Music at St Mary's Church with February recitals
St Mary’s Church in Hay-on-Wye is hosting two concerts next month, with an organ recital by Bishop Richard Fenwick and a piano recital by Jayson Gillham, above.
Richard Fenwick was born in Cardiff, and he studied organ under the distinguished Welsh blind organist David Williams. Willams was a pupil at the Royal College of Music under Sir Walter Alcock, and the English composer John Ireland.
At Lampeter Richard read English and History. He then studied Theology at Cambridge and following this was ordained in Llandaff. However, he continued with his music studies taking a B.Mus. at Trinity College Dublin. He subsequently did a Master’s in 19th century Church Music, and a PhD in Church History, both at the University of Wales. Meanwhile he took Fellowships at the London College of Music (Organ) and Trinity College, London (Composition).
After curacies in South Wales, he moved as Minor Canon of Rochester and then St Paul’s Cathedral, London. Following eight years in Ruislip, he moved to be Residentiary Canon and Precentor at Guildford Cathedral. In 1997 he was appointed Dean of St Woolos Cathedral Newport, and then in 2011 he was consecrated Bishop of St Helena in the Province of Southern Africa. After seven years he retired, and he and Jane have returned home to Llandaff.
He has performed twice at St Paul’s Cathedral in London. He has also performed recitals at the Cathedrals of Rochester, Guildford, Coventry, Bangor, Newport, Newcastle on Tyne – and six times at St Paul’s Cathedral, St Helena.
His recital will take place at 10.30am on Saturday, February 5. Entry is free with a retiring collection in aid of St Mary’s.
Well known to Hay Music audiences through his several sold-out performances in the past at Dorstone House, as well as his online recital recorded specially for Hay Music and broadcast during lockdown in 2020/21, Jayson Gillham is dropping in to Hay on a round-about route to his solo debut recital at St Martin-in-the-Fields on February 22 and will give a preview of his fresh programme of Bach transcriptions.
He will be performing a bumper programme of Bach transcriptions by Busoni, Gounod, Kempff, Liszt, Rachmaninov, Siloti and Hess.
The concert takes place on Saturday, February 19 at 3.30pm. The full programme details and tickets (£12.50 Students £6.25) are available here and the Tourist Information Office, Oxford Road, Hay.