Royal School of Church Music

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The largest church music organisation in Britain, the Royal School of Church Music was founded in 1927 by Sir Sydney Nicholson and has 11,000 members worldwide; it was originally named the School of English Church Music. It seeks to enable church music in the present and invest in its future, largely through publications, courses and an award scheme. The organisation, originally only open to members of the Anglican Communion, is interdenominational, but is still overseen by the Church of England. The current director general of the School is John Harper and the president of the Royal School of Church Music in America is Cindy Dedakis. The patron is Her Majesty the Queen.

US choirs affiliated with the Royal School of Church Music often wear the RSCM medallion, which features a picture of Saint Nicholas, its patron saint.

[edit] Awards & Medals

The RSCM provides a series of grades and awards to signify varying levels of musical achievement. There are four basic merit awards - the light blue ribbon, the dark blue ribbon, the red ribbon and the yellow ribbon. These awards share the same medal.

Beyond these are several medals awarded after successful examination:

  • The Deans/Provosts award (now the Bronze award)
  • The Bishops Award (now the Silver award)
  • The Junior & Senior St Nicholas / St Cecilia Awards (now the Gold award)

Head Chorister and Deputy Head Chorister medals are also used by most choirs.

Head Chorister Medal

St Nicholas Award

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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