In 2005, music directors in the New York area expressed interest in joining together to form a chorister experience of the highest caliber for girls. The Choir School was delighted to offer space, resources and experience to the endeavor. Since then, the Choir School has proudly taken full ownership of the course and developed a schedule and musical standard parallel to that of the boys during the academic terms. In 2008, the course expanded to nine days. In 2014, the Course begins on Saturday, July 26, and concludes on Sunday, August 3. The girls sing Choral Evensong on Tuesday, July 29, and Thursday, July 31, at 5:30pm. Then, on Sunday, August 3 at 11am, they sing a Choral Eucharist alongside the Gentlemen of the Choir.
Over the years, two distinguished female organists & directors of music have shared the musical direction of the course: Sarah MacDonald, who directed the course last year, and Sarah Baldock, who directs this year. Both Sarahs hold prestigious positions in the United Kingdom and are mentors and role models in every way for the young women who participate in the course.
Sarah Baldock was educated as a music scholar at St. Paul’s Girls’ School in London. As Organ Scholar of Pembroke College, Cambridge, she won top prizes in the RCO diploma examination and a bursary for postgraduate study. She was a finalist in the 1998 Calgary International Organ Competition and prizewinner at the 2000 Odense and 2002 Dallas International Organ Competition. Sarah is a popular soloist in the UK and abroad. In 1998, Sarah moved to Winchester Cathedral where she founded the Girls’ Choir and in 2002 became Assistant Director of Music. In 2008, she took up the post of Organist and Master of the Choristers at Chichester Cathedral, becoming the first woman to lead the music program of a major cathedral in the U.K.
See also:
Saint Thomas Girl Chorister Course Announces Winner of Composition Competition
