New musical director for Oswestry choir will bring 'wealth of experience'

Director of Music at Ellesmere College, Tony is a conductor, composer and singer who brings a wealth of experience to Cantiones. Starting out as a chorister at Bristol Cathedral he went on to sing with Birmingham Cathedral Choir, Birmingham Oratory, Ex Cathedra, the Rodolphus Choir, and was part of the original cast of Sondheim’s ‘Saturday Night’.  

At Ellesmere College Tony has developed music to the highest standard, embedding the skills and work ethic that he benefitted from as a child. He believes that music should be daring, challenging and fun, and encourages fellow musicians to focus on the given moment. At Ellesmere College Tony leads the Chapel, Chamber and Lower School choirs and established Ellesmere Sinfonia. As well as reaching the finals of both the Barnardo’s National Choir Competition and BBC Young Choir of the Year, Tony has taken his youth choirs to perform in a number of notable world class venues including Notre Dame de Paris, St Peter’s Basilica and The Pantheon in Rome, La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona and St George’s Chapel, Windsor. 

Tony also works with adult choirs and is Musical Director of Ellesmere College Choral Society as well as Shrewsbury Cantata Choir, who describe him as, “professional, extremely knowledgeable, fun and so energetic”.

Tony is no stranger to Oswestry, having been a staunch supporter of Oswestry’s vibrant annual Youth Music Festival for many years. Singers and instrumentalists from Ellesmere College are regular entrants in the Festival, achieving great success.

Oswestry choir, Cantiones, has been presenting high quality choral music for more than forty years with some notable recent highlights such as Haydn’s Creation with orchestra and soloists for its 40th Anniversary Concert at the Holroyd Theatre in 2021, Dvorak’s Stabat Mater in 2022 and Elgar’s epic Dream of Gerontius at Chester Cathedral alongside Chester Bach Singers and Chester Philharmonic in 2024. The choir also benefits from working with Accompanist, Steve Owens and Vocal Coach, Sarah Wright-Owens, making it an attractive choice for choral singers.

To start the new year Cantiones looks forward to working with its new musical director exploring the genius of Mozart in preparation for the annual Spring Concert to take place at 3.30pm on Saturday, 12 April in Oswestry’s Christ Church. The choir, joined by Soprano Natasha Hendickse-Welsh and Tenor, Joe Martin, will sing Mozart’s Vespers and Coronation Mass in C.

Tickets are available through the choir’s website cantiones.org.uk or on the door on the day.