Lay clerk

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A lay clerk, also known as a lay vicar, song man or a vicar choral, is a professional adult singer (or an accomplished amateur) in a Cathedral or (occasionally) collegiate choir in the United Kingdom. The majority of lay clerks are male. However, both Chester and Dublin Cathedrals employ female lay clerks.

The title refers to the laymen who were employed to sing musical sections of church services during the Middle Ages. At the time, this was often music which was evolving into a format too complicated to be sung by many ordinary clerks and priests. With the post-war proliferation of Cathedral choral scholarships, however, many Cathedral or collegiate choirs comprise a balance between choral scholars (occasionally, as in Oxford choral foundations, 'academical clerks')– university or "gap year" students who combine their studies or other commitments with singing – and lay clerks. Choral scholars sing alongside lay clerks for usually around half the latters' salary. Many universities now offer such scholarships to fill places within college and Cathedral choirs.