Croydon Parish Church

Music

Sub-sections: The Organs - Recordings - Music Staff - Music List

From its earliest foundations in the tenth century Croydon Parish Church would have sustained a musical tradition, although information from this time is limited. The church nevertheless had significant status owing to its proximity to the adjacent manor house which for over 400 years was the country residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. This idyllic setting in Croindene (valley of the saffron or crocus) on the banks of the River Wandle saw the consecration of ten bishops and was the final resting place for six Archbishops of Canterbury. The scene is hard to imagine now as the church is dwarfed by a vast concrete development to the east of the town centre and the River Wandle runs in a culvert underneath a dual carriageway only twenty yards from the west door of the church.

The first musician of note to hold the post of organist was Thomas Attwood Walmisley who, before becoming organist of Trinity and St. John's Colleges in Cambridge in 1833, was for three years at Croydon. In the 1880s, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor was a chorister in the large parish choir of men and boys and later married Mary Walmisley, a descendant of Thomas.

The tradition of men and boys has continued to this day and in 1958 a link was made by Derek Holman between the positions of Organist at the Parish Church and Warden at the Royal School of Church Music in Addington Palace. In the 1960s a separate choir was formed in the church to sing at the 9.30am Communion, the main service being at that time the 11am Matins. This group evolved into a girls' choir under the direction of Christine Phillis who worked closely with the various directors of music in the church until her retirement in 1998. The link between Addington and the church was broken at the departure of Michael Fleming in 1978.

Today the choral foundation of CPC is made up of the Choir of Men & Boys, the girls' choir, Croindene (a mixed adult choir) and the Scholar Cantorum (an octet specialising in early music). The Director of Music, Andrew Cantrill, is responsible for overseeing all choirs and for the annual series of concerts and other special musical events (click here for the 2008 programme), including tours, broadcasts and recordings. He directs the choir of Men & Boys, Croindene and the Scholar Cantorum. The girls' choir is directed by the Assistant Director of Music, Andrew Scott, who also plays the organ for the majority of sung services. Andrew is assisted by Martin How MBE (Assisting Organist) and Freddie James (Organ Scholar). Martin is well-known internationally for his work with the RSCM and brings a wealth of experience to the choral programme; Freddie James is in the sixth form at Westminster School.

The Boy & Girl Choristers

Boys & girls are admitted to the choir at the age of 8. They begin as probationary choristers and attend on Thursday afternoons, learning the rudiments of singing technique and music theory, and the basics of the repertoire and the form of services. After 2 or 3 terms, they are made full choristers and sing on Tuesdays (Boys) or Wednesdays (Girls), Fridays and Sundays (morning or evening). As choristers, young singers may go on to be made 'chanters', with the different levels named after Archbishops of Canterbury buried at Croydon Parish Church. The most senior singers are known as 'Whitgift Chanters'.
Boys continue to sing treble until their voices change and girls remain in the girls' choir up to the age of 18. Both the Director of Music and his assistant are happy to meet with prospective choristers and their parents at any time during the year. There are places for 16 full choristers and 4 probationers, with 3 or 4 places becoming available each year. Please email to make an appointment.

The Men of the Choirs

The men sing alto (counter-tenor), tenor and bass with either the boy or girl choristers. There are currently 4 singers on each voice part, all volunteer, and from a wide variety of professional backgrounds.
To find out more about singing with the CPC choirs, please contact the Director of Music, Andrew Cantrill.

Croindene

Croindene is made up of men from the Parish Choir and others, with women singing the top line. The choir rehearses up to twice a month on a Friday at 7.45pm and sings a service once a month. The repertoire is wide-ranging (from Josquin to Langlais) and therefore demands a certain level of musical confidence and sight-reading ability. To find out more about singing with Croindene, please contact the Director of Music.

The weekly schedule

Sunday	9.00am Rehearsal
	10.00am Choral Eucharist (Men & Boys or Men & Girls)
	5.30pm Rehearsal
	6.30pm Choral Evensong (Men & Boys or Men & Girls)
Tuesday	5.00pm Boys' Rehearsal
	6.00pm Choral Evensong (Boys' voices)
Wednesday	5.00pm Girls' Rehearsal
	6.00pm Choral Evensong (Girls' voices)
Thursday	5.00pm Probationers rehearsal (Boys & Girls)
Friday	6.15pm Boys' rehearsal
	6.15pm Girls' rehearsal
	7.45pm Men's rehearsal
	9.00pm Choral Compline (Men's voices)

Friends of Music at CPC

Friends of Music at Croydon Parish Church was founded to support the work of the music department. Each year, the Friends promote a series of special services, concerts and organ recitals, and take a particular interest in the educational needs of the boy and girl choristers. Donors are offered ticket discounts to concerts sung by the Parish Choirs and are invited to pre-concert talks and receptions. Donations start from as little as £25.00. Please consider becoming a Friend and help to sustain and develop the musical life of this great civic church. A donor form will be available soon.