Our Musical Director - David Wynne
The Coventry Philharmonic Choir welcomed David Wynne as its new Musical Director in January 2020. After a few rehearsals, COVID struck and it wasn't until Autumn 2021 that David directed us for a performance of Mozart's Requiem and Schubert's Mass in G.
David has enjoyed a hugely varied career as a freelance musician. As a conductor David, is Music Director of Birmingham Festival Choral Society, a role he has held for just over four years. He is also Musical Director of the Warwick and Kenilworth Choral Society having taken over this role in December 2019 after six incredibly successful years as Music Director of Ryton Chorale (Worksop).
David holds a masters’ degree in Vocal and Operatic performance from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, having studied singing with Henry Herford as well as receiving a scholarship to study choral conducting with Paul Spicer. He is a busy freelance baritone soloist, up until recently, a lay clerk at St. Chad’s Cathedral Birmingham, and has performed several times as a musician of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
David is very involved as a visiting lecturer at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Junior Department. He teaches singing, conducting as well musicianship and is Choral Director of the Senior Chorus and the Vocal Ensemble.
David has worked with some of the country’s leading music education organisations, including: Opera North, Welsh National Opera, the Armonico Consort and Leicester and Leeds Cathedral’s education departments. With his wife, Alexandra, they co run (and co-founded) the St. Chad’s Cathedral Junior Choir and the extensive Choral Outreach Programme which sees them teaching choral singing to approx. 400 children a week across Birmingham.
{Photo ©Michael Whitefoot]Our Accompanist - Colin Druce
Colin Druce (colindruce.co.uk) joined the Coventry Philharmonic Choir in September 2023.
Colin is an experienced and accomplished concert organist and pianist, renowned for his musicianship, versatility, and sight-reading skills. Colin is much in demand as a recitalist, performing regularly at festivals and cultural events both in the UK and abroad, including the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester and at concerts in Budapest and the Czech Republic. He has a busy organ recital schedule and has broadcast for radio and television from venues that include Bristol, Manchester, Chipping Campden, Warwick and Coventry.
Colin is a multi-faceted musician; as well as his concert work, he is a freelance organist, and staff accompanist at Warwick University. He is rehearsal accompanist and repetiteur for the Royal Leamington Spa Bach Choir, Warwick and Kenilworth Choral Society and the Coventry Philharmonic Society. He also takes sectional rehearsals, and regularly deputises for the conductor. Colin has a thriving private teaching practice, with several pupils moving on to successful careers in music.
Colin won the BMI Organ competition and the Ludlow Philharmonic Concerto Competition whilst studying at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and gained the Associate of The Royal College of Music Diploma (ARCM) and the Fellowship of the Royal College of Organists Diploma (FRCO) during his studies there.
Colin had a successful career in church music before becoming freelance, and still plays regularly at St Mary’s Warwick, Coventry Cathedral and Holy Trinity Stratford. He has twice played for the International Church Choir Festival at Coventry Cathedral, and has been an adjudicator for the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival, the largest music festival in the world, with over 130,000 entries.'
