BISHOPS' CHORISTER

Church Music Awards for Choristers under the patronage of the Bishops of Brentwood and Chelmsford

Bishops' Award The Awards were established circa 1975 by Donald Coote, and ran with great success, until 1997, as Awards solely under the patronage of the Bishop of Chelmsford.

In 1998 the Awards became ecumenical with the Roman Catholic diocese of Brentwood and are now under the joint patronage of the Bishops of Chelmsford and Brentwood. The Awards are believed to be unique in this respect, and continue to be popular and to flourish across both dioceses.

1. BISHOPS' CHORISTER AWARD
(validated at RSCM Silver Standard)
This Award, previously known as the Junior Award, has been validated by the RSCM at Silver Standard with effect from February 2005. It is open to candidates of all ages and voices.
Please note that the new syllabus contains some significant changes.

Prospective candidates and their choir trainers should note that the Project required for Part 2 (Religious Knowledge) is to be submitted together with the application for entry.
The examination is now in two parts, and not three. Part 1 (Music) includes both prepared and unprepared work and sight singing, aural tests and viva voce. Part 2 is now the Religious Knowledge element of the examination.

The Award is open to all choristers in church or school choirs within the area covered by the Roman Catholic diocese of Brentwood and the Anglican diocese of Chelmsford. This Award is also open to choristers of other denominations in this area and to individual church singers and cantors.

The purpose of the Award is to encourage musicianship, loyalty and a growing awareness of faith in choristers and to give a tangible recognition of such a standard. Candidates who attain this award will also have gained the pre-requisite for taking the RSCM Gold Award.

Examinations are held twice yearly, usually in May and November, with the Awards Ceremony being held in early December either in Chelmsford or Brentwood Cathedral.

Training sessions are also held prior to each examination - usually in March and September.

As will be seen from the attached syllabus, candidates are expected to demonstrate their ability in singing, both prepared and unprepared work, aural and sight-reading tests and general musicianship. Part 2 requires a sound knowledge of all the aspects touched on in the syllabus. Examiners will be RSCM validated.

NB: Prerequisite for entry to RSCM Gold Award
Holders of the Bishops' Chorister Award (Junior) at Merit or Distinction level achieved in 2003 and 2004 no longer have the prerequisite for entry to the RSCM Gold Award since 31st December 2006.

>> More information about the Bishops' Chorister Award >>

2. BISHOPS' SENIOR AWARD
This Award currently will remain as heretofore. It is open to all candidates over 16 years of age. The syllabus effective from January 2001 remains in force. Special requirements, in test pieces and Bible readings, are reviewed each year, and the special requirements for 2008 are published on this website (click the following link).

>> More information about the Bishops' Senior Award >>

Successful candidates are presented with a certificate and are entitled to wear the Award's medallion. For both Awards, the certificate will also reflect whether the candidate has met the required criteria for Merit or a Distinction, as defined in the syllabus.

Current entry fees are £16 for the Bishops' Chorister Award and £20 for the Bishops' Senior Award. The current cost of a medallion is £15.

Please note that Mr W Brooks is the new administrator of the Award, replacing Mr G. Houghton from January 2006.

For any further information please contact the Administrator:

Bill Brooks
Email: william.brooks2@ntlworld.com

DATES FOR 2008

Training Session - 23rd February 2008 (10.00am - 1.00pm) - Brentwood Cathedral
Examination - 3rd May 2008 - Brentwood Cathedral
Training Session - 13th September 2008 (10.00am - 1.00pm) - Chelmsford Cathedral
Examination - 1st November 2008 - Chelmsford Cathedral
Award ceremony - 10th January 2009 - Chelmsford Cathedral

All candidates who wish to attend the Training Session on 23rd February must let the Administrator know by Wednesday 20th February at the latest, either individually or through their Choir Trainer. For a Training Session to take place, there must be at least 6 candidates attending. If not, the Training Session will be cancelled and the Administrator will inform the candidates who have applied.

Completed Application forms should be sent to the administrator by 20th February, or brought to the Training Session. Application forms may be found on the website.

DOWNLOADABLE FORMAT
Please click on any of the links to download sections of the Bishops' Chorister information in PDF format. To read this you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader.