'It is incredible to think that these mature vocalists are mere students' The Times
Altos
Felix Blake - Assistant Musical DirectorFelix hails from the sunny climes of Warrington in the northwest of England, although his time in Cambridge has eroded any sign of this in his accent! Having completed a master’s degree in music at Selwyn College, Felix splits his time between singing alto in King’s College Chapel and researching at the intersection of popular music and anthropology. The King’s Men, therefore, suits his tastes nicely by offering something of a musical bridge between the classical and the popular. Felix is now in his second year in the choir, but had his choral birth down the road with the Choir of Selwyn College, Cambridge, where he was a bass choral scholar alongside pursuing a music undergraduate degree. Felix discovered his alto voice when he stubbed his toe coming out of the shower. The resounding yelp was more harmonious than any of his previous bass tones, and he has been nurturing his countertenor voice ever since. In what little free time he has away from the Choir, Felix keeps himself busy by watching true crime documentaries and informing everyone in earshot that he, in fact, has perfect pitch.
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William Rodgers
William is currently in his first year at King’s, singing as a choral scholar and studying Classics (although that does not necessarily mean he understands what he’s singing about any more than other members of the choir). Music began to take its hold on William’s life at the age of six, when he began to learn the piano. A few years later he took up the organ, hoping to gain an organ scholarship to university. However, on realising that multitasking was not exactly his greatest skill, he decided to give singing a try instead. Having attended Christ’s Hospital School and therefore been forced to wear long yellow socks and a Tudor dress almost every day of his secondary education, William found little discomfort in the idea of singing alto. He regards his choral scholarship at King’s as a great opportunity for several different reasons. Not only does he get to sing some stunning pieces of music, while all the time working to improve his vocal ability, but, due to the zeal of his choral colleagues for football, he has also finally been given the chance to play football matches, something which has curiously passed him by since his demotion to the non-squad in his first term at school. William’s other interests include German literature, photography, and, most importantly, pudding.
Harry StreetGrowing up in Leeds, Harry started his career as a countertenor at school, after which he decided that being a choral scholar was going to become a big part of his personality. He later completed his undergraduate studies at St Andrews, where he sang in the University’s Chapel Choir, and was also president of St Andrews Madrigal Group. He then pulled a stunt working in finance, but soon realised he hated wearing gilets so gave academia another go. Harry studied health economics at Oxford thereafter, where he was a choral scholar in Merton College Choir.
Harry now works as a researcher in Global Health and Development, alongside singing alto in King’s. |
Josh DennisJoshua first discovered the joys of the alto voice involuntarily, when he was placed on the part “temporarily” in his school choir when his voice began to break. Unfortunately, his bass range didn’t quite develop in the way he’d hoped, and so he was forced to make this strange new world his new home. This somehow landed him behind the stalls at Magdalen College, Oxford, where he completed his undergraduate degree (a detail which we have told him to be very embarrassed about). It is rumoured that the ghost of Magdalen’s previous musical director, who has since taken up residence in King’s, still haunts the place today. Having always been a fan of the paranormal, Joshua, armed with a camera, a notepad and a copy of Hahn’s “A Chloris”, set off to Cambridge to investigate the matter further. When he arrived, there just so happened to be a lay clerk vacancy which nobody had gone for yet (something to do with a “lack of male altos”, of which there is apparently no easy solution). So, abandoning his previous plans, he decided to settle here for the time being. The scarves are pretty nice, after all.
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Tenors
Matt SupramaniamAfter a string of high-profile performances in his native Singapore, rumour has it that Matt was uncomfortable with the celebrity lifestyle and fled to 'the other place' for a fresh start as a chorister there away from media coverage. Since leaving school, Matt spent time foraging in jungles, had a buzz cut, started wearing khaki clothing, lost a third of his body weight, reached fighting fitness, “sustained an injury”, scaled down his fitness regime, and regained his former waistline. Having completed his undergraduate degree in History, Matt's attempts to cling onto the vestiges of student life range from wearing a variety of dubious colour combinations to altering his hair in ways no one thought possible or desirable. (He is also allegedly pursuing a master's in Film Studies.) Despite being able to partially clear a room of 4 and a half armed men with "a bent spoon", Matt now spends most of his time frightening locals with drawings of Homer Simpson and falling over on astroturf.
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Tad DaviesTad’s musical journey began at 5 years old when he had his first piano lesson, a memory which he still remembers 18years later. With two parents from a choral background (one of whom sang in King’s himself), it was not long until Tad found himself in a choristership at Norwich Cathedral at the age of 7 alongside which he began his flute lessons. Here, he went from strength-to-strength and was even involved in the recording of a rock opera (something which has thankfully never surfaced). Suitably equipped for a life of choral singing and having enjoyed Norwich so much, Tad spent his gap year in the exotic city of Norwich as a choral scholar at the Cathedral and a Music Gap Student at Norwich High School for Girls. This was then swiftly followed by a choral scholarship at Durham Cathedral alongside his degree where he also played flute in the University Orchestra. When Tad is not singing chorally or talking about Norwich, he can be found in front of a computer recording and producing music or making strange sounds with synthesisers–his big break could be just around the corner. Tad hopes that his time at King’s will prepare him for professional music and looks forward to creating high quality music both in the choir and The King's Men
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Robbie Anson
Hailing from the hallowed hills of West Cumbria, Robbie (a first year music student) was simultaneously enamoured by the number of people willing to discuss Gregorian chant in Cambridge and disappointed by the lack of a Gregg's within a five minute walk of his accommodation. Robbie first started singing as a chorister in Carlisle Cathedral where he learned to enjoy romping through Victorian choral music as a treble, a habit which (unfortunately) hasn't died moving into tenorhood. He looks forward to singing new varieties of music, and perhaps even doing so with a hint of good taste, as well as playing football with the choir despite his evident lack of coordination, skill or even knowledge of the rules.
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Fergus McKieFergus is a first year music student. Fergus’ musical career started at a young age when his parents decided to move to a house where their room could be further away from his to prevent them from having to listen to his singing. However, not to be deterred from this minor setback he subsequently became a chorister at Canterbury Cathedral, where highlights include almost being set on fire and thrown up on, both in services (although he claims that both of these incidents were strictly not personal). Fergus joins The King’s Men in a bid to recreate some of this excitement in a musical sense - that is provided Take That’s Relight My Fire is not added to the KM programme at any point in the future!! Outside of singing Fergus can often be found working in a vineyard (although his attempts to convey the merits of beer over wine to the other members of KM have been unsuccessful thus far), getting annoyed at politics and crying over Manchester United footballing performances. Fergus hopes to build on previous close-harmony singing experience as he embarks upon this new exciting time in his life with The King’s Men.
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Harry Gant - Musical DirectorHarry is a tenor in his second year, studying for a degree in music. He began singing as chorister in Oxford (a town which he’s unfortunate enough to call his home), at Magdalen College. After leaving the choir, Harry spent 5 years playing percussion in various orchestras, and cracking his way through hymns at his local parish church, before deciding to apply for a choral scholarship at King’s. Alongside his love of choral music, Harry is well-versed in close harmony singing, having founded an almost-award-winning barbershop quartet at school. Outside of music, Harry is a keen footballer, having been converted to a goalkeeper at a young age due to his inability to get to grips with the handball rule.
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Baritones
Tom PickardTom, one of our baritones, is in his final year as an undergraduate at King’s, studying Modern Languages. Born in the Isle of Man, Tom has a long connection with King’s, having won a place to be a chorister here aged 8. Seeing the King’s Men perform as a chorister was a part of the reason he wanted to come back as a choral scholar, so it is real pleasure to be a part of the group now. Having spent his year abroad last year in Leipzig, teaching English at the Thomasschule (home to the choir boys of Bach’s Thomaskirche), Tom is delighted to be back, although misses the beer and sausage.
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Basses
Jacob RobinsonJacob was 5 years old when he announced to his parents that he would be learning the double bass. This was not up for discussion. Though he sang for pleasure from early years, Jacob’s vocal career really began when his voice dropped, suddenly equipping him with a vocal range almost as low his instrument. Jacob began to sing and play as much as he could, including starting a barbershop quartet and an acapella group at his school that he later went on to direct as part of a gap-year job there. On starting at Cambridge, Jacob discovered that his voice was much easier to transport by bicycle than his 6’6 instrument, and after a couple of years singing almost every day with a different choir or vocal group to the day before, he has now settled in as a lay clerk at King’s. Rumour has it that he also just finished a BA in philosophy at Girton College and has ambitions to become a voice artist.
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John-Ellis WallaceArriving from sunny St Albans, John-Ellis intends to immerse himself in the modern (15th century!) architecture of King’s College Chapel. As a first year Classicist, he naturally enjoys singing in Latin and studying the Vestry tablets ahead of big services - just to get in the zone. His choral career began at age 7, as a boy treble in St Albans Cathedral Choir, later inspiring his love of composition and early music. John-Ellis continued to study both Composition and Singing at the Junior Royal Academy of Music, where he worked with both the Chamber Choir and Eighteenth Century Orchestra on productions of Handel and his own compositions.
Outside of choir, he enjoys going to the theatre, as well as the occasional Pizza Quiz Night - a tradition which he hopes to introduce to KM. |
Henry MontgomeryHenry hails from the North of Lincolnshire, and finds himself still in Cambridge after a long undergraduate degree reading Music, and singing down the road in St J*hn’s College Choir. His childhood was unfortunately marred by immense difficulties, having been on reins as a child, unsuccessfully auditioning for a Sacha Baron Cohen movie, and working in a bread factory during the COVID years. After singing baritone in the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain, critics were perplexed and disappointed to discover that his voice was still dropping: Henry now finds himself as a low bass lay clerk in the Kings Men and the Voces8 scholars. If you don’t enjoy his low notes, you certainly won’t enjoy his high ones. Alongside singing with the group, some of his favourite hobbies include watching Star Wars, amateur beatboxing, and pretending he wasn’t born in Grimsby.
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Michael Tuft - Manager & TreasurerAfter serving as a Probationer at Southwark Cathedral, and as a Chorister at 'the place down the road' (St John's), Mike has finally come to realise that King's is the place to be, and is one of the Bass Lay Clerks. During his time reading Biomedical Science at Anglia Ruskin, Mike worked as a Microbiology Analyst for SGS. One day he may return to a serious profession, but finding this wasn't for him (for the moment at least), he has swapped the lab coat for sunglasses, working as a Lifeguard at the Jesus Green Lido during the day alongside singing at King's. Mike enjoys watching Rugby, cold water swimming and playing hockey for Cambridge Nomads in his free time!
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