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An Interview with Stephen Cleobury

On January 28, 2016, Stephen Cleobury sat with me Category 1: Unification of Sound
for a videoconference interview. He was one of six con-
ductors whose work I was researching for my doctoral What do you consider to be important elements
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dissertation. The contents of that interview are being of unifying the sound of a choral ensemble?
published on the fifth anniversary of his passing so we
may all learn from one who not only excelled in mu- We’re talking about blend of voices, which means
sicianship but also as a master teacher and mentor of trying to get everybody, first and foremost, to listen to
so many. Our interview lasted about forty-five minutes, each other and to be sympathetic to the people around
but (perhaps unsurprisingly) we covered much ground. them, and for the personality in front listening, trying
Cleobury was personable and not at all pretentious. He to blend this group, it’s about achieving similar vowel
had the ability to communicate a lot of information in sounds, similar vowel colors, for example. It’s about
a short time, was quite to the point, and showcased a making sure everyone is singing at roughly equal vol-
good deal of wit and humor, albeit in the British way ume; otherwise you have a voice obtruding and not
(he never let on when he was joking). agreeing on intonation.
The interview questions were related to four dis-
tinct categories of examination: unification of sound, Does the unification of vibrato play into that for
rehearsal technique, conducting, and leadership. In you?
examining how Cleobury and other conductors re-
spectively unify the sound within their ensembles, I was Yes, it would. Of course, I should mention that. It
attempting to capture the essence of Cleobury’s phi- depends on what groups you are working with, because
losophy of training his singers to create a homogenous obviously with young children, the question of vibrato
sound including rhythmic elements, vowels, volume, doesn’t arise so often, whereas it can arise in quite dif-
intonation, and even vibrato. In asking about rehears- ficult ways in amateur adult groups. I’m often asked
al technique, I wanted to know about his strategies in this question; I don’t have a doctrinaire approach to
planning rehearsals for such a wide range of maturity vibrato, as to whether there should or shouldn’t be.
in his singers at King’s.
The Choir at King’s College comprises young boy In 1998, you participated in a piece by Brian
choristers between the ages of six and nine as well as Robins in Fanfare, called “From Rutter to Rach-
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undergraduate choral scholars. It was important to maninov.” In that interview, you are quoted as
know how he prepares choirs for weekly services as saying, “One thing that happens is that as soon
well as for frequent, high-profile concerts, broadcasts, as the language comes right, you start to get a
and recordings each season. Questions about conduct- change in color in the voices, particularly be-
ing were intended to glean Cleobury’s basic philosophy cause of the vowels in the Church Slavonic. I
in showing the music with non-verbal gesture. I also very strongly believe that if you get the language
wanted to gain insight into the British methodology of right, then the color follows in its wake…” Can
conducting practice, since (as he had a bit to say) con- you elaborate?
ducting pedagogy varies from country to country. The
fourth category of examination was leadership quality, Well, actually, I think that happens in all languages,
which is perhaps the central issue that separates effective and I found particularly with children that someone has
conductors from talented conductors. The questions to work at it, even in our own language, English. Modes
in this category dealt with a conductor’s style or phi- of speech have become lazier. I think the difference in
losophy of personal leadership, including motivating how people speak to one another, colloquially, and how
musicians and managing group psyche. A summary of you should be pronouncing the language in, as it were,
responses appears at the end of each category and in- an art song is a bigger distance as every year goes by.
cludes some additional insight from the interview.

18 CHORAL JOURNAL November/December 2024 Volume 65 Number 4