King's Singers - History

History

The group has always consisted of six singers in total, with their membership changing over the years. None of the original members remain. The first stable incarnation of the group, from late 1969 until 1978, comprised:

  • Nigel Perrin (countertenor 1)
  • Alastair Hume (countertenor 2)
  • Alastair Thompson (tenor)
  • Anthony Holt (baritone 1/tenor 2) (actually from Christ Church, Oxford, rather than King's)
  • Simon Carrington (baritone 2)
  • Brian Kay (bass)

The current ensemble is composed of (starting year in brackets):

  • David Hurley (countertenor 1) - (1990)
  • Tim Wayne-Wright (countertenor 2) - (2009)
  • Paul Phoenix (tenor) - (1997)
  • Christopher Bruerton (baritone 1) - (2012)
  • Christopher Gabbitas (baritone 2) - (2004)
  • Jonathan Howard (bass) - (2010)

Former members of the King's Singers also include Jeremy Jackman, Bob Chilcott, Nigel Short, Bill Ives, Bruce Russell, Colin Mason, Gabriel Crouch, Stephen Parham-Connolly, Robin Tyson and Philip Lawson. There have been 22 members of the King's Singers since the original stable group was established in late 1969, for whom the average length of tenure is around 12 years.

Around the year 2000, the King's Singers briefly called themselves king'singers (with a lower case k and a single s), as can be seen on the cover of Fire-Water and several song sheets. This name change did not last long, but the current circular logo originates from this name.

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