HISTORY
The Cranmer Company of Singers & Chamber Orchestra were founded in 1995, performing their first concert at St. Mary’s Church, Bottesford in July of that year.
Since then the choir has sung at services in over 70 Cathedrals around Britain, 60 concerts, an Italian choral festival and, following an invitation from that city’s Mayor, at Avila Cathedral in Spain.
The choir holds these objectives;
- to perform great music to a high standard
- to include works by British composers in each concert programme; and
- to raise money for worthy causes through concerts.
The annual charity concerts laid on by the choir and orchestra have raised more than £35,000 since 1996, for charities including UNICEF, Headway, Macmillan Cancer Relief, Cancer Research UK, the Multiple Sclerosis Society and many humanitarian appeals. Our aims are to raise funds for those in need and to encourage and promote active music-making in the community, with a special emphasis on British music and organ music.
Hundreds have also enjoyed the extremely successful ‘Come and Sing’ events held on Good Friday in recent years.
MUSIC DIRECTOR – Deborah Davies
Deborah created the Cranmer Company of Singers and has since made well over 80 Cathedral visits within the UK, put on an enormous number of concerts in venues ranging from Southwell Minster and Belvoir Castle to local Churches and village halls, attended overseas festivals in Italy and Gozo, been invited by the Mayor of Avila in Spain to sing in their beautiful Cathedral and city, and been invited to sing in Finland (hosted by a Finnish choir). She has raised in excess of £35,000 for charities through these music-making activities.
She established the Cranmer Chamber Orchestra, varying in size from 25 to 80 depending on the works being performed, and has conducted this orchestra with world-class soloists in venues such as Southwell Minster, Belvoir Castle and Bottesford Parish Church.
Deborah established the Good Friday Charity ‘Come & Sing’ annual events at Bottesford Church, attracting as many as 190 singers from many counties each year to raise funds for those in need.
Deborah also directs the semi-professional Chamber Choir Cantica Viva. This choir, consisting mainly of music teachers, organists and conductors, meets once a year to sing at Cathedrals within the UK.
Deborah is MD for the Radcliffe Male Voice Choir. She also forms a small Children’s Choir each year to sing at the local village Christmas concerts and services.
Deborah’s qualifications include M.A. in Music Psychology; B.Ed.; Mus.Tch.Cert.; Associate of the Royal College of Music in Organ Teaching; Dip.Tch.in Ec./Geog.; Certificate in Social Welfare Law.
Origins
Why Cranmer?
Thomas Cranmer (2 July 1489 – 21 March 1556) was a leader of the English Reformation and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and, for a short time, Mary I. He helped build the case for the annulment of Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon, which was one of the causes of the separation of the English Church from union with the Holy See. Along with Thomas Cromwell, he supported the principle of Royal Supremacy, in which the King was considered sovereign over the Church within his realm.
Cranmer was born in 1489 at Aslockton in Nottinghamshire, England. He was a younger son of Thomas Cranmer by his wife Agnes Hatfield. The Cranmer Company of Singers hail from that area and rehearse in nearby Whatton, of which Cranmer was very fond.