Choir

The main choir of Wimborne Minster is a group of dedicated boys, girls and men who provide a wide range of music for the liturgy. They have a particularly broad repertoire, stretching from the renaissance, through the masses of Mozart and Haydn to contemporary jazz settings by Will Todd and Bob Chilcott. Highlights of the year include the service of Nine Lessons and Carols, when around 600 people hear the choir sing.

The choristers are drawn from a range of local schools. Children often start in the Junior Choir, moving up to the main choir around age 9, although prospective members are welcome at any age. Many stay on until the end of their school careers, with boys moving into the back row when their voices break. They receive a fabulous education, performing music to an extremely high standard, but also have a lot of fun and form strong friendships.

The choir often tackles larger works within the liturgy, with instrumental accompaniment. These have included Bach St Matthew Passion, St John Passion, St Luke Passion (cantata movements woven into the Passion story in St Luke's Gospel), Fauré Requiem, Haydn Nelson Mass, Mascagni Easter Hymn, Mozart Coronation Mass, Todd Mass in Blue.

Schedule

Tuesday 4.30 - 5.45 Choristers
Friday 7.00 - 8.15 Choristers
Friday 7.30 - 9.00 Men

Sundays vary, but all or some of the choir sing Eucharist and Evensong each week.

Contact us to enquire about joining the choir.

CD

In 2013 the Minster Choir recorded An Evening Cantata by Sam Hanson. This exciting piece was commissioned for a schools project earlier in the year, where 275 local school children attended workshops and had the opportunity to sing with the Minster Choir in the world premiere.  The piece follows the shape of Evensong, with choral settings of the Preces, Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis and Psalm 150. Between these the 'readings' are transformed into accessible musical settings for schoolchildren of the Plagues of Egypt and Holy Week stories.

The recording features the Minster Choir conducted by David Gostick with Sean Tucker on the organ and Sam Hanson on the piano, joined by Nick Pritchard, tenor, and Luke D Williams, bass. Copies of the CD are available from the Minster shop.