Speakers

Archbishop Stephen Cottrell

Stephen Cottrell is the 98th Archbishop of York. He is a member of the Church of England’s Committee for Minority Ethnic Concerns, and Chair of Church Army, an Anglican society for evangelism and social outreach. He is a member of the House of Lords. He is a well-known writer and speaker on evangelism, spirituality and catechesis.

He is married to Rebecca who is a potter. They have three sons, one grandson and a dog.

His books include Kingdom Calling, and Do Nothing to Change Your Life. His latest is P is for Pilgrim.

Sessions

Roxanna Panufnik

Roxanna Panufnik is one of the most versatile and beloved British composers working today. She studied composition at the Royal Academy of Music and since then has written works for opera, ballet, choirs, orchestras and chamber music as well as for film and television that are seen and heard around the world. Thanks to her hybrid heritage, she has a great love of music from a variety of cultures and different faiths. Her mission to build musical bridges between the three Abrahamic faiths has resulted in commissions from The World Orchestra for Peace in Jerusalem and the BBC for the 2018 Last Night of the Proms.

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Joanna Forbes L'Estrange

Joanna Forbes L’Estrange is a British soprano, choral director and one of the RSCM’s best-selling composers. Her career began with seven years touring the world as Soprano and Musical Director of the multi-Grammy Award-winning vocal group The Swingle Singers, followed by twenty years as a member of the chamber choir Tenebrae. She now specialises in contemporary crossover music, working in the classical, jazz, pop, commercial and film industries, both as a soloist and as an ensemble singer. Her coronation anthem The Mountains Shall Bring Peace was sung by over 600 choirs around the world. This and her other sacred choral pieces have been recorded by London Voices on an album entitled ‘Heaven to Earth’, to be released in January 2024 on the SIGNUM Classics label. www.joannaforbeslestrange.com 

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Victoria Johnson

Canon Victoria Johnson is Precentor of York Minster where she oversees the worship and music of the cathedral. She has recently been appointed Dean of Chapel at St John’s College Cambridge. She has taught liturgy and homiletics for many years, is a member of the Mission Theology and Apologetics Group of the Church of England and the Archbishops’ College of Evangelists. She studied theology at Cambridge and at the Institute of Sacred Music and School of Divinity at Yale, USA. She is a singer and musician, and as well as singing the daily office, she currently sings in two York based chamber choirs and is a trustee of the National Centre for Early Music and The Ryedale Festival. Her book On Voice: Speech, Song and Silence, Human and Divine, will be published by Darton, Longman & Todd in 2024. She is currently researching models of evangelism shaped by music, liturgy and prayer. 

Sessions

Adrian Bawtree

Adrian Bawtree believes in the power of music to enrich lives, and as a professional musician, he has seen first-hand the impact music and other creative activities can have on improving wellbeing. He is therefore highly motivated to understand how creative activities work and help people to change for the better. He is a co-Director of Kent Arts and Wellbeing and brings a wealth of experience to their programmes having been involved in a diverse range of musical activities, including running a number of singing for health & wellbeing groups. 

Sessions

Alexander L’Estrange

Alexander L’Estrange is a British composer, arranger, jazz multi-instrumentalist, MD, choral animateur, workshop leader and music producer. He is best known for his award-winning series of community choral works scored for SATB choir, unison children’s choir and jazz quintet; the first of these was Zimbe! Come sing the songs of Africa!, a fusion of traditional African song and jazz. His sacred choral music has been recorded by Tenebrae on the album 'On Eagles’ Wings'. A highly regarded vocal arranger, Alexander writes for world-class groups including Voces8, Amarcord, The Swingles and The King’s Singers, for whom he wrote and produced the 'Great American Songbook' album. www.alexanderlestrange.com 

Sessions

Alison Barrington

Alison Barrington is passionate about the therapeutic benefits of music and has been a music therapist for 30 years. Working within end of life care she found that the familiarity of words combined with music has enabled people with dementia to spend quality time with loved ones. As well as a clinician Alison has been a senior lecturer at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and a guest lecturer within other universities and at conferences both in the UK and the USA. She has written on music therapy extensively and has recently completed a national project for the NHS regarding the impact of music therapy in the healthcare system. She works for North Yorkshire Music Therapy Centre in York. Her love of music making extends to her participation in church. She is currently enthusing the youngest York 'Minster Mice' in learning about their faith through songs.

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Andrea Haines

Andrea's love of singing started early as a member of the choir in her parish church in Kent, England. She went on to join as many choirs as would have her, including youth choirs of the Royal School of Church Music, and then studied Music at Cardiff University, before joining the GRAMMY®-nominated British vocal ensemble VOCES8 in 2008.

PHOTO CREDIT: Andy Staples

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Andy Thomas

Andy Thomas is author of Resounding Body: Building Christlike Church Communities Through Music (Sacristy Press, 2020), an associate tutor at RSCM and a freelance church musician working mainly with Anglican and Methodist churches in Bedfordshire. Andy has served as Director of Music for a variety of churches and community choirs in Sheffield and London. His (fabulous, challenging) experience at St John's, Waterloo inspired his book, where he built a choir from scratch despite being assured it could not be done. Andy is passionate about the power of music to grow and invigorate church communities, and is particularly keen to support those with limited musical resources.

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Carl Jackson

Carl Jackson was born in London and studied as a Junior Exhibitioner at The Royal Academy of Music.  He also held organ scholarships at the Chapel Royal, Hampton Court Palace and at Downing College, Cambridge where he was pupil of Peter Hurford.  He obtained a Postgraduate teaching certificate at Goldsmiths’ College (University of London) before embarking upon a 36 year teaching career in both state and independent sectors, retiring in 2018. 

Ebor Singers

Acclaimed for performances and recordings that combine imaginative programmes with performances of freshness and vitality, The Ebor Singers has earned a reputation as one of the most exciting vocal ensembles in the north of England. As well as their concert series held in York Minster and churches across Yorkshire, the choir has performed in festivals in the UK and abroad, and has appeared on radio and TV, with recent appearances in York's Late and Early Music Festivals, performances on BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4.   

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Ian Wilcock

Senior Musical Director and Organist at Rotherham Minster, along with being Director of the Minster Choir.

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James Gilchrist

Recognised as ‘the finest Evangelist of his generation’, James Gilchrist is one of the UK’s leading tenors, whose extensive repertoire embraces works spanning many centuries. He is an enthusiastic and prolific exponent of lieder and enjoys nothing better than putting together interesting and challenging recital programmes. His impressive discography includes the Vaughan Williams Songs of Travel, Schubert and Schumann song cycles, Finzi, Bach and Britten. 

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Mark Keith

Organist and Director of Music at Hull Minster.

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Nicholas Riddle

Nicholas Riddle was for many years CEO of the Edition Peters Music Publishing Group, founded in Leipzig in 1800.  He joined Peters in 1993 after twelve years in the computer industry.  He studied piano and organ from an early age, adding choral directing at university.  He held several church posts as Director of Music.  Since 1995, he has attended St Bartholomew the Great in London where he has helped with the music as a deputy conductor and organist when required.  He has been a Trustee of several musical charities, including the Kathleen Ferrier Memorial Scholarship Fund, of which he is the Chair.

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Pete Gunstone

Revd Pete Gunstone is Minor Canon for Worship and Nurture at Bradford Cathedral. Equally at home in the choral and charismatic traditions, and in music from across the world, he is a musician who specialises in intercultural worship. Prior to ordination, he worked as a freelance classical musician and a church worship pastor. Highlights of his musical ministry have included programming worship for Greenbelt Festival, leading worship at the Keswick Convention, and directing music for the Lambeth Conference 2022.

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Peter Asprey

Peter Asprey is in demand both as a conductor, chorus master, singer, workshop leader and singing teacher. He is the Director of Music at Holy Sepulchre London, the National Musicians’ Church in the heart of the City of London and the Musical Director of Ealing Choral Society. He has been a guest Chorus Master for the London Symphony Chorus, London Philharmonic Choir, Brighton Festival Chorus, The Whitehall Choir and the St Endellion Festival Chorus, working alongside conductors such as Michael Tilson Thomas, Sir Andrew Davis and Edward Gardner. Former posts include Musical Director of the Berkshire Youth Choir and Henley Choral Society. Recent performances include Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Mozart’s C Minor Mass at Cadogan Hall with the English Chamber Orchestra and Handel’s Messiah at Reading Town Hall. He has performed premiers on BBC Radio 3 with the Berkshire Youth Choir and initiated educational events for the students with the BBC Singers. He has conducted at places such as Wigmore Hall, The Sheldonian Theatre and Cadogan Hall and taken choirs on tour to France Germany, Italy, Belgium and Spain. He has extensive experience of the City, having conducted the choir and taught singing at UBS for many years. 

Sessions

Philip Moore

Philip Moore was a student at the Royal College of Music and has a Bachelor in Music degree from Durham University. 

He was Organist and Master of the Music at York Minster for twenty five years.  Before moving to York he held posts at Guildford Cathedral, Canterbury Cathedral and Eton College. He retired from the Minster in 2008 and was appointed an Organist Emeritus.   

He now enjoys life as an itinerant organist but spends much of his time composing.   As well as writing for choirs and organs, there is also some chamber music, as well as three cantatas, a requiem and a concerto for organ and orchestra.

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Robert Poyser

Organist and Director of Music at Beverley Minster.

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Robert Sharpe

Robert joined York Minster as Director of Music in 2008 and is responsible for organising and directing all aspects of the Minster’s music, as well as arranging its programme of concerts, broadcasts and tours. He is a well-known organ recitalist and has made a number of acclaimed recordings as a choral director and organist. 

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Tansy Castledine

Tansy Castledine is a highly regarded British choral conductor at the forefront of the profession within Church Music. Her dynamic and engaging style is known for engendering outstanding results from the choirs with which she works, making her much in demand as a conductor, educator, and animateur.

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Tom Bell

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Tom Daggett

Conductor, organist and Director of Music & Schools Singing Programme at Sheffield Cathedral.  Previously worked at St Paul’s Cathedral where he implemented a music partnership programme for children.

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William McVicker

Dr William McVicker is Organ Curator at London’s Royal Festival Hall and is professor of organology at the Royal Academy of Music.  He is an active recitalist and church musician and served as Director of Music at St Barnabas, Dulwich for thirty-one years. William is Chairman of the Association of Independent Organ Advisers (AIOA), Organs Adviser to the Diocese of Southwark, a Trustee of the ON Organ Fund, and former organ adviser to the Cathedrals Fabric Commission for England (CFCE).  An Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Musical Instrument Technology, William was recently elected both an Honorary Research Fellow and an Honorary Associate of the Royal Academy of Music. 

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Tim Ruffer

Tim Ruffer has been Head of Publishing at the RSCM since 2002, in which role he acts as Music Consultant to Hymns Ancient & Modern, sustaining a long-held tradition going back to Sir Sydney Nicholson's editorship of the hymnbook. He was a member of the editorial committee for 'Sing Praise' and chaired the editorial committee for 'Ancient & Modern–Hymns & Songs for refreshing worship', published in 2013. He is also co-ordinator of the highly-regarded 'Sunday by Sunday' magazine. Tim is Joint Director of Music at St Mary's Church, Fordingbridge and a deputy lay-vicar at Salisbury Cathedral. 

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