Officers 2023-2024
President: Nicholas Sherwood
Vice President: Claire Hobbs
Junior Vice President: Mark Lee
Treasurer: Malcolm Gibbs
Secretary: Eric Tyson
Presidential Manifesto
Nick Sherwood studied at Exeter University (where he was a Choral Scholar at the Cathedral under Lucian Nethsingha), followed by a Post Grad year at Trinity College Cambridge (where Richard Marlow was a huge influence), and then taught full-time in schools for 20 years. He then ‘went freelance’, dividing his time between instrumental and vocal teaching (privately, and for Newham Academy), choral and orchestral conducting, being DoM for the Parish of Wanstead, and playing or ministering at a very large number of funerals.
His career advice to young musicians starting out would be “don’t put your eggs in one basket!” – and that does work, at least in terms of job security. Since moving from East London to Bristol, Nick has been organist for the St Monica Trust, and been increasingly in demand as a choral conductor. Recent venues include St George’s Windsor, Gloucester and Worcester Cathedrals, Bath Abbey, and a few weekends prior to The Coronation, Westminster Abbey.
Nick hopes that there will be an element of ‘learning’ in the activities scheduled for this Presidential Year. Certainly there is much to be learnt from ‘organ crawls’, whether in Holland, Devon, or S Glos. There are planned sessions on working with the clergy, singers, and others in the musical life of your place of worship.
Above all, there must be fun to be had! Please do volunteer to be a ‘guinea pig’ choral conductor, or to take on a Bishop in a discussion about the future of church music; as ever, the success of our activity days does depend on members taking part.