Leeds Cathedral Choir appears on BBC Radio 3’s Choral Evensong

The Leeds Cathedral Choir, many of whose member singers began their musical journey as students in the Schools Singing Programme, a music initiative which the Hamish Ogston Foundation now supports, has performed Choral Vespers this week in a live broadcast for BBC Radio 3’s Choral Evensong. 

Running for 96 years, Choral Evensong is the BBC’s longest established outside broadcast programme. The programme is a weekly live broadcast of the Anglican service of Choral Evensong, from cathedrals, chapels and churches throughout the United Kingdom. On occasion [including this one], Choral Vespers from Catholic cathedrals are broadcast on the programme.

The first edition of Choral Evensong was broadcast on 7 October 1926 from Westminster Abbey; it continued on the BBC Home Service before moving to BBC Radio 4 and then BBC Radio 3. On this occasion, the programme was broadcast from Leeds Cathedral, where the Leeds Cathedral Choir performed Choral Vespers from the Office of the Dead, a prayer cycle of the Canonical Hours in the Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran churches.

Many of the Leeds Cathedral chorists performing on Wednesday began their musical journey as students at the Schools Singing Programme, taking part in whole class singing sessions during primary school, before joining and progressing through the family of choirs.

Leeds Cathedral has five dedicated choirs, performing in rotation each week; Wednesday’s performers included members from the Senior Boys (9–13), Senior Girls (11–16), Schools Scholars (13–18) and the Choral Scholars (18+) [Credit: Diocese of Leeds Music]

The Schools Singing Programme is recognised as the UK’s leading choral singing provision; it focusses on areas of social marginalisation and economic deprivation in and around Leeds, striving to offer the best musical opportunities to those communities least likely to encounter them, so that more children, regardless of background, can enjoy the social and educational benefits of engagement with music. 

Leeds Cathedral Choir was led by conductor, Thomas Leech, who is also Director of the Schools Singing Programme [Credit: Diocese of Leeds Music]

In 2021, the Hamish Ogston Foundation pledged £4million in funding to the Schools Singing Programme, to found the National Schools Singing Programme, with the intention to roll-out the highly successful Schools Singing Programme nationwide, to reach evermore children in state schools across the country.

The National Schools Singing Programme now reaches in excess of 12,000 children in over 150 schools across the UK, providing weekly, professional, free-at-the-point-of-use tuition schemes, giving every child the opportunity to reap the lifelong rewards of engaging with music, while simultaneously securing the next generation of Choristers and Choral Directors.

Visit https://www.hamishogstonfoundation.org/music for more information on our music initiatives