Herald AV Publications

HAVPCD353 – A Spotless Rose

	Disk Title	A Spotless Rose
		Crypt Choir of The King’s School, Canterbury
	Soloists	John Robinson – Organ
	Choir	Crypt Choir of The King’s School, Canterbury
	Conductor	Howard Ionascu – Director
	Location	Canterbury Cathedral
	Date Recorded	12, 13, 16 October 2009
	Audio Tracks	16

The King’s School, Canterbury. The King’s School has its roots in the sixth century and its pupils live and work within the inspirational and ancient Precincts of Canterbury Cathedral and the grounds of St Augustine’s Abbey. Music has played a central role in the school’s life from its monastic foundations. The Crypt Choir, under the direction of Howard Ionascu, is the school’s senior choir. Its primary purpose is to provide music for weekly School services in Canterbury Cathedral, where the King’s School is part of the Foundation.

The choir also performs at outside venues, most recently St Paul’s, Knightsbridge, The Temple Church, St John’s, Smith Square and Westminster Abbey. It has toured extensively, including a number of European countries, New York, Boston, New Zealand, Australia and Hong Kong. The Choir reached the final stage of the 2005 BBC Choir of the Year at the Lowry Centre in Salford. In July of that year the Choir was invited to perform Tallis’ Spem in alium alongside The Sixteen and Harry Christophers in Canterbury Cathedral. The Choir has been particularly active in performing contemporary music.

It has performed in the Sounds New Festivals, featuring works by James Macmillan, Paul Patterson and Gabriel Jackson. In December 2005 it gave the first performance of a commission by Howard Goodall, Of the dark past, in Canterbury Cathedral.

Howard Ionascu studied music at Manchester University and The Royal Northern College of Music, before being appointed a Vicar Choral in Wells Cathedral Choir. Whilst at Wells, he sang on many recordings, broadcasts and international tours. In 1997 he founded The Laudate Choir, a young semi-professional choir, which performs regularly in London as well as further afield.

With The Laudate Choir, he has recorded various CDs for Meridian and Priory Records, most recently The Choral Music of Herbert Brewer and a CD of the music of George Jeffreys.

Concert venues with the choir have included the Temple Church, St John’s, Smith Square, London and Canterbury Cathedral. Howard has worked with orchestras such as The City of London Sinfonia, Sinfonia Britannica, Onyx Brass, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the New London Orchestra.

In recent years, Howard has also been Musical Director of Bournemouth Sinfonietta Choir, Finchley Children’s Music Group (trebles) and The Esterhazy Singers of London. After working at Radley College and the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, he was appointed Director of Music at The King’s School, Canterbury in September 2002. John Robinson is the Assistant Organist at Canterbury Cathedral and Organist of the King’s School Canterbury. He began his musical education as a chorister and organ pupil at Hereford Cathedral under Dr Roy Massey and subsequently studied with David Sanger.

While he was Organ Scholar at St John’s College, Cambridge, working with both Dr Christopher Robinson and Dr David Hill, he won first prize in the Runnett Organ competition and the Plymouth National Young Organists’ Competition. Extensive tours have led to appearances in such venues as London’s Wigmore Hall, La Cité de La Musique in Paris, Washington National Cathedral and other venues across Europe and America.