These are some of the people who play (or have played) a special part in the musical life of the Waverley Singers:
Our conductor and musical director is Malcolm Hicks, a professional musician of wide international experience. He was appointed in May 1982.
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Malcolm is a graduate of the University of Birmingham where he was also Assistant Master of the Music at the Cathedral, and organist and Assistant Conductor with major choirs and orchestras. After further studies in piano, cello, singing, and conducting at the Guildhall School of Music, he has pursued a full-time career as a keyboard player and conductor. He plays with all the major London orchestras in:
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For many years he was Associate Conductor of the London Philharmonic Choir and Deputy Conductor of the Royal Choral Society. He continues to work regularly with them as choirmaster, and also with other principal choirs in London, including the London Symphony Chorus and the BBC Singers.
Richard joined the Waverley Singers as accompanist and organist in 2000.
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Richard was organ scholar at Trinity College, Cambridge, and spent two years as a postgraduate at the Guildhall School of Music. Richard has performed throughout Britain, and has made broadcasts on television and radio. He appeared in the final of the 1997 Cardiff Singer of the World competition, which has been released on CD with the BBC Music Magazine. Richard works regularly with many choirs in London, including the BBC Singers and the Royal Choral Society, and is the assistant conductor of the Whitehall Choir. |
The Waverley Singers' concerts have often been augmented by the organ playing of Paul Griffiths. Paul began playing the organ at the age of ten, and won first prize in the London Musical Competition Festival a the age of thirteen. He continued to gain the recognition of his colleagues, and gained the FRCO. In 1980 Paul became organist and choirmaster at St. Mary's, Welwyn, then in 1986, he moved to Hong Kong, where he became assistant organist at St. John's Cathedral, and Head of Organ at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. He has featured in broadcasts with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, and has given recitals in several countries, including the English cathedrals of Ely, Peterborough, and St. Paul's
For a number of years the Waverley Singers' deputy chorus master was Margaret Houston, who took rehearsals when Malcolm was unable to attend. Judith Miller and Alyson Paterson have also had occasion to step into the breach.
John Cotterill, along with Molly Medhurst and a dozen or so former pupils of Farnham Girls' Grammar School, founded the Waverley Singers in March 1955. John conducted the group, and led it as it grew in size and ability, until he stepped down in 1981.
John conducted the Waverleys once again in October 2000. He was one of the driving forces behind, and the conductor of, a performance of Elgar's Dream of Gerontius in celebration of the work's centenary. The choir for the performance was an ad hoc group, known as The New Century Chorus, comprising the Waverley Singers, Woking Choral Society, Maidenhead Chamber Choir, and Great Missenden Choral Society. The semi-chorus parts were sung by Oxford Pro Musica. The performance was given at the Royal Albert Hall, and was in aid of the charity Help the Aged.
Denys Darlow conducted the Waverley Singers for two concerts in 1981 and 1982, but his association with the choir is much deeper. In 1952 Denys founded the Tilford Bach Festival, and since 1982 the Waverley Singers and the Tilford Bach Orchestra have performed many concerts together.
Denys has composed a trilogy consisting of:
The latter two have been performed by the Waverley Singers.
Denys' latest work, Sinfonia da Requiem, was written for and dedicated to the Waverley Singers, and was first performed on 6th November 1999 with the Tilford Bach Orchestra.
You can see a list of the distinguished soloists who have sung for the Waverley Singers on Archives page. The choir did, however, play a particularly special role in the career of one famous singer.
While attending a concert, John Cotterill and his wife were very impressed by the voice of the soloist, a school teacher who wanted to become a professional singer. In November 1961 he was invited by the Waverley Singers to sing in King Arthur for the princely remuneration of £7. His name? John Shirley-Quirk.
John Shirley-Quirk agreed to sing the bass solo in the centenary performance of Elgar's Dream of Gerontius, on October 1st 2000, but unfortunately last minute circumstances prevented him from doing so. His shoes were ably filled by Alastair Miles.