The Choir
Our Director - Dr Paul Hedley
Dr Paul Hedley – Director from June 2022
Paul’s musical education began in earnest as a school chorister, and he has been singing at a high level since the age of seven in Chapel and Cathedral Choirs. Ten years in the Oxford choral scene, first as a Choral Scholar then Lay Clerk at Magdalen College, and involvement with many other choirs including Schola Cantorum and Oxford Voices, was followed by time as a Lay Clerk at Gloucester Cathedral. Throughout this period he was developing as a conductor, working primarily with 'Musica Beata', and he ran the Arcadian Singers of Oxford for two seasons. He now holds the posts of Music Director of Cherwell Choral Society and Director of Music at All Saints Church, Didcot, and also conducts the Wantage based chamber choir The Crown Singers.
Alongside his role as Assistant Director at the Royal School of Church Music, Paul is also the Managing Director of Leadership & Performance Development, an Oxford based coaching and leadership development business, and has a keen interest in the leadership aspects of conducting as well as the musical ones. At a fundamental level, open collaboration is the cornerstone of his approach, whether in one-to-one coaching, business facilitation, making chamber music, or on the conducting rostrum.
Our current members
Jean Parker - Soprano
Jean has been singing in choirs for as long as she can remember.
For her 50th Birthday her husband, Richard, gave her a present of singing lessons with Sarah Haigh. Since then Jean has completed her grade 8 and performance certificate and now regularly sings solos around the area.
Her greatest achievements to date are singing with Hayley Westenra and more recently at Coventry Cathedral for International Nurses’ Day
Jo Freeman - Soprano
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Sophie Parker-Manuel - Soprano
I have sung for as long as I can remember, I have happy memories of singing along to musicals, Buddy Holly, and the Beatles in the car and joining in with the songs at church. In secondary school I joined the choir, and then the chamber choir while I was doing GCSE
music. Particular highpoints of singing in concerts at school were Vivaldi’s Gloria with the choir, and Joni Mitchell’s My Old Man accompanied by a friend on guitar. At university I joined a small Rock Gospel choir, and for a while I sung with the Oxford Community Gospel Choir. I spent a couple of years working in Germany, where I joined a local church choir. Highlights from this time were singing solos in Cesar Franck’s Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross, and Vivaldi’s Magnificat.
Since returning to the UK, I sang with Banbury Choral Society. I had a bit of a break from singing after my second daughter was born, and joined Consensio just as things were opening up after COVID. In fact, my first rehearsal was in the open air to be as COVID safe as we could be! I am happy singing all sorts of styles of music, and relish the challenge of singing pieces I am not familiar with.
Jo Lilley - Soprano
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Ann Dring - Alto
Ann enjoys choral singing in choirs of all shapes and sizes. As an alto, she hasn’t sung “the tune” since the age of 12. She has sung in university choirs and town choral groups from Yorkshire to North America and Sweden before joining Consensio. Ann also sings locally with the Banbury and Cherwell Choral Societies.
Caroline Humphrys - Alto
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Catherine O'Riordan - Alto
Catherine earns her living as a commercial lawyer and splits her free time between cryptic crosswords and amateur music making. She was the rehearsal pianist for the Warriner (now the Cherwell) Choral Society for five years and also played for Northampton Bach Choir (of which she was a singing member) on an ad hoc basis. She studies piano with Dr. David Dolan, Professor of Classical Improvisation at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Maggie Alcraft - Alto
Maggie has sung in choirs since her schooldays, choral societies wherever she lived, then 5 years in the Halle Choir in Manchester.
Latterly she sang in the Monteverdi Choir in North Wales under John Huw Davies for 10 years, a choir which prided itself on singing music always in its original language. She was also a founder member of the chamber choir Cantamus Conwy. She currently sings with Cherwell Choral Society (formerly Warriner CS).
For most of her life she sang 1st and 2nd soprano, but has gratefully moved to alto in the last few years, after ill health affected her top range
Bobbie Koen - Alto
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James Wilshaw - Tenor
An Engineer in the Automotive Industry, James has been singing in Choirs since High School. Including the Southampton University Chamber Choir and Banbury Choral Society.
Chris Allen - Bass
A Construction Manager by Profession, Chris first took up singing in the mid 90’s after a Dinner party where he was reliably informed he had promised to join the local benefice choir, which as ever was short of men. So being upright, breathing and having ears that worked, he passed the audition.
That Choir was lead by Rod Varty, an Oxford Organ scholar of some note, but more importantly he had the patience to teach the bass section their parts by ear since few could sight read the score.
Chris gradually came to realise that he had a voice and progressed first to Bicester Choral and Operatic society, under the inspirational Stuart Hubble, then, when Stuart moved on, Chris, preferring Choral to Opera, joined the Chipping Norton Choral Society under Peter Hunt.
After nervously throwing his hat in the ring as a Soloist and not being booed off the stage. Chris started having lessons with Raymond Head in Chipping Norton,
Now many years later Chris is still a member of that first Choir and sings with the Rousham Church Choir and the Brackley based Consensio
He also continues to study under Raymond Head, singing Solo in the choirs and in music festivals.
Simon Angel - Baritone
I'm retired on health grounds, but have many hobbies and interests, to keep me busy.
Along with my wife, we own nb Vida Nueva, a 57' narrowboat, on which we go boating, when we can.
We also love walking in the countryside, with our beautiful Golden Retriever.
There's always something to do, on our 1960s bungalow!
Music is a major part of my life! I love music of all genres, especially The Seekers, heavy rock, classic rock, symphonic rock, jazz, folk music and my singer songwriter friend in Australia, Rachel Collis.
I love Singing and thoroughly enjoy being a bass baritone member of Banbury Choral Society, Cherwell Choral Society, BCMC Singers in Brackley, and St Mary's Festival Singers in Banbury and of course, Consensio!
