In 1702, Queen Anne moved the choral foundations from the Banqueting House at Whitehall to St. James's Palace. Professional musicians and singers were employed from at least the middle of the eighteenth century, serving in the choir, which was composed of Gentlemen and Children.
This tradition is maintained today by six Gentlemen and ten Children who together form the choir and still wear the eye-catching scarlet and gold State coats conforming to the design decreed in Charles II's warrant of 17 September 1661. The choir sing every Sunday (except in August and September) at the morning service in the Chapel Royal, St. James's Palace, or in The Queen's chapel at St. James's and at other services as required.
Members of the public are always welcome to attend these services which begin at 11.15 am. The choir also sing at the Royal Maundy Service each year, in Whitehall on Remembrance Sunday and on other occasions as appointed by the Sovereign.
The ten boy choristers (Children of the Chapel) are educated at the City of London School as The Queen's Scholars and are normally auditioned for places at the age of 7 or 8, although occasionally it is possible for applications from older children to be considered. Becoming a chorister is a two-stage process. First, an audition is held with Organist Dr. Andrew Gant. If that is successful and a chorister place is offered, the applicant then goes for an academic test at City of London School.
If passed, this guarantees a place at the school for the year in which the child reaches the age of ten, bypassing the need to pass the open entrance exam held at the school in January of that year. Once these two stages are passed, the successful applicant will join the choir as a probationer, attending two practices each week during school term.
Probationers do not sing in services unless one of the ten choristers is prevented from attending by illness. Probationers proceed to full choristerships when places become available through a senior chorister's voice breaking. At this stage they attend four practices each week during term and one each week outside term, and sing at all services and other events.
The boys do not sing on the Sunday after Christmas or the Sunday after Easter, and there are no choir events between the last Sunday in July and the beginning of school term in early September unless commanded by Her Majesty. The scholarship, equal to two-thirds of fees, is payable during the time a boy sings as a chorister. Because boys join the choir as probationers aged eight or nine, usually proceeding to full choristerships after about a year, there is often a period when they are members of the choir while still attending their previous schools.
Because choristers stay at City of London School after they have stopped singing treble, they can hold their choristerships until their voices break; there is no fixed age for leaving the choir. If you are interested in more information on applying for chorister places, contact Dr. Andrew Gant, the Organist and Choirmaster by writing to andrew@andrewgant.info.
The modern title of choirmaster evolved from the post of 'Master of Song of the Chapel Royal'. The first such Master was John Pyamour, who as part of Henry V's campaign in the Duchy of Normandy, was commissioned to impress children and take them to Normandy to sing for the Chapel Royal.
There were also separate positions for a Composer and an Organist within the Chapel Royal but these are now combined. The first recorded Organist was 'a certain Nicholas' in 1387, and other Organists in succeeding centuries included Thomas Tallis, William Byrd, Orlando Gibbons, Henry Purcell and William Croft. Records show that there were no fewer than four Composers in the ranks of the Chapel Royal, who were present at the battle of Agincourt in 1415 when the Chapel Royal consecrated the battleground.
Among the more famous historical composers to hold the position of Composer was George Frideric Handel who, as a German citizen, was employed by King George II with the special title 'Composer of Musick for His Majesty's Chappel Royal'. The king chose Handel to compose the music for his coronation in 1727, whereupon he produced the anthem 'Zadok the Priest', which has been used at every coronation since.
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