Music Scholars

St James’s has a long tradition of music, both religious and secular, and the support of benefactors has made our scholarship programme possible. We are delighted to offer musicians at an early stage in their careers an opportunity to train and perform together in the marvellous acoustic of the church while in receipt of scholarships worth £2,500 (singing) and £1,250 (instrumental) for the academic year.

The Instrumental Scholars play in church once or twice a month to enhance the music at our Sunday morning services. The Singing Scholars sing every week on Sunday morning and sing at all the church festivals and at a monthly Choral Evensong on Sunday afternoon. They also take it in turns to act as Cantor on Sunday mornings and to be the solo singer for our contemplative Tuesday evening Sanctuary services.

We aim for our scholars to reflect a wide range of musical backgrounds and encourage them to present two or three concerts a year in the church. We encourage scholars to take the opportunity to give a recital as part of our lunchtime series, and Singing Scholars are invited to sing at special events organised by our Development Team.

It is important to St James’s that we are representative of people and communities across society. We actively welcome applications from people who are currently underrepresented in our community, including people with global majority heritage, people with lived experience of poverty and people who identify as LGBTQ+.

Candidates do not have to identify as Christian or belong to a religious faith, however we are looking for candidates who connect with St James’s ethos and values.

Scholarship programme for 2023-24
Closing date for applications Tue 30 May 2023.