Choirs and Scholarships

The Cathedral Choir

The Cathedral Choir consists of 20 Boy and 20 Girl Choristers, also the Gentlemen of the Choir. The Choir has sung the liturgical services of the Cathedral church almost without interruption since the early 13th Century.

Famous musicians have included Matthew Locke (17th Century Chorister) and S.S. Wesley (an organist of the Cathedral in the 19th Century).  The Choristers and Probationary Choristers are pupils educated at Exeter Cathedral School, which is a very ancient establishment. A girls choir was formed in 1994. Voice trials for Choristers are held annually in February. Parents of prospective Choristers should contact Lucy Lewis, Registrar and PA to the Headmaster at Exeter Cathedral School, Tel 01392 255298, email hmsec@exetercs.org or visit the School Website. For an information booklet on 2009 - 2010, please click here

The Gentlemen of the Choir are professionally trained singers, either Lay Vicars or Choral Scholars.

The Choristers rehearse every weekday morning and afternoon except Wednesday, which is usually a non-singing day. They are joined by the Gentlemen for the afternoon practice. There are two rehearsals for the whole Choir on Saturday.

In addition to duties in the Cathedral, the Choir sing in one of the Parish Churches in the Diocese usually twice a term. It is a professional body with recording, broadcasting, and concert engagements. It undertakes overseas tours usually on an annual basis. Recent tours have included Lugano, Switzerland in July 2007, North Devon in July 2008, and Tenerife in December 2008. The choir's extensive repertoire covers a wide range of music from medieval plainsong to contemporary works. The choir has made CD recordings, all of which are currently on sale in the Cathedral Shop.

Choral Scholarships

Choral Scholarships in the Cathedral Choir are available for Counter-tenors, Tenors and Basses. There are 6-8 choral scholars in the choir, singing with a similar number of Lay Vicars and 20 boy or girl choristers. Choral Scholarships are normally held in conjunction with degree courses at Exeter University. The Scholarships are normally tenable for three years, though this may be extended for an extra year in certain circumstances. In addition, one-year scholarships are available for gap students or postgraduates. The scholarship, payable by the Dean and Chapter, is currently £3000 per annum and will be paid in monthly instalments. This amount may be augmented by a further bursary for Exeter University students. Cathedral accommodation may be available for Choral Scholars at a modest rent. Choral Scholars are required at all statutory choral services and rehearsals when the Lay Vicars are singing.

For further information and an application form in PDF format, please click here.

Chorister Outreach Programme

The Chorister Outreach Programme is a national government-funded scheme designed to encourage and enable cathedrals to use their musical resources to promote singing among children in primary schools.  It is part of the national Sing-up programme, led by the government's Singing Ambassador Howard Goodall, which aims to achieve Singing School status for every primary school by the year 2012.

In Devon, the project is run as a collaboration between Exeter Cathedral and the Devon County Council Music Service.  It is also supported by the Royal School of Church Music, Devon Area, and the Benedictine Community at Buckfast Abbey.  The programme aims to instil and develop the joy of singing among children in primary schools, by offering specialist teaching input, continuing support and high-quality performance opportunities.  It also aims to raise levels of access, achievement and aspiration, and to encourage and develop collaborative projects for singing for both pupils and staff.

Following a highly successful pilot with four Exeter schools in the Spring of 2007, the project was fully launched in the Autumn Term of 2007.  Over the last two years, some 30 schools have taken part in the programme, involving around 1400 children.

Full details of the programme may be found in the Notes for Schools as a pdf download document here

Devon County Junior Choir

The Devon County Junior Choir was formed in September 2007, as an integral part of the Chorister Outreach Programme. It is for primary school age children from Years 3 to 8 who are really enthusiastic about singing and who would enjoy the opportunity to enhance their singing technique and perform regularly. Full details may be found on the website.

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