1975-1989: Ian Hare
Lancaster Singers was founded in 1975 when a few like minded individuals gathered together periodically in one of their homes to sing for personal enjoyment and amusement. From this the singers felt that they could perform occasionally at a church service or for a charitable group.
A group then began under the conductor, Noel McKee, of a dozen singers with rehearsals at St Paul’s Parish Hall in Scotforth. This group was named ‘The Lunesdale Linnets’ by the vicar at St Paul’s.
They further developed under the conductorship of Ian Hare, who was at that time a young lecturer in the music department at Lancaster University. He and the singers had similar interests and needs and so was born The Lancaster Singers!
Their first performance was on 20th May 1976 to a ‘Missionary Group at Home’ at St. Christopher’s Church, Bare. The first Carol Concert was in December 1977. The following year, 1978, they performed Bach’s St. John Passion, the first major musical work for the group. This was closely followed by Bach's Mass in B Minor later in the same year. Both of these concerts were in collaberation with the Lancaster University Choral Society, of which Ian Hare was also conductor.
Initially small-scale works were performed to suit the size of the choir with the dominant theme reflecting Ian Hare’s interest in sacred music from the Tudor and Baroque periods, particularly the music of Bach.
The choir grew in size and made links with Lancaster University and St Martin’s College [now University of Cumbria] over the years the choir began to perform across the north west; Preston, Liverpool, Cartmel and Carlisle.
Ian Hare resigned his post with the Lancaster Singers when he left Lancaster in 1989, to become assistant organist at Carlisle Cathedral.
1989-2008: Denis McCaldin
The Director of the Haydn Society of Great Britain, Denis McCaldin is a conductor and a musicologist. Professor Emeritus of Performance Studies in Music at Lancaster University, he has worked with many major British orchestras including the Hallé, Royal Philharmonic, and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestras. He also conducts abroad and has worked in Australia, Africa, Europe and North America. Through his association with the London Mozart Players, European Union Chamber Orchestra, Manchester Camerata, and other chamber orchestras, he has developed a special interest in this repertoire, commissioning new works and rediscovering forgotten ones. One if his CD recordings of Schubert & Haydn (featuring his edition of the Little Organ Mass) has received a Gramophone Critic’s Choice award.
2009-2015: Marco Fanti
Marco Fanti is based in his native Bologna where among a range of posts he teaches in the music department at the University of Bologna and directs Coro Athena, a mixed-voice choir. He studied violin, singing and orchestral conducting at the Conservatorio G. B. Martini, Bologna and also holds qualifications in Classical literature and Italian linguistics.
He has directed the Romanian State Symphony Orchestra and Lario Symphony Orchestra and has given choral workshops in the USA and Europe.
Recently he was chosen to conduct a national competition for young artists and to work with the orchestra of Teatro Communale in Bologna. In the summer of 2014 he was invited to lead workshops in Japan.
In the UK he was Musical Director of the Lancaster Singers from 2009 to 2014 and of Preston Cecilian Choral Society from 2010 to 2014, travelling regularly from Bologna to Lancashire for rehearsals, workshops and performances.
Mavis Fletcher – Deputy Musical Director
Mavis Fletcher was Vice Chair of Lancaster Singers for more than 20 years and as part of that role has arranged training and development weekends with eminent conductors for the choir, Come and Sing days in connection with the Association of British Choral Directors (ABCD) and helped arrange the choir singing tour to Italy in 2011.
Mavis, a graduate of the Royal College of Music, Manchester, has taught in schools in Lancashire both Primary and Secondary and also in Adult Education at Alston Hall College and at the University of Central Lancashire.
She has been an active church musician for more than 50 years, leading choirs and playing organ or piano for services and concerts. As a lover of singing she has sung with several choirs and for many years led and sang with the Avenham Singers a much loved ensemble of 6 voices who gave concerts all over Lancashire and in Germany too.
Now a Trustee of ABCD, Mavis was Chair of the NW Region and a member of its National Advisory Council for about 15 years and is still actively involved locally in arranging singing days, training and conducting courses and for the last 8 years has been administrator for the abcd NW Children’s Honour Choir working with composer Bob Chilcott.
Nationally she is involved in helping to plan the annual Convention for ABCD which attracts choirs and music leaders from all over the world. In 2015 she is the Artistic Director when the Convention comes to Manchester and as such puts together the varied programme of seminars and plans the Gala Concert inviting presenters from many parts of the world.
Since September 2011 she worked as director alongside Marco Fanti training the choir and conducting concerts when Marco was unable to travel. She has also commissioned new music by Bob Chilcott and Will Todd especially for Lancaster Singers.
2015-2024: Duncan Lloyd – Musical Director
Duncan Lloyd began his musical career as a chorister at Southw
ell Minster under the tutelage of Kenneth Beard. As a violinist, he played with the internationally renowned Nottingham Orchestra directed by Christopher Adey and read Music at Manchester University. He has a PGCE from Durham, a Diploma in Education Management from Sheffield Hallam and his NPQH.
Duncan has thirty years teaching experience, most recently as Director of Music at The Minster School Southwell. He co-wrote the School’s successful bid for Specialist Music and Humanities status and ran the very successful Chorister Outreach Programme. During his sixteen years as a Tenor Lay Clerk, he founded The Ensemble of Southwell and the Djanogly Community Orchestra and Jazz Band, typeset the New Southwell Psalter and, with Simon Bell, founded The Minster Girls’ Choir. He composes and arranges and has recently had works performed by musical groups in Nottinghamshire and North Yorkshire.
Duncan has extensive experience as a conductor of both choral and orchestral groups and has led extremely successful concert tours throughout Europe. He played viola in the Pollyanna Quartet and has played both viola and violin in many leading ensembles in Nottinghamshire.
His nine years with the Lancaster Singers brought some great developments in the overall performance level of the choir, introduced new repertoire and produced some excellent concerts, including the premiere of tenor Christopher Steele's English libretto version of JS Bach's St. John Passion, and Karl Jenkin's The Armed Man at a full-house Lancaster Priory, for the 2018 Centenary Remembrance Day concert.
