Not all cathedral choirs are silent and choir leaders furloughed. We look at how some cathedrals and choral societies are finding ways to keep singers engaged with meaningful activities without a huge investment in equipment or new music, and investigate the practical issues around creating virtual choirs.

It may seem slightly perverse to be looking performance skills in Learning during Lockdown, when the coronavirus pandemic currently preventing most musicians from performing at all.  But lockdown is possibly an opportunity to step back and reflect on how we felt about our own performances in the past, and how they could improve.  iRCO has resources on performance techniques, and we look at competitions for organists that are still taking place in the next year.

Regular lessons may have fallen into abeyance during lockdown, and keeping up impetus and engagement in solitude can be difficult even for the best of us, without some sort of structure.  This week’s Learning during Lockdown looks at ways in which beginner and developing organists can gain inspiration and keep engaged through the structure of the RCO’s early qualifications, up to CRCO.  Established organists might like to use the enforced thinking time of lockdown to imagine how they could diversify their careers, and we have some suggestions.

This October marks the 150th anniversary of Louis Vierne’s birth, and here on iRCO we celebrate the anniversary with a new film presented by Andrew Cantrill-Fenwick discussing Vierne’s life and legacy, and point to other resources on the composer. 

This week’s Learning During Lockdown is a helping hand towards discovering new repertoire, whether you have access to a practice instrument, or are simply looking for inspiration for the future.  On iRCO we have films from specialists in many specific areas of organ repertoire, explaining the elements of style, fingering and pedalling for the different periods. We also have suggestions for music transcribed for organ, with examples and sources.

Practice techniques, for organists at all levels, are explored in this week’s Learning during Lockdown, including exercises at the piano for those unable to access an organ. We also look at the nature of virtuoso playing, from practical exercises to inspirational recordings and films.

This week’s Learning during Lockdown focusses on improvisation, a skill all organists are encouraged to acquire, and which is expected, at some level, in most organ examinations.   Here on iRCO you can find films demonstrating improvisation skills for organists at every stage, from total beginner to FRCO. 

Maintaining a livelihood during the Covid-19 pandemic is a serious matter, particularly for freelance musicians, and many are looking at the possibilities of going online, either to maintain an existing teaching portfolio, or to start teaching for the first time.  iRCO has resources for all organ teachers, and advice from a teacher experienced in teaching the organ online.

A picture gallery of the RCO Conferment ceremony from Southwark Cathedral, in March 2020.