About us
The Choir
The Chamber Choir began its activities in September 2021. We sing about thirty services in the Cathedral each year, often undertaking all the services for a weekend when the Cathedral Choir is absent, such as at half term or immediately after the major festivals. In addition, we aim to undertake three or four parish visits each year, sing at weddings and funerals and spend a period in residence in another cathedral during the month of August. There are around forty weekly rehearsals, held in the Cathedral song school, currently on Thursday evenings. Members are expected to attend the majority of rehearsals and services.
Music Director
Carolyn Craig, FRCO MMA, is Assistant Director of Music at Wells Cathedral, a position she has held since April 2024. In this role, Carolyn plays the organ for the majority of services in Wells Cathedral, directs the Wells Cathedral Chamber Choir, and assists in the training of boy and girl choristers and of the organ scholar. Carolyn teaches organ at Wells Cathedral School, and is a Junior Fellow of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire.
Prior to coming to Wells Cathedral, Carolyn held organ scholar posts at Truro Cathedral, Westminster Cathedral, and Westminster Abbey. Alongside her primary organ studies, she studied conducting with David Hill and Marguerite Brooks at Yale University (MM, MMA in Organ) and with Dominick DiOrio and Betsy Burleigh at Indiana University (BM in Organ with minors in Conducting and German). Carolyn has also worked as a professional choral soprano, primarily focusing on early and new music.
As an organist, recent prizes include the highest performance (Limpus/Shinn/Durant) and overall (Dr F J Read) prizes in the 2022/2023 FRCO examinations, the 2nd Prize and the Prize for the Interpretation of Tariverdiev’s works in the 2021 Mikael Tariverdiev International Organ Competition, and Yale’s Mary Baker Prize in Organ Accompaniment for her work with the Yale Schola Cantorum under David Hill. Since the beginning of her tenure in Wells, recitals have taken Carolyn to Germany, Sweden, France, the United States and the United Kingdom (not during term time!); to hear her work, visit carolyncraigmusician.com. Carolyn has appeared at national conventions of the American Guild of Organists as a performer and speaker, the latter as a contributor to the inclusive church music planning resource at greathostcomposers.org and as co-founder of amplifyfemalecomposers.org.
Carolyn is thrilled to be conducting the Wells Cathedral Chamber Choir.
Organist
Edward Marshall is the Organ Scholar of Wells Cathedral, where he accompanies the Cathedral Choir as well as the Wells Cathedral Chamber Choir and the Wells Cathedral Oratorio Society.
Graduating from the University of Exeter, where he read Human Geography, in 2024, Edward previously held the position of organ scholar to the University of Exeter’s Chapel Choir. During this time he was able to perform in venues such as Exeter Cathedral, Bath Abbey, Southwark Cathedral, continuo for Bach’s St John’s Passion in Buckfast Abbey, and most recently the summer tour through Cambridge and Bury St Edmunds. He was also fortunate enough to be the organist for the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Service of Remembrance as part of his visit to South West in November 2023.
During his time at university, Edward received organ lessons from both Timothy Noon (Exeter Cathedral) and James Anderson-Besant (Truro Cathedral). Edward maintains a freelance career where he plays for various choirs, ensembles, churches, and schools across the South West and in London. He is currently working towards his ARCO.