Choral Course 3: St. Peter’s School, York
Tuesday 12th August - Monday 18th August 2025
Director: Sarah MacDonald
SARAH MACDONALD is a Canadian-born conductor, organist, pianist, and composer, living in the UK. She is Fellow and Director of Music at Selwyn College, Cambridge, and Director of Ely Cathedral’s Girl Choristers. She has been at Selwyn since 1999, and was the first woman to hold such a post in an Oxbridge Chapel. Sarah came to the UK from Canada in 1992 as Organ Scholar of Robinson College, Cambridge after studying piano, organ, and conducting at The Royal Conservatory of Music’s Glenn Gould School in. Sarah is a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists, and an examiner for the RCO and the University of Cambridge. She tours internationally every year, has made over 35 commercial recordings, and has over 60 published works for choir and organ. Her liturgical music is sung and played around the world. She is a sought-after conductor, and teacher, especially for young singers and organists. She was recently appointed University Organist at Cambridge, and is the first woman to hold that prestigious ceremonial role, which dates back to 1670. In her spare time Sarah is a keen amateur photographer.
-
St. Peter’s School, founded in 627 AD, is one of the oldest schools in the world. Located in Clifton, a short distance from York city centre, the school is easily accessible by public transport and for those travelling by car. We are excited to be returning to York for the third year in 2025.
-
You must be between the ages of 14 and 22 to apply for this course. If you are 14, you must currently be in Year 10. If you are in year 9, please take a look at the Junior Choral Courses.
-
The cost of this course is £1025. There are a number of payment options available:
£250 deposit followed by an invoice to pay the remaining balance via a bank transfer by 31st March 2025
£250 deposit followed by two invoices - one to pay 50% of the remaining balance by 31st March 2025 and the other to pay the remainder by 1st July 2025.
The full £1025 on application using a credit card (plus a 1.5% Stripe transaction fee)
A monthly payment plan to be completed 6 weeks before the start of the course (1st July 2025) following a deposit of £250 on application. (monthly payments will be subject to a 1.5% Stripe processing fee)
Through one of the Foundation’s means-tested bursaries. See more below.
The refund policy is the same whichever payment option you choose. A full refund is available if you cancel the place by 5pm on 1st July 2025. 50% refund is available if cancelled after 5pm on 1st July and before 5pm on 22nd July 2025. No refund is available if you cancel after 5pm on 22nd July 2025. (Stripe processing fees are not refundable.)
-
Our bursaries are awarded based on financial need, and the amount awarded is calculated on a sliding scale, which is means-tested. You can read about the criteria here as well deadlines and what information we need. You can apply for a bursary as part of registering for the course.
If you do not meet the criteria to receive a bursary from The Rodolfus Foundation, you may wish to look for other sources of funding. We have a list here which you may find helpful.
VISITS & GUESTS
📷: Alex O’Connor on Unsplash
Evensong
York Minster
Andrew Staples stands as a versatile artist of our era. He combines a busy schedule as an opera and concert singer with a career as a film and stage director and photographer. To all his creative output, Andrew brings a collaborative approach and a passion to tell better stories that build connections between artists and audiences.A multifaceted musicianAs a distinguished tenor, he has collaborated with conductors such as Sir Simon Rattle, Daniel Harding, Emmanuelle Haïm, Elim Chan, Gustavo Dudamel, Daniel Barenboim, Sir Andrew Davis, Esa-Pekka Salonen,and Yannick Nézet-Séguin, with renowned orchestras such as Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic,Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Rotterdam PhilharmonicOrchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Les Siècles, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, NewYork Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, il Pomo D’Oro, PhiladelphiaOrchestra and Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Mahler Chamber Orchestra, among others.On the opera stageStaples made his debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden withFidelio(Jacquino), returning forCapriccio(Flamand),Die Zauberflöte(Tamino),Katya Kabanova(Tichon) andSalome(Narraboth). In 2022, hemade his debut with Britten’sPeter Grimes(Peter) at the Teatro La Fenice and his Berliner Staatsoper debutwith the title role in Mozart’sIdomeneo. Staples has sung at the Metropolitan Opera, the National TheatrePrague, La Monnaie Brussels, the Salzburger Festspiele, Hamburg Staatsoper, Theater an der Wien, theLucerne Festival, and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Last season he performed Beethoven’sFidelio(Florestan)with Los Angeles Philharmonic and Gustavo Dudamel; and Strauss’Ariadne auf Naxos(Bacchus) withBudapest Festival Orchestra and Iván Fischer.Anticipated EngagementsIn the 2024/25 season, Andrew will embark on a European tour with three major orchestras. He will performStrauss’Ariadne auf Naxos(Bacchus) with the Budapest Festival Orchestra and Ivan Fischer, and Mahler’sDas Lied von der Erdewith both the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Swedish Radio Symphony,conducted by Daniel Harding. Additionally, Andrew will return to Munich to perform Bach’sSt. Matthew Passionunder the direction of Sir Simon Rattle. Other highlights of the season include Mendelssohn’sLobegesangwiththe Sinfonieorchester Basel and Ivor Bolton, Bruckner'sMass No. 3with the Wiener Symphoniker and LorenzoViotti, as well as Bach’s Cantatas and Mahler’sDas Lied von der Erdewith the Orchestre de Chambre de Parisconducted by Philipp von Steinaecker.A vision beyond the voiceAndrew’s work as a film and stage director and photographer combines a passion for weaving art, music, anddigital realms, aiming to encapsulate the beauty of classical music and the broader arts. His recent cinematicoutput includes directing music films for Voces8, the Choir of Trinity College Cambridge, Platoon (Apple) andArcangelo. He has made documentary music films for Gabrieli Roar and the Phoenix Chorale. He directed aspecial performance of Stravinsky’sFirebirdfor Air France in a hangar at Charles de Gaulle airport incollaboration with Arte, Daniel Harding and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. Recent stage directingprojects have includedAcis & Galateafor the London Handel Festival,Turn of the Screwfor Snape Maltings,DieZauberflötefor Drottningholm Theatre and the Lucerne Festival, and a filmed performance ofDon Giovannifor Medici TV.His past collaborations include Messiaen’sQuartet for the End of Timewith Alice Sara Ott for DG Stage+ and afilm ofThe Planetsfor the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. He is also collaborating with Daniel Harding ona documentary series in Guangzhou, China, which will cover the Youth Music Culture The Greater Bay Area(YMCG) project over five years.
Vocal Masterclass
Andrew Staples
Ralph Allwood MBE DMus was for 26 years Director of Music at Eton College and is now a freelance choral director, teacher and conductor. He is the Director of the Rodolfus (ex-Eton) Choral Courses, which he founded in 1980. He co-founded the Junior Choral Courses in 2012. Ten thousand 8 to 20 year-olds have since been students on courses. In recent years he has launched courses in Texas, Shanghai and Shenzhen. The Rodolfus choir has produced over 20 CDs since he founded it in 1982.
Ralph is co-founder and conductor of Inner Voices, made up of singers from state schools in London. He is also a Supervisor for harmony at Jesus College, Cambridge, Director of the only conservatoire chapel choir in the world, the Old Royal Naval College Trinity Laban Chapel Choir and an Honorary Fellow of University College, Durham.
Ralph has conducted choirs for over 40 broadcasts for BBC Radio 3. He has composed much music for Extreme Music Ltd, heard worldwide on radio, films and television. He teaches at his old grammar school, Tiffin and is a co-founder of the National Youth Music Theatre.
In 2015 he co-founded the Pimlico Musical Foundation to enable children from Pimlico Primary Schools to sing in choirs, particularly at St Gabriel's Church.
In 2017, the Archbishop of Canterbury presented him with the Thomas Cranmer Award for Music and Worship and he is Chair of the Choral Evensong Trust.
Visiting Director
Ralph Allwood
Aside from his award-winning work with I Fagiolini, Robert is a conductor, broadcaster, educator, editor, Monteverdi specialist and festival director. Robert founded “musical shapeshifters” I Fagiolini in 1986 to share his love of vocal music - the group will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2026 and has performed its signature projects around the world on stage, online, on radio and tv “following [his] giddy, eclectic imagination wherever it leads” (The Spectator). Robert has spent much of his life considering how audiences receive music, instead of just how performers want to deliver it.
Upcoming conducting highlights include multiple world premiere album releases of large-scale, multi-choir Benevoli Masses with I Fagiolini (the first of which received a 5* review in Limelight Magazine and declared as ‘magical music’ by Gramophone) and directing territory premieres of the same with choirs and orchestras including RIAS Kammerchor. Robert was musical director of Shobana Jeyasingh Dance’s Monteverdi/Roustom production Clorinda Agonistes, with tenor Ed Lyon. He has conducted orchestras including the English Concert, Academy of Ancient Music, BBC Concert Orchestra, Irish Baroque Orchestra and directed some of the world’s finest chamber choirs including Accentus, NDR Chor, RIAS Kammerchor (Berlin), Netherlands Chamber Choir, National Chamber Choir of Ireland, BBC Singers, Danish National Vocal Ensemble and Capella Cracoviensis.
Visiting Director
Robert Hollingworth
FURTHER INFORMATION
ARRIVAL TIMES
The arrival time on day 1 is different from that of any previous Choral Course. Singers must now arrive between 11:00am and 11:30am on the first day. The course will conclude on the final day between 5:00pm and 6:00pm.
REFERENCES
As part of your application, we kindly ask for a brief reference from a singing or music teacher. This reference does not affect your acceptance onto the course. Instead, it helps our directors and singing teachers better understand your musical journey so far. Please note, references are only accepted through our online portal. The link to the online portal will be emailed to you once you have registered.
INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS
We welcome applications from singers outside of the UK. However, please note that course fees will include an approximate 3.25% card processing fee.
MORE QUESTIONS?
Please check out the main Choral Courses page for further information, including information for organists, Duke of Edinburgh Awards, and what’s included.
If you are a music teacher and would like to download a flyer to share with students, please download here.