You can watch the College’s 2026 Conferment of Diplomas Ceremony here in full, or as edited highlights, and listen to the Ede & Ravenscroft recital given by international concert organist Katelyn Emerson.

A gallery of pictures from the College’s annual Conferment Ceremony at Southwark Cathedral on Saturday 7 March, at which RCO President Sarah MacDonald presented successful examination candidates with their awards and diplomas, and also presented three RCO Medals.

Organist Christian Tolentino from Manila talks about his RCO studies, and life as an organist in the Philippines.

The College’s bi-annual magazine for members contains features, details of forthcoming events and courses, and general news and views from the RCO.

What’s it like attending the big RCO Summer Course? StopPress Editor Morwenna Campbell-Smith describes her first encounter as a beginner organist, and then attending again twelve years later as a more experienced player.

The 2024 edition of the College’s research publication, The Journal of the Royal College of Organists, can be downloaded here as a complete edition. It explores the world of publishing in Grand siecle France, looks at Bach’s deft handling of thematic material in pedal parts, and marks anniversaries regarding Franz Schmidt, and Charles Villiers Stanford and Walter Parratt. And in one of his last articles before his death in 2024, Francis O’Gorman looks at the meaning that destroyed organs can hold.

2024 is an anniversary year for both Sir Charles Villiers Stanford, and Sir Walter Parratt, a close friend and colleague of Stanford. This article by Andrew McCrea mainly looks at Parratt, a famous organist and teacher, through the Stanford association, and argues that inspecting Stanford’s dedications to Parratt can enrich our understanding of these two national figures.

Francis O’Gorman was a master at examining the organ from various cultural perspectives. Earlier articles for the RCO looked at the organ as it is portrayed in nineteenth-century literature, on which Francis was a world-leading expert. In this, one of his last articles, Francis takes us on a personal journey which probes the meanings that destroyed (and revived) organs can hold.

Still playing at 93 years of age, Robert Hoare, a blind organist, had lost his ARCO diploma certificate. In recognition of his remarkable career, the RCO created a replacement.