(mezzo-soprano)

(organ)

at 1:10 p.m.

Thursday, 14^th February 2002

St Nicolas Church, Newbury

Isobel Collyer began singing professionally while still at Oxford University. She has sung with a number of professional ensembles and as a soloist in major venues including St John's, Smith Square and the Queen Elizabeth Hall. One of her earliest recordings (of music by Gustav Holst, conducted by Hilary Davan Wetton) was Highly Recommended by Gramophone Magazine and is still the recommended release for this repertoire. She has given numerous recitals of renaissance and baroque music and several first performances of contemporary works.

Isobel studied Early Music at the Royal College of Music and subsequently began to combine her performing career with giving classes at the Voice Workshop in London. She also studied acting with the Acting Company of the Arts Educational London Schools and subsequently took a leading role in a repertory season at The New End Theatre in Hampstead.

More recently she has performed with a number of early and contemporary music ensembles in France, Belgium and Germany and taught at the Opera School of the Music Conservatoire in Karlsruhe. She has toured extensively, and sung with conductors as diverse as Philippe Herreweghe, Bernard Haitink, Peter Eotvos and William Christie. She has performed with a travelling theatre company in Denmark, Germany and Holland, and once spent a summer as a pig in a children's musical. After several years spent touring, Isobel has returned to her native Wiltshire where she now runs The Voice Studio.

David F.C. Reynolds, ARCM, LTCL

David Reynolds was educated at High Pavement Grammar School, Nottingham. He began his musical career as a chorister at St Margaret’s, Aspley, Nottingham. His first organ lessons were with the organist there, Sydney Smith. He then studied with Dr Robert Ashfield at Southwell Minster whilst serving an apprenticeship as an organ builder with E. Wragg & Son of Nottingham. From 1955 to 1957 David served with the RAF.

On completion of service with the RAF he took his first organist and choirmaster’s post at St Mary’s, Wollaton Park, Nottingham, where he met his wife, Christine, whose father sang bass in the choir. In 1957 he completed his organ studies with Charles Pickard and took the ARCM (organ teacher) diploma. From 1962 to 1965 he studied at Clifton Teachers’ Training College, during which time he took the LTCL (organ performer) diploma.

On completion of his teacher training in 1965, David and Christine moved to Whitchurch in Hampshire where David became organist and choirmaster at All Hallow’s and took up his first teaching post at Andover Boys’ School.