Meet the Choir

Sumei Bao-Smith

Choral Scholar. 2nd year at Trinity (when interviewed in Summer 2022), reading Languages (French and Spanish).

What do you enjoy most about being in TCC?
Although it’s very cliché, I would be lying if I didn’t say that the best part of TCC is the feeling of community. We spend a lot of time with each other, but there’s never a moment where I wish I was anywhere else. The high standard of singing is obviously a plus too, and I feel very privileged to be able to work with such incredible musicians on such a frequent basis.

How do you find the commitment of being a choral scholar alongside your academic study?
Being in choir does take up a fair amount of time, but in all honesty, as it’s at regular slots each week, it’s never been a strain on my academic work. The regularity makes it very easy to plan when to do things, whether that’s work, practice, or meeting up with friends. I’ve also been able to do a lot of other extracurricular activities (opera, acappella, musical theatre, yoga, lacrosse…) so being a choral scholar really doesn’t prohibit you from doing other things you’re passionate about!

What has been your musical highlight of being in TCC?
The year I joined choir was the Covid year, but despite obvious logistical limitations, we were able to spend two weeks recording in Norfolk over the summer. We camped in tents, played tennis, badminton, cricket, and croquet, had a jazz night and a quiz night, all while recording a disc of Ivo Antognini in a beautiful church!

Benedict Randall Shaw

Choral Scholar. 2nd year at Trinity (when interviewed in Summer 2022), reading Maths.

What do you enjoy most about being in TCC?
I think this has to be the community within the choir – you essentially get a free social circle of people across different years, subjects, and colleges. TCC usually come up early at the start of the year to rehearse, so you have a week or two to get to know everyone without the stress of term. This also gives you a head-start compared to other freshers on getting settled in. The singing itself is also a great relief from academic work; because we often rehearse the harder repertoire before term, sessions within term are usually quite low stress. Choir gives you a time where you can leave all your outside worries and work at the chapel door and just concentrate on the music.

How do you find the commitment of being a choral scholar alongside your academic study?
I never really had an issue with this. The Cambridge workload is fairly heavy but not outrageously so – you’re certainly not expected to work all hours of the day. In my experience, energy rather than time is the limiting factor, which if anything, singing restores. Also, many choir members perform well in exams, suggesting that there isn’t a significant conflict – Choir may even help by structuring some time in the week where you simply don’t have the mental capacity to think about work.

What has been your musical highlight of being in TCC?
Facetious answer: whatever we’re singing at the moment. We’re lucky in Trinity that we usually sing very good music to a high standard. Being in TCC also acts as a gateway for other opportunities, such as opera, smaller student-run services in Trinity, and concerts. For example, many of the choir recently sang ‘Spem in alium’ in such a concert put on by TCMS (Trinity College Music Society) and performed
under the Wren Library. Across all this, I’d have to say that the highlight so far has been singing Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem with piano; the version for four hands piano allows the choir to sing with much more intimacy and subtlety than with the full orchestra version.

Holly Smith

Choral Scholar. 3rd year at Murray Edwards (when interviewed in Summer 2022), reading Music.

What do you enjoy most about being in TCC?
If I had to narrow it down amongst all the wonderful things that I love about TCC, I would say that I find the most joy in the amazing final product we manage to produce and being able to see how far we have come with the repertoire, and then being able to share it with more people. Singing with your friends at least three times a week is a rare special aspect of the week, even during the most packed, stressful times of term. TCC really is like a family unit, with different kinds of people all brought together by a shared love for the music we make. Each person brings their own unique gift to the sound, to create something genuinely exciting and musically outstanding, even on a cold, rainy Tuesday!

How do you find the commitment of being a choral scholar alongside your academic study?

Even alongside a music degree, I have found the commitment a refreshing break from academic music. It is not as intense as other degree courses, but that is not to say that by third year there is an awful lot of work! It is no secret that a Cambridge degree puts significant demands on your time and attention, but it is a great thing to be finished for the day and join others in singing. Balancing a choral scholarship with your academic study is completely possible, and the way the experience enhances your time at university is like little else.

What has been your musical highlight of being in TCC?
So far, there have been so many incredible moments, but if pushed, I would say it was the first full choir rehearsal post-pandemic. We were rehearsing the Duruflé Requiem in preparation for a Eucharist in commemoration of those lost to the pandemic; it was an amazingly moving moment getting to the climax of the ‘Kyrie’, with everyone singing their socks off, having had to be away from everyone for such an extended period. It was very emotional, and a moment I will remember and treasure forever.

Jonathan Lee

Organ Scholar. 2nd year at Trinity (when interviewed in Summer 2022), reading Music.

What do you enjoy most about being in TCC?
The highest standards of music-making and the unwavering commitment to the music. I also enjoy the fact that when we perform music, it is about the emotional journey and not just the final destination. I am fortunate to learn musically from Stephen Layton and organ teachers Stephen Farr, Colin Walsh and David Briggs. I have enjoyed a great variety of musical experiences already from performing concerts in Germany to recording in France to organ lessons in the Netherlands alongside the heartbeat of evensongs in Chapel.

How do you find the commitment of being an organ scholar alongside your academic study?
It is a significant commitment. However, I find it highly rewarding to always be trying to find a balance between my academic studies and organ scholarship. I find that both significantly complement each other; indeed, both are important in order to become a good musician. For example, the analytical study of how music is constructed can contribute to a more authoritative interpretation and studying the history of a work’s previous notation can lead to new ways of interpreting a piece.

What has been your musical highlight of being in TCC?
My highlight has been playing the Harrison & Harrison organ at Ely Cathedral, recording the music of Spicer, MacMillan, Howells and Bednall with the choir in January 2022. I particularly enjoyed the different tone colours of the organ with its incredible possibilities for subtle nuance especially in a piece such as Howells’ ‘House of the Mind’. On a more regular basis, a little highlight for me each day is having access to play the Metzler organ in Chapel.