The RCO’s Certificate of Accredited Membership (CAM) scheme allows both fledging and long-standing organists to benchmark their skills, wherever in the world they live. Gillian Collins, living in Australia, recently gained accreditation at CAM Intermediate level. She explains what led her to try for the qualification.

Designed to boost top class young organists onto the career ladder, the Harry Gabb Scholarship was awarded for the first time to young organist and composer Paul Greally.  The scholarship gives financial support so that RCO qualifications can be completed as quickly as possible, and was set up in memory of William Harry Gabb, whose own career included the position of Sub Organist at St Paul’s Cathedral.  Paul describes how the scholarship has helped his studies, and his plans for the future.

Sir Herbert Brewer (1865–1928) was Organist of Gloucester Cathedral from 1896 until his death, and Simon Carpenter’s recent research for a University of Gloucestershire MA (from which this article is derived) examined his place in British music history, his educational philosophy, and the effect he had on the careers of his teenage articled pupils. The […]

In a welcome re-balancing of the customary recital series, the line-up for the John Hill Organ Series at St Lawrence Jewry, London, which has just begun, is composed solely of female organists.  It coincides with the launch earlier this year of the Society of Women Organists in the UK, an organisation dedicated to promoting women in the organ world, and recruiting girls and women to study the organ.

After the fire at Notre Dame, it was a relief to see images of Notre-Dame’s Cavaillé-Coll organ seemingly intact, and millions of euros have been pledged already for restoration of the Cathedral, and presumably, the organ. There are other Cavaillé-Coll instruments in France deserving of restoration though, and film-maker Will Fraser has devised a way we can all help bring back to life a particularly good example of Aristide Cavaillé-Coll’s artistry.

The RCO’s Wingfield Organ is now in residence at St Mary’s Church in Fotheringhay – all very appropriate, as both instrument and church are fascinating medieval survivors. Fotheringhay will be the setting for a special concert on Saturday 25 May exploring the vocal and organ music of late medieval England, with David Skinner and The Alamire Scholars, organist James Parsons, and historian Dr David Starkey providing the spoken narrative.

Watch the College’s 2019 Conferment of Diplomas ceremony in full or as edited highlights. The ceremony at Southwark Cathedral on Saturday 9th March saw the College present Diplomas and Certificates to 53 Members of the College, and award the Medal of the Royal College of Organists to two distinguished practitioners in the field of organ music.

Listen to the Ede & Ravenscroft Recital which closed the College’s 2019 Conferment of Diplomas ceremony performed by Steven Grahl, including music by York Bowen, Huw Watkins, Percy Whitlock, Judith Bingham and Oskar Lindberg.

Charles Tournemire’s (1870–1939) L’Orgue Mystique is a cycle of solo organ pieces composed for use in the Roman Catholic liturgy. Tournemire wanted to do for the Roman Catholic Mass what Bach had done for the Lutheran Mass with his Orgelbüchlein. The completed work is subtitled ’51 Offices of the liturgical year inspired by Gregorian chant and freely paraphrased’, and Westminster Cathedral have begun a performance of the complete cycle (13 hours of music in its entirety) in a liturgical context: Martin Baker, Peter Stevens, Jonathan Allsopp and Adrian Gunning are among the organists taking part.