ns at 7:30, with an early morning practice
before school. There is further practice immediately after school,
followed by Choral Evensong six nights a week, in term; the Monday
service is sung by the boys only, and the Friday service only by
the Academical Clerks. On Saturdays there is an afternoon practice,
while on Sundays there is a practice at 09:30 followed by
Eucharist, then a further afternoon practice followed by Evensong
which ends at 7pm. Most of the boys thus have a longer working day,
and a busier weekend, than their parents.
The Choir has numerous College duties as well as a recording and
touring schedule. Traditionally the Choir sings at College Gaudies
and at other special events throughout the year, as well as
performing on social occasions such as Carols by Candlelight before
Christmas and the famous May Morning
this occasion the Choir sings madrigals at 6am from the top of the
college bell-tower to the assembled mass of students and townsfolk
celebrating in the streets below.
In its long history the choir has had many well known organists,
such as Daniel Purcell
, Sir John Stainer
and Bernard Rose
, while past Organ
Scholars include Dudley Moore
, and past
Academical Clerks include Harry
(founder and director of The Sixteen) and Robin Blaze
The choir records regularly and In 2005 was nominated for a
prestigious Grammy Award
, With a Merrie Noyse
music by Orlando Gibbons
recent works include the BBC's Blue
and Paul McCartney's classical piece Ecce Cor Meum
The former Informator Choristarum (the master and conductor of the
choir) was the composer Dr Bill Ives
possibly better known as a former King's Singer. A disc of his
music, Listen Sweet Dove
, is amongst the choir's latest
releases. The College has recently appointed organist Daniel Hyde
as Informator Choristarum.
List of organ scholars
Centre for the History of Childhood
Centre for the History of Childhood, situated at Magdalen College,
is the first institution within the United Kingdom that focuses on
studying every interdisciplinary aspect of the history of children
from the Greeks and Romans to the present day.
Magdalen held 'Head of the River
between 2004 and 2007. This means it won the Summer Eights
competition in each of these
years. Summer Eights
is the most
prestigious university regatta held in Oxford. The Men's 1st Torpid
became Head of the River in the 2008 Torpids
; in 2009 they dropped two places.
Magdalen has drama, organized by the Magdalen Players
(P. G. Wodehouse
attributes a Magdalen undergraduateship to his fictional literary
character Bertie Wooster
; Tibby, in
Forster's Howard's End, is also a Magdalen undergraduate.)
Old members who are current Members of Parliament
Currently (and since February 2009) the posts of Shadow Chancellor
of the Exchequer and Shadow Foreign Secretary are all held by
alumni of the College.
- Oxford College Endowment Incomes, 1973-2006 (updated