Simon is a second tenor
Although born near Plymouth, most of my formative years were spent in the West Midlands. I have always had wide-ranging tastes in music, but my earliest memories of music are listening to radio broadcasts of The Messiah and the Nine Lessons and Carols from King’s College, Cambridge at Christmas. I discovered a love of organ music when I attended George Thalben-Ball’s lunchtime organ recitals with my father at Birmingham Town Hall. Later, I discovered Renaissance polyphony by listening to Radio 3 in the evening while my parents thought I was asleep. I trained as a junior/secondary music teacher, playing viola in the college orchestra under Elgar Howarth and singing in the college choir and other smaller groups.
After a couple of temporary teaching jobs II had almost 20 years in the IT industry, during which time music-making had to take a back seat. In 2000 I was ordained as deacon in the Church of England, serving my curacy in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, where I reconnected with my earlier love of choral music through my association with the choir at St. Nicolas Parish Church and through occasional leading of mid-week Evensong at Coventry Cathedral.
During my ministry as Rector of a group of five churches in West Leicestershire I was invited to join a choir of local clergy. This led to me deputising with Viva La Musica at a concert in the Leicester Guildhall following which I applied to join Viva, and the rest, as they say, is history.
I love singing with Viva for the challenges it brings, not least with the range of the music we sing. There is always something new to learn. And it helps that the choir are so friendly and supportive.
After a couple of temporary teaching jobs II had almost 20 years in the IT industry, during which time music-making had to take a back seat. In 2000 I was ordained as deacon in the Church of England, serving my curacy in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, where I reconnected with my earlier love of choral music through my association with the choir at St. Nicolas Parish Church and through occasional leading of mid-week Evensong at Coventry Cathedral.
During my ministry as Rector of a group of five churches in West Leicestershire I was invited to join a choir of local clergy. This led to me deputising with Viva La Musica at a concert in the Leicester Guildhall following which I applied to join Viva, and the rest, as they say, is history.
I love singing with Viva for the challenges it brings, not least with the range of the music we sing. There is always something new to learn. And it helps that the choir are so friendly and supportive.