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The Reverend Bertie Barnby
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The Barnby Choir
We are a mixed voice choir of
soprano, alto, tenor and bass comprising around 70 members. We are
based in Wilmslow, Cheshire, in the South Manchester area of the
UK. Our conductor is Peter Stallworthy.
The Barnby Choir was founded by
Bertie Barnby in 1945 for 'the enjoyment of making music, and to
ensure accurate and meaningful performances'. In 2005 we
celebrated our Diamond Jubilee – 60 years of
singing.
We meet every
Tuesday evening from 8.00 to 10.00 pm for rehearsals at
Wilmslow Methodist Church. The choir has been a registered
charity since 1996, and is affiliated to
Making Music,
formerly known as the
National Federation of Music
Societies.
Bertie Barnby and Manchester Cathedral
Bertie Barnby came from a musical family. His father was a
professional musician and Sir Joseph Barnby was his great
uncle. Bertie won an exhibition to Christ College,
Cambridge, where he read English and Theology.
He was on the staff of
Manchester Cathedral from
1946 to 1950 and whilst he was there the choir rehearsed in the
Cathedral and gave performances of major choral works. The first
full work they performed was Bach's St Matthew's Passion. Mr
Norman Cocker was the organist. This was the first performance of
its kind given in the Cathedral after the war.
Leadership after Bertie Barnby
When Bertie Barnby moved to West Kirby in 1976,
a committee was formed to run
the choir. Paul Bryan, who had been the accompanist and organist
of the choir for several
years, took over as conductor for two seasons, until he obtained the
post of Director of Music at the
Choir School at St John's College, Cambridge.
His successor was David Greensmith, also a graduate of St John's College, Cambridge,
who had come to Wilmslow in 1977 to be headmaster of Thorngrove
Comprehensive School. He was a professional musician, organist and
choirmaster, whose charisma and enthusiasm for making music inspired the
choir until he was obliged to change his career in 1990 and relinquish his
position as conductor.
David's wife, Ann Greensmith, then took
over. Ann is also a professional musician and teacher and was
trained at the Royal
Academy of Music. In 1993, Ann resigned as conductor, having
obtained a post in Leamington Spa, but David did not live to move there
with her. Sadly he died suddenly, at the early age of 55, from a
heart condition known as Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. In 1994 the
Barnby Choir performed a charity concert in aid of the Hypertrophic
Cardiomyopathy Association, in memory of David.
Andrew Dean, who was Director of Music at Manchester Grammar School,
took over from Ann Greensmith in 1993 and remained with the choir until May
1999. He was succeeded by Peter
Stallworthy, our present conductor, whose appointment began at the
start of the 1999/2000 season.
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