Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge | |
Founder: | Charles Wood |
Genre: | Choir |
Members: |
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Music Director: | Matthew Martin |
Website: | www.gonvilleandcaiuschoir.com/ |
The Choir of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge is a collegiate choir in the University of Cambridge, until recently directed by the Buxtehude scholar Geoffrey Webber.[1] The Director of Music at the college is by tradition known as 'Precentor'. The current Precentor (since April 2020) is Matthew Martin.
The college awards a number of choral exhibitions every year to incoming students, and these choral exhibitioners make up most of the choir; the choir is also supplemented by a number of volunteers, who are often from other colleges. The choir sing three services per week during term-time, on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays.[2] Owing to the Precentor's wide-ranging interests the choir sings an eclectic mix of repertoires, and has developed a niche for resurrecting forgotten repertoires:[3] the CD released in June 2014 is of Celtic chant from the 8th to 12th centuries with the virtuoso piper Barnaby Brown, whilst their most recent recording project, which is yet to be released, is of South American choral music.
The Choir releases one or more CDs every year, recently on the Delphian record label. The Choir has recorded several CDs of contemporary composers, such as Judith Weir, Robin Holloway (a fellow of the college), Cheryl Frances-Hoad, and Rodion Shchedrin. Other interesting projects include a reconstruction of the J. S. Bach Mark passion, and a recording with the Choir of King's College, London of Strauss's Deutsche Motette Op. 62 for its centenary.[4]
The Choir tours three or more times per year. In 2014 the Choir toured Heidelberg, Bogotá, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and Hong Kong.
The discography[5] includes :