The International Director of the Royal School of Church Music, Andrew Reid, will visit St Mary’s Cathedral this month to work with the cathedral choristers.
St Mary’s Cathedral Director of Music and Principal Organist Jacinta Jakovcevic has arranged for Mr Reid to visit St Mary’s, where he will also conduct a performance as part of his tour of Australia.
As a nine-year-old chorister at St Bartholomew’s Church in Otford, Kent, Mr Reid was enrolled in an RSCM training scheme, evolving from a complete novice – “I don’t think I could sing two notes in tune” – into an accomplished chorister and organist who, by 12, had sung at Peterborough Cathedral and played the organ at St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh.
There, he played Vaughan Williams’ Rhosymedre before morning Eucharist. “l still have the marking in my copy, and have used it ever since,” he says.
Mr Reid studied music at St Catharine’s College, Cambridge, where he was an organ scholar, going on to musicology at Robinson College, Cambridge, where he was a graduate organ scholar and performed the complete organ works of JS Bach in one 25-hour recital in 1994.
The details of his performance at St Mary’s Cathedral are:
Thursday, 23 April (12.10pm): Mr Reid will conduct the choristers at Mass as they sing music by Britten (Missa Brevis, Agnus Dei), Rutter and Gounod. All welcome to attend.
Mr Reid will also speak at St George’s Cathedral on 22 April from 7.30pm about the RSCM and is keen to meet as many church musicians as possible from Perth.
Commemorating ANZAC Day
A selection of special music has also been arranged to commemorate ANZAC Day at St Mary’s Cathedral with musical items planned for all Masses over the weekend of Saturday, 25 and Sunday, 26 April.
The ANZAC Day morning Mass at 8am will include in its prelude music a piece written by New Zealand composer David Hamilton, as well as excerpts from the newly written Mass for the fallen written by Australian composer Christopher Willcock.
Ms Jakovcevic said the combination of these pieces will aim to highlight the collaboration of the two nations during World War I.
Prelude music for the Sunday, 11am Mass, which will be celebrated by Archbishop Costelloe, will feature a piece written for World Youth Day 2008 titled Our Lady of the Southern Cross, written by Geoffrey Abdullah.
The Cathedral Choir sang its premiere at WYD in 2008 and will sing it once again on this very special weekend.
“It will be a tribute and special prayer to Our Lady, Help of Christians – Our Lady of the Southern Cross, who is Patroness of Australia at this very historic time for our country,” Ms Jakovcevic said.
Following this will be a special tolling of the Cathedral’s bells in memory of the 58 West Australians who died on 25 April 1915 at Gallipoli.
The Last Post will be played at the conclusion of both these Masses.
For more information, please contact Jacinta Jakovcevic on 08 9223 1377 or via mobile on 0419 942 099 or email music.cathedral@perthcatholic.org.au.