The Choir

The first evidence of a choir at St Mary's Church dates from 1123, when the Earl of Warwick established the Collegiate Church and in doing so provided for six boy choristers and six "vicars choral". This remained the situation until 1544, when King Henry VIII ordered the dissolution of the college. Although he had destroyed the choir-school, King Henry founded what is now the Warwick School, which then provided choristers at the church until well into the 17th century. After that the choir had its ups and downs until the modern choir, with gentlemen and boys, was set up in 1882. At the end of the 19th century, the appointment of Dr Blackall saw the consolidation of previous good work, and he set a high standard until he left in 1945.

Today's choir comprises twenty-one boys, twenty-five girls and sixteen men. The boys and girls are drawn from a variety of local schools, and some travel to sing at St Mary's from as far afield as Coventry (ten miles north of Warwick) and Stratford-upon-Avon (ten miles south of Warwick). There are a small number of scholarships available, which pay a limited contribution towards private school fees, but the majority of the boys attend voluntarily. The gentlemen are all amateur singers and most are in full-time occupations ranging from teaching and social work to positions in the information technology and motor industries.