‘I owe my entire career to my years as a chorister’ – Alexander Armstrong to become Cathedral Music Trust ambassador
30 April 2021, 12:07
The Classic FM presenter, comedian and actor joins Cathedral Music Trust to champion beautiful choral music in the UK and overseas.
Alexander Armstrong has been announced as ambassador for Cathedral Music Trust.
“I owe my entire career to my experience as a chorister,” the Classic FM presenter, comedian and actor has said.
“It was where I learnt to perform, where I learnt to use the full range of my voice; where I learnt to listen, where I learnt to write comedy – but most importantly it was where I learnt the wonderful truth that something exceptional, something as beautiful as anything anywhere, can be created just by you and your friends.”
Fulfilling his passion for the sublime music-making that takes place with cathedral, church and collegiate chapel choirs, the ambassador role will see Alexander promoting the trust’s work, sustaining and developing a beloved part of the country’s cultural heritage, while nurturing the next diverse generation of cathedral musicians.
“I am honoured to have joined the Cathedral Music Trust as their ambassador,” Alexander said. “[I] look forward to supporting them in their work to ensure that this extraordinary musical heritage evolves and thrives to benefit future generations.”
Alexander Armstrong announced as Ambassador for Cathedral Music Trust
Alexander has a strong background in choral and cathedral music. He counts his time as a chorister at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh as one of the most important and formative experiences of his life, and he sang as a choral scholar at Trinity College, Cambridge.
Alexander still performs and records as a bass-baritone, and shares his passion for classical music presenting Classic FM’s flagship mid-morning radio programme, which includes the Hall of Fame Hour.
Read more: Alexander Armstrong joins London Mozart Players to narrate ‘Peter and the Wolf’ >
The Cathedral Music Trust is a voice for cathedral music in the UK and beyond, campaigning on behalf of cathedral music and musicians, supporting choirs and choristers in need, and encouraging the pursuit of excellence in choral and organ music. It gives grants to cathedrals, church and collegiate chapel choirs in the UK and overseas – with over £3 million raised in the past six years alone.
Alexander’s first engagement as ambassador will mark the ancient musical tradition of May Day, and will see him meet young singers from the choir of Magdalen College, Oxford. He’ll find out about their experiences of singing during the coronavirus pandemic and the lengths they went to, to keep the May Day tradition of singing from the college’s Great Tower alive.
Peter Allwood, chair of the trust said: “We are thrilled to welcome Alexander as our ambassador and look forward to working with him. Cathedral music is a national treasure that should be celebrated with pride by us all.
“Alexander’s infectious enthusiasm for cathedral music, and his extensive experience as a singer, make him a wonderful advocate for our cause.”
Listen to Alexander Armstrong on Classic FM, 9am-12pm every weekday. Classic FM is available across the UK on 100-102 FM, DAB digital radio and TV, at ClassicFM.com and via Global Player, the official Classic FM app.
