pieces by William Byrd, Charles
Stanford, and the ever-popular ‘I
was glad’ by Charles Hubert Parry.
The tour gave organ scholars
Edward Symington (2008) and
Leonard Sanderman (2010) the
opportunity to perform organ
solos in these august venues
as well as at St Mary the Virgin
in Times Square (where former
Chaplain Allen Shin was curate)
and Christ Church in Alexandria,
Virginia (George Washington’s
Church). The choir also spent
a Sunday at St Mary’s Arlington,
where the current Chaplain, who
also accompanied the choir on
tour, served before coming to
Keble. For the choir to sing in
such wonderful settings was a
true privilege and will undoubtedly
provide one of the lasting
memories for choir members, not
just of the tour, but of the whole
time spent singing with the Chapel
Choir while at Keble.
Alongside the Cathedral and
church singing, the choir
performed at Old Member
gatherings in all three cities. On
these occasions the Warden
not only spoke to the gathered
company but also joined the
bass section of the choir. Jenny
Tudge, Director of Development,
also joined us at each of these
gatherings as happily the choir
tour coincided with the Warden’s
trip to the East Coast of the USA.
Without a doubt, the tour helped
to strengthen the College’s ties
with its alumni overseas, as well
as to spread the good name and
musical reputation of the College
even further afield. The tour
was made possible thanks to a
number of generous donations
from Old Members as well as a
substantial contribution from the
Keble Association Arts Fund.
The Revd Jenn Strawbridge
with Richard Yates
(2008 History & Politics)
Student Life
Choir Tour 2011