An Interview with Harrison Knights post the scholars Yorkshire Choral Tour

Touring is such a great way of making music. With an intense schedule of services everyday, naturally a team is formed very quickly and with a group as small as eleven singers and one organist, everybody is vital. Singing like this, with very few to a part, means trust has to be built and nobody is more important than anyone else. Due to the nature of quick turnarounds with these services, it means there’s not a lot of time to rehearse. This is where as a musician it gets exciting. You never quite know how your fellow singers may approach a certain phrase, so when you lock in with each other, that’s magical. There’s always an element of surprise.

I also believe that each year we have built upon the last and more and more memories are being created. It’s wonderful to share these memories of the past years with the present and look back on where we have come from and look forward to where we may go.

In terms of what makes a successful tour, you are asking the wrong person! Haha! But in all seriousness, planning, planning, planning and when where possible, delegating. For a tour like this, you do have to start planning around six months in advance. This gives you enough processing time to think up multiple solutions, instead of just going for the easy option. The people make the tour. You can plan and plan, but it’s always dictated by the energy of the group, which at times was more than chaotic this year, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Each person brings their own quirks and sensitives, which makes for a unique experience every time.

There was a huge range of repertoire across hundreds of years and a wide range of musical styles. What was your favourite, and why?

I tried to programme a real range this year. We started on Monday with some early music, Byrd and Parsons. Tuesday was a little more English 20th century with Murrill and Balfour Gardiner, Wednesday was bang up to date with a set of Canticles by Ben Ponniah and Nova Nova by Iain Farrington. Thursday, at Selby, was also contemporary but mainly acapella and had a more reflective feel with a setting by my Latvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds, an introit by Gabriel Jackson and The Shepherds Carol by Bob Chilcott, and finally Compline at Fountains Abbey was a mix of all genres, staring with Ave Maria by Parsons, which was written just after the reformation, but also included a Lux æterna by Michael Trotta which was written last year. As we were celebrating the tour of the assumption we had a lot of Marian music. I was presented an honour tour award: The Wizard Award for wishing it could be Christmas Everyday!

I have two favourites. Nova Nova by Iain Farrington is impossible to sing without a smile on your face. Conducting this requires so much energy. It includes claps and clicks and stomps and really needs everyone to fully commit. As the conductor I’m also holding the energy of each individual, encouraging them to connect with each other, the energy of Michael in the organ loft and my own. It was a thrill.

My other favourite was the final piece of the entire tour. Mother Of God Here I Stand by John Tavener. We have so far ended every tour with this beautifully simple piece. The words are exquisite. The music is sublime. It is entirely homophonic, meaning we move together as a group throughout. To end a tour as one collective, so simply and so very quietly in a beautiful place will stay with me forever.

Fountains Abbey is such a different place from a church or cathedral. It was once a vast Cistercian monastery, but as a result of dissolution the monks were pensioned off. As a National Trust site, people tend to experience it more as an open air museum than a place of worship. What was it like to sing Compline in the medieval ruins there?

There was a real frisson in the air at Fountains. We had come to the end of a long, tiring but brilliant week. This was the one we had all be looking forward to and it did not disappoint. Once we entered Fountains, what had felt like quite an intense week ended with our stresses melting away. We really could enjoy ourselves with each other’s company in a beautiful place. It was the service we actually rehearsed the least. It was very important that in a place which is considered a tourist location, we were absolutely part of an act of worship and not a performance.

Just as we were about to process in, Ayla informed us that Compline had indeed, not been sung in this place since the dissolution of the monastery in 1539. We knew this was incredibly special and unique. It was an honour to be trusted to add to the history of the place.

We had a very large congregation of around 70 people and we have filmed this service, so it will be available to watch once we have edited it.

Many tears were shed after this service, knowing that it would be the last time for the foreseeable future that we would all sing together. A day to remember.

Members of the St James’s congregation joined us throughout the week – what was it like for the choir to see them in the congregations at Ripon, Selby and Fountains?

The thing that always brings these singers back to St James’s is the people. The support. The respect. The love that is given by the St James’s Church family is absolutely vital to the singing scholars. The welcome that is shown means we aren’t just considered a group who are providing some music, but are first and foremost members of the church who love to sing. To see so many of the people we love make the trip with us was a true delight and really helped us remember why we were doing this. Because we love it. Because we met at St James’s, it is the common thread and runs through the fabric of our friendships. Friendships that have lasted long after singers have moved on. Friendships that are strong and true. I, for one, cannot wait to see where these friendships lead to and what other memories we may create.

The tour featured some legendary moments, including Will’s cartwheel across the nave at Fountains, a lemon posset emergency, and a very intense late-night game of Articulate. Are there any stories you’d like to share with our readers?

Gosh – what a question. I say our friendships are strong, however, our first three days were taken up with “Traitors – choir edition”. I was embroiled in, what we are calling, “coke-gate”. This included asking a dear friend for a much needed bottle of coke, but being denied said coke because he believed I was a traitor, and this would endanger him by giving me the coke. Did I go and cry over the missing coke? Yes. Did I cry to a friend who ended up being a traitor? Yes, again.

Other memorable moments were the legendary tour quiz. This involved me reading out of context texts that each member of the group had sent me, whilst they tried to work out who had said what. Much hilarity. We had a wonderful afternoon tea delivered by Betty’s. And on Thursday we had a lovely Italian meal out, joined by various parents and supporters.

Oh, and we did have two fire alarms – only one of which was caused by me and an over-excited lemon posset. I might have cried over that as well – look I’m an empath. It’s inevitable.

There will be new Music Scholars arriving at St James’s in the autumn – what’s unique about making music together at St James’s, and why is music such an important part of church life?

There is no scholarship scheme quite like St James’s. It isn’t your typical Anglican choral tradition. There are, of course, elements of this, but the music we cover is so varied that is cannot be compared to anywhere else. My favourite bit of introducing new scholars to St James’s is watching the sheer bewilderment during the first term, as they get surprised by our uniqueness, but by the end they have fallen in love with the place, the people – that they find it very hard to say goodbye. This is testament to all at St James’s, including the clergy and Michael, who are creating a space which is so sure of its identity it’s integrity is never compromised, and it and we – thrive as a result.

Music is a vehicle to express oneself. When spoken words are not enough, we burst into song. What the scholars do is enable everyone to sing just that little bit louder. They give you all the confidence to own your own voice. To add your voice to the celestial choir. Heaven on Earth. Everyone’s voice is vital in making up the sound world of St James’s. And it should not be taken for granted or thought of lightly.

I am delighted that the congregation have decided to invest in the scholarship scheme. If you’d like to support our music scholarship scheme for 2024-5, please do so here.

If you’d like to sponsor a scholar at £2,500 for the year, please contact Brian Willetts development@sjp.org.uk

Harry x