College welcomes first woman Organ Scholar
Meet new music undergraduate, Miriam Reveley, who is already making history as the first woman Organ Scholar at Jesus College. We caught up with her at the start of term to welcome her to College, find out a bit more about her and her passion for organ and choral music:
How did you start playing the organ?
I started playing the organ when I was a chorister at Ely Cathedral when I was around 15. My Director of Music thought I might be interested in learning to play the organ, so she encouraged me to have a trial lesson. To be honest, I was a little bit nervous, because I had only just started playing the piano, and I hadn’t considered learning the organ before. But I gave it a go, and really enjoyed it, and I’ve never looked back! As I got older, I started to take the organ more seriously, and after becoming Sixth Form Organ Scholar at the Cathedral, I started to think about applying for university organ scholarships, including the scholarship at Jesus College.
What have you been doing in the last year?
Last year, I was the Organ Scholar at St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. This job involved playing for services every week, teaching the younger choristers singing and music theory, and running the choir library, but I also found lots of time for organ practice, and playing recitals across the country. However, the most significant part of my gap year was when I was asked to play for Her Majesty the Queen’s funeral. I played for half an hour before the service, while the congregation entered and took their seats. While it was an extremely solemn occasion, it was an incredible experience, and it was a huge honour to have been able to take part.
What is your favourite thing about Jesus College?
My favourite thing about Jesus College is the range of different musical opportunities which it presents. Jesus runs a College Choir (which is made up of students) and a Chapel Choir (which is made up of students and boy choristers), and so I can enjoy the benefits of both systems. This means that I am always very busy with rehearsals and chapel services — but I love being busy! We have a lot of exciting projects coming up, including the Fauré Requiem in November, Handel’s Messiah in December, as well as several tours, concerts, and recordings.
Are there enough woman organists?
Historically, the world of church music has only been open to men. For hundreds of years, women were not permitted to sing in church, chapel or cathedral choirs, and so it was rare for them to have the opportunity to play the organ. This has only recently started to change. There have been several trailblazers, including Sarah MacDonald (the first woman to be Director of Music at an Oxbridge College, and later the first woman to be University Organist) and Katherine Dienes-Williams (the first woman to be Director of Music in a cathedral), but it’s shocking that these ‘firsts’ are still within living memory. At the time of writing, just nine per cent of professional organists in the UK are women. Being the first woman Organ Scholar at Jesus College is a small step in the right direction, although there is still a very long way to go.
Ambitions/ future plans?
At the moment, I’d like to keep an open mind. The idea of being a cathedral organist has always appealed to me, because it gives you the freedom to explore lots of musical avenues such as accompanying services, playing recitals, conducting, teaching, and composing. But I think I’ll wait and see what happens over the next few years first!
