Top Oxford College to launch New Choral Foundation
01 April 2007
Merton College, Oxford is establishing a new Choral Foundation. The College's 13th century Chapel, famous world-wide for its outstanding acoustics, is set to resound with the voices of 16 undergraduate and graduate Choral Scholars. The choir will be directed by Peter Phillips, director of the internationally-renowned Tallis Scholars. Benjamin Nicholas, director of the Tewkesbury Abbey Schola Cantorum, has been appointed Assistant Director of Music.
The first Choral Scholars will be admitted in 2008 and will form the nucleus of the Chapel Choir. Choral Scholarship auditions will take place for the first time in September 2007.
Peter Phillips and his vocal ensemble, the Tallis Scholars, have had a long association with Merton. Their first recording in the College Chapel, made in 1980, set a bench-mark for every subsequent performance of Allegri's Miserere. A new recording of Allegri's Miserere, also made in Merton Chapel, was released by Gimell in March 2007.
Dame Jessica Rawson, Warden of Merton, commented: "We are very much looking forward to admitting Choral Scholars to the College and are delighted to welcome Peter Phillips as our Director of Music. Under his direction, we are confident that this new Choral Foundation will enable the Chapel's wonderful acoustics to be used to their full potential and produce music of a standard to match the College's academic performance."
Paying tribute to the skill and commitment of the current choir and Organ Scholars, the Chaplain, Dr Simon Jones, hopes that the new scheme will attract applications from a range of academically-gifted young singers and organists, who will benefit from the added opportunities and support which the Foundation will provide.
Commenting on his appointment, Peter Phillips said "Merton College Chapel has always been a special place for me. The Tallis Scholars first sang there in 1974, after which it was automatically our first choice for recordings. The opportunity to train young singers in the Chapel is a dream come true."