Music Director: Stephen Newlove
President: Kelvin Leslie MA, BMus, LRAM, PGCE
Former Accompanists
Peter Kwater
Peter Kwater, born in Blackburn, Lancashire, he developed his interest in music by studying Organ under Ronald Frost and Gillian Weir, Piano and Harpsichord at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester.
Initially he took up the position of Organ Scholar at Liverpool's Metropolitan Cathedral, where he remained for two years. Subsequently he established his own teaching practice, combining this with solo performing and accompaniment work, for which he is in great demand, having played in many European countries, including Germany, France, Switzerland and Italy.
In his day job, Peter works for Wigan Music Service as an instrumental tutor and accompanist. As a choral director and accompanist, Peter has worked with many local Northern choirs, and is currently directing Standish Chorale and accompanying St Helens Choral Society and Exsultate.
Andrew Green
Andrew Green began his organ studies at Wakefield Cathedral. He studied Music at Newcastle University, working as accompanist, harpsichordist and organist with the Northern Sinfonia, leading and conducting the University Orchestra, and giving violin recitals with Professor Denis Matthews.
After being awarded a First Class degree in 1972, he spent three years lecturing in the university. He taught at the King's School, Macclesfield, for 34 years, being Director of Music for the last 26 of those years. He continued working as accompanist with various adult choirs (including St George's Singers, Poynton and the Stockport Festival Chorus). His main work with choirs, however, was at King's, where the Foundation Choir became the first winners of the BBC Songs of Praise Senior School Choir of the Year in 2003.
He conducted the Sixth Form Chamber Choir in performances of the Fauré Requiem, Vivaldi Gloria, Britten'sSaint Nicolas and other works with the Northern Chamber Orchestra. One of his organ scholars at King's, David Baskeyfield, won the St Alban's International Organ Competition in 2011. Andrew has now retired from King's but remains Music Director at Tytherington Family Worship church in Macclesfield. He enjoys spending a little more time improving his golf, while maintaining frequent connections with King's and continuing to enjoy accompanying choirs.
A very fine musician, Andrew has been our accompanist for six years during which time he has brought his immense musical knowledge to enhance our rehearsals.
He unassumingly guided us when he felt it was necessary, imparted snippets of information at just the right moment to illuminate the text, both literal and musical, of whatever work we were engaged on and throughout he maintained his gentle sense of humour. He was an enormous fount of musical knowledge which we will miss greatly and we are thankful that we had the benefit of his playing for as long as we did.
Andrew sadly died on 15th October 2022 after a long illness.