We had a quick chat with George Salter from the team to find out more! Why are you doing the peal at the end of the month?This was organised for fun for some of us who have not been to Bradford Cathedral before. We'd heard nice things about the bells from friends who had rung a peal back in July 2023. Could you tell us a little about your history as a bell-ringer?I grew up in Suffolk learning to ring at the age of 9. I spent a lot of my early ringing days as part of the bands at St Mary le Tower, Ipswich, Gislingham and Mistley as well as regularly attending many ringing events hosted by the Suffolk Guild. I moved to Bristol in early 2017 and was a keen ringer there for 7 years before relocating to Birmingham to be closer to family. What do you most enjoy about bell-ringing?I get a real satisfaction from going to new places with friends and ringing on nice bells. Going to a nice ring of bells and doing some good ringing, followed by a fun social with beer and usually ending in a curry, is something of a tradition somewhat in the Bristol ringing scene. I'm pleased that it exists here too in the midlands. Can you find out more about the ringers online or on social media?There are numerous groups across the country. The main one for us in Birmingham is the St Martin's Guild. A couple of the major national competitions all of us are really into are the National 12-bell Striking Contest, and the Ringing World National Youth Contest. Listen out for our bells being rung by this group around 11:30am on Sunday 29th September!
Running until Sunday 22nd September, there will be a Yorkshire-wide show of support for Fairtrade with Fairtrade groups across the county being encouraged to display the 30th birthday posters, and you can see the Revd Canon Ned Lunn and Elaine and Mike de Villiers of our Eco Group, alongside some young Fairtrade supporters, at Bradford Cathedral in our snap!Fairtrade Yorkshire will be posting photos every day during Fairtrade Fortnight on their social media, and they have started a gallery of photos on their website.You can find out more about Fairtrade on our pop-up stall in the Cathedral during the two weeks, and we are also holding our Big Brew on the 22nd September and all are welcome to come along for that.Elsewhere in the Diocese, St. John’s in Ben Rhydding is having a Fairtrade and second hand fashion show. Look out for more details about this - and much more - to be announced!
Though Bradford Cathedral doesn’t have its own regular team of bell ringers, Tower Captain Dale Barton and the team invite ringers throughout the year, and this particular ringing day coincides with this year’s Yorkshire Churches Day. We spoke to Maurice Calvert, Ringing Master for the Western Branch of the Yorkshire Association of Change Ringers, to find out more about what they’re doing on the day and how bell ringers can get involved. What is happening on the day? "The people ringing will be members of the Western Branch of the YACR (covering Bradford, Halifax, Calderdale and the Yorkshire Dales). We’ve combined things this year into what we call a ‘Quarter Peal’ day, so those members who wish to take part can ring quarter peals together. "A quarter peal takes about 45-minutes of continuous ringing, and we're running four time slots on the day, with two in the morning - then a lunch break - then two in the afternoon, and one of those slots will be open ringing at Bradford Cathedral. "The day will start with a quarter peal attempt at St. Andrew, Gargrave before heading to St Michael & All Angels, Haworth alongside a concurrent ring at All Saints, Bingley. After that it’s over to Bradford Cathedral and then we finish the day at Holy Trinity, Idle. "If there are visiting ringers in the area, they are welcome to come and join at Bradford Cathedral from 2:30pm. Last month we were ringing at Holy Trinity, Holmfirth and two bell-ringers who just happened to hear the bells ringing came and joined us. "For those looking to learn to ring church bells, you can express your interest at https://cccbr.org.uk/bellringing/learn/ - I don’t think any churches will turn away people eager to learn! It's a wonderful, centuries-old hobby, exercising both mind and body and suitable for learners between 10 and 70." Listen out for the bells ringing at Bradford Cathedral on Saturday 14th September from 2:30pm. You can find out more about the Yorkshire Association of Change Ringers at https://www.yacr.org.uk/ and Yorkshire Churches Day at https://www.yhct.org.uk/yorkshire-churches-day/. You can also find out more about what bell ringing involves in a video recorded at Bradford Cathedral on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IJGSdn6KNk You can also join us from 12noon - 3pm for our Heritage Open Day - you can find out more details about this on Eventbrite.
In this edition of 'Notes from an Organist' we discover more about them, and what to expect from their recital including playing at Ripon's Summer Organ Festival; marking the 400th anniversary of Pembroke College Oxford; and directing We Will Rock You! Could you introduce yourself, how you got into music / become an organist and your musical journey to where you are today?I am Alastair Stone, Assistant Organist at Ripon Cathedral, delighted to be playing at Bradford. I had piano lessons from quite a young age, but my musical journey really began when I was a chorister at Coventry Cathedral – which is where I was first exposed to the wonders of choral and organ repertoire. I sang at Coventry for nearly a decade as a chorister and choral scholar, became organ scholar before going to university, and then was at Oxford for 3 years as a music student and organ scholar. I joined the team at Ripon after graduating last summer. What can people expect from your recital at Bradford Cathedral?A varied programme spanning several musical periods, hoping to showcase a number of different colours and moods. Why do you enjoy playing the organ?I enjoy having a wide range of musical sounds at my disposal, as there are always new combinations of stops to experiment with. The size of many organs too is awe-inspiring, and it is of course very exciting to be the loudest in the room! Do you have a particular favourite piece out of those you are playing?I very much enjoy playing Vierne’s 1st Organ Symphony, particularly the Final, as it is such a uplifting and energetic piece of music. This season’s theme is ‘The Town Hall Organ (Secular and Concert Repertoire)’. How are you reflecting this in your programme?I have chosen pieces that have some concrete connections to non-secular events and practices – including civic events and pedagogical resources, as well as pieces that, like much concert repertoire, focus on being musically ‘pure’, without any associations or connotations to non-musical ideas. What are your hopes or plans musically for the rest of 2024 and into 2025?I hope to continue to expand my own repertoire, in liturgical and non-liturgical settings, and look to what my next steps will be when my time at Ripon finishes. You were appointed as the new Assistant Organist at Ripon Cathedral in September 2023. How has your first year in the role been?My first year at Ripon has been very enlightening – having the chance to work in a thriving cathedral music department and see what it takes to run the day to day of a cathedral choral foundation has been invaluable. With our high number of choristers and no choir school, Ripon is also a great example of how to run a choir in the current climate of musical education. Back in June you led the Summer Organ Festival at Ripon – how did that go?The cathedral’s Summer Organ Festival was very successful, it was wonderful to see so many people attend our short series of concerts, including many of our own choristers and scholars. I thought my own recital went well – I used it as a chance to play in the first half my FRCO programme before the exam in July (which I passed with prizes!), and the second half to play all of Vierne’s Organ Symphony no.1, a rare time where I as a soloist had performed an extended work all at once. Previously you were a chorister at Coventry Cathedral – how did you find that time?I wouldn’t be where I am today without my time as a chorister, not least because of the exposure I had to choral and organ music, in which I was almost immediately engrossed, but because it provided a truly excellent musical and professional education. Being a chorister not only teaches children a high standard of musical fluency, but also puts them into a disciplined and structured environment where they are given real responsibility and accountability – which is an invaluable life lesson. Coventry Cathedral particularly with its Ministry of Reconciliation is a powerful and historic place, so it was also a real privilege to be a part of that community. You recently graduated as an organ scholar at Pembroke College Oxford. What have been your highlights of this period of study?Highlights of being an organ scholar were the opportunities I had to lead a choir properly for the first time, particularly around Christmas when singing familiar favourites at Carol services excited the choir, as there was a real sense of community in the life of the chapel. Being a musician in Oxford, with an abundance of musical activity around every corner, was very exciting, and I really enjoyed getting involved with as many different events as possible. You also played as part of their 400th anniversary concerts; was that a privilege to be involved with?It was great to be back at Pembroke to give a recital on the lovely organ there, at such a special time in the college’s history, and a privilege to be part of those celebrations after I had left. You’ve also been the musical director for runs of ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘Guys and Dolls’. Did you find working with a different style of music interesting?I have had some of the most fun working on productions of musical theatre, and really enjoy being in those environments. The different styles of music are definitely very interesting, WWRY with its rock and pop genre, and Guys and Dolls with its mix of more traditional musical theatre and jazz, all broaden my own knowledge. Finally, how would you sum up your upcoming recital at Bradford Cathedral?An exciting mix of diverse musical styles and characters, all with very different connections to the season’s theme. You can join us on Wednesday 11th September at 1pm to hear Alastair's organ recital, with an optional £4 buffet lunch beforehand at 12:30pm. You can discover more about our organ recital season on our dedicated page.
