£20,000 grant boost to support Cathedral choristers

The endowment grant is from Friends of Cathedral Music (FCM) which supports cathedral and church music.

The organisation is handing out a total of £600,000 this year.

And the award to Salisbury is one of the largest handed out this year to nearly 40 cathedrals and churches in the UK and abroad and raises the total amount FCM has donated to the cathedral to £62,000 since the first amount of £4,000 was given in 1979.

The Dean, the Very Revd June Osborne said: “Maintaining a choral tradition of the standard that we enjoy at Salisbury Cathedral is a major commitment, demanding both the time and skills of highly trained music staff.

“We are very fortunate to have a dedicated and passionately engaged team in the cathedral and at the Cathedral School but it all costs money.

“For us the support and encouragement received from the Friends of Cathedral Music is vital. As music lovers and consummate fundraisers, FCM have contributed significantly over the years towards ensuring that not just our choir but choirs across the country continue to thrive.”

The cathedral’s director of music, David Halls, said: “Salisbury Cathedral‘s tradition of choral music stretches back nearly a thousand years, which is an awe-inspiring inheritance.

This generous gift allows us to perpetuate that legacy of which we are rightly proud and ensure the opportunity to sing in our choir is made available to all children.

“Our choristers are not only central to the life and worship of the cathedral but represent our diocese and city when they perform outside these walls and on occasions abroad. They link the cathedral to outlying parishes, the local community and the countries we visit when we tour.”

To mark its 60th anniversary this year, FCM launched a Diamond Jubilee appeal to raise £10 million by 2020, with a special concert in St Paul’s Cathedral in April when a chorister from 60 cathedrals around the UK, including Salisbury, joined the St Paul’s Choir to mark the occasion.