Pembroke College Cambridge

Chapel Choir

The Pembroke College Chapel Choir has one of the most exciting and varied ranges of choral endeavours among Oxbridge choirs, featuring popular collaborations, media appearances and outreach work alongside the primary responsibility of contributing to worship in the college’s chapel.

The choir is thrilled to be signed to Signum Records, with its debut CD ‘All Things Are Quite Silent’ released in September 2020 to critical acclaim, and further recordings to come. In Christmas 2019 the choir was featured in ‘Britain’s Christmas Story’ on BBC1, which follows on from previous concert collaborations with Gareth Malone. They were also seen on BBC Electioncast. Other collaborations include recordings at Abbey Road with Grammy-award winning composer Christopher Tin and singer-songwriter Tom Chaplin, as well as concert appearances with Eric Idle and The Swingles.

 

The choir tours frequently across Europe and UK cathedrals, and outreach work forms a core part of its tours further afield. Their most recent tour to Thailand featured musical workshops with schoolchildren, a visit to Pattaya Orphanage and a series of workshops at the Noh Bo Academy. Through an ongoing collaboration with the Muze Trust the Director of Music Anna Lapwood makes yearly visits to Zambia to develop her relationships with communities there, and the choir visits Zambia every three years.

Closer to home the choir sings a mix of services and concerts as part of the broad portfolio comprising Music at Pembroke. In addition to the regular weekly services, the choir has at least one full concert per term, often performing major works. In recent years highlights from concerts in Cambridge have included Bach’s Magnificat, Fauré’s Requiem and the Vivaldi Gloria. There is also a termly concert at St Martin-in-the-Fields, where the singers recently performed Allegri’s Miserere by candlelight alongside pieces from their debut CD. The choir is committed to exploring more music by women and composers from across the world, and every service features at least one piece by such a composer.

 

Just as with international outreach work, the choir can also be found hosting Cambridge-based events designed to get as many people from the local community singing as possible. Such an event might take the form of a come and sing for local singers alongside the Pembroke Singers choral society, or it might be one of the termly workshops where children from local schools can experience high quality music making. The choir is also heavily involved in the flourishing relationship between Pembroke College and Pembroke House, a settlement and church in Walworth. In addition to seasonal joint services alternating between Cambridge and London the choir joins with the community from Walworth for other musical and social activities. These and more make up the choir’s diverse musical undertakings.

Choir laughing

Choristerships

Pembroke does not make choral awards until students arrive in October. Auditions for places in the Choir (known as Choristerships) are held towards the end of freshers' week every year. Choristers can expect to sing an average of two services a week, in return for which they receive free singing lessons, heavily subsidised international tours and a free formal meal every Sunday.

Choral Exhibitions

Alongside regular Choristerships, the College appoints a small consort of Choral Exhibitioners each year. Exhibitioners sing all regular services, as well as Sung Eucharist every Sunday, providing an opportunity to explore some more challenging consort repertoire. Exhibitioners are encouraged to take the lead with the Choir's extensive outreach work, both continuing existing projects and exploring means of expansion. In return, they receive the standard choir benefits alongside a small annual stipend.

Organ Scholarships

The Organ Scholars at Pembroke work directly with the Director of Music, taking on responsibility for planning the music of the Chapel Services and for recruiting and training the Choir. The College sets considerable store on allowing the scholars the opportunity to shape the musical life of the Chapel, ensuring a degree of autonomy in making musical decisions and extensive experience in conducting. Organ scholars are expected to attend all choral services, resulting in a commitment of three services a week. Sunday Eucharist is entirely the responsibility of the organ scholars, who put together a choir of volunteers, rehearse the music and conduct the service. To find out more about joining the choir, email the Director of Music, Anna Lapwood. 

In this section

Each week in full term the Chapel Choir and Girls' Choir sing regular services in...
The Chapel Choir undertakes an exciting programme of tours, placing a heavy emphasis on Outreach work.