Choir

Founded in 1990 by the celebrated conductor, Jean Stanley Jones MBE, Cantorion Sirenian Singers are a choir of some 50 voices based in North East Wales.

Achieving international recognition on the competitive and concert platforms, they are recognised for their unique sound, excellent technique and breadth of repertoire, achieving particular recognition for their promotion of Contemporary Welsh music.

The choir’s reputation has been founded on its considerable success at British and International Festivals.  First prizes were achieved at Budapest, Cork, Riva del Garda, Elgar Festival, Worcester, Choir of Choirs Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Freckleton and Peterborough. In 2011 they swept the board at Bangor International Choral Festival (Northern Ireland), winning four first prizes and the prestigious Choir of Choirs award. At home they have secured numerous prizes at the National Eisteddfod of Wales, Aberteifi Festival, and twice won the mixed competition at Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod before becoming the first Welsh choir to win the coveted Choir of the World Trophy in 1998.

The Sirenians have given concerts at leading venues including the Dom Cathedral in Berlin, the Thomaskirche in Leipzig (where J S Bach was Kapellmeister), Symphony Hall Birmingham and St. David’s Hall, Cardiff; appearing with leading artists such as Lesley Garrett, Bryn Terfel, Rebecca Evans, Dennis O’Neill, Catrin Finch and Philip Madoc.
They were the choir selected to represent Wales in Barcelona during the ‘Wales in Catalonia’ Celebrations and in 2009 were chosen by the Ballet Rambert as their guest choir in performances at Theatr Clwyd of Howard Goodall’s innovative choral ballet ‘Eternal Light –a Requiem', composed in 2008.

Cantorion Sirenian Singers regularly appear on radio and television and have released three CDs – ‘Rachmaninov to Rutter’, ‘Sirenians’ and ‘Christus Natus’.

Musical Director

Jean Stanley Jones MBE

Jean Stanley Jones is acknowledged as one of Britain’s leading vocal trainers, choral conductors and adjudicators.

In recognition of her success, she has received numerous national and international awards, including special prizes for conducting and musicianship at the Bartok Festival in Hungary and at International Festivals in Italy, Budapest, Prague, Brittany and Cork. In the UK, awards include the Royal National Eisteddfod of Wales, the Elgar Festival, Sainsbury’s Choir of the Year, BBC Let the People Sing Competition and Llangollen International Eisteddfod. She was also awarded first prize at the BBC Wales Television Arts Awards for her dedication to and promotion of singing, and her policy of commissioning new works.

Jean is the founder and Musical Director of the internationally acclaimed Sirenian Singers; an adult mixed voice choir who were the first Welsh choir to win the prestigious Choir of the World Competition at the Llangollen International Eisteddfod, together with numerous accolades throughout Europe and the UK. She also founded and is conductor of the Flintshire Senior County Youth Choir and the Four Counties Mixed Youth Choir; the latter involving talented senior students from High Schools and Colleges across Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham. Jean was the inaugural conductor of the Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Choir and from 1999 – 2001 became the Musical Director of the National Youth Choir of Wales.

Jean has served on many adjudicating panels throughout the U.K. and abroad, including the first National Choir Olympics held in Linz, Austria, the Royal National Eisteddfod of Wales and the Llangollen International Eisteddfod. In recognition of her contribution to music in Wales, the University of Wales conferred on her an Honorary Degree of Master of Music in 2000 and in 2004 she was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

Jean is Head of the Music Service for Flintshire, and in the 2007 Birthday Honours List Jean was given an MBE for her services to choral music.

Accompanist

Christopher Enston

Christopher Enston began organ studies with the late Geoffrey Knowles at the Parish Churches of Mold and Treuddyn, Flintshire, North Wales. He won the Sir Henry Coward organ scholarship to the University of Sheffield where he read Music and gained the ARCM and ARCO diplomas in his second year. He was the first organist to win an award from the Ryan Davies Memorial Trust, continuing his organ studies with Peter Hurford at the Royal Academy of Music where he won many awards including the WJ Kipps award twice, the Recital Diploma, LRAM and FRCO. He also won the HJC Stevens organ scholarship at St Bride’s Church, Fleet Street, broadcasting live on Radio 4. He won first prize in the Bach Class in the 1985 West of England Organ Festival in Bath Abbey and later studied in Paris with Marie-Claire Alain, winning the Gold Medal in the Preparatoire Superieure Class. He has performed in venues across the United Kingdom as well as in the USA, Canada, France, Germany, Austria, and Italy. Until recently he was the accompanist for the Reading Phoenix Choir and has appeared with them on BBC1, BBC2, Radio 2 and live on Radio 4. His playing has featured on the BBC’s Songs of Praise, Sunday Half Hour, Morning Worship, Silent Witness and Desert Island Discs. He has accompanied the choirs and soloists at the male voice choir festivals at the Royal Albert Hall. His organ playing has entertained the audiences at Llangollen International Eisteddfod and he regularly plays at London’s numerous Welsh churches. He has twice conducted the combined choirs at the Annual National Seafarers’ Service at St Paul’s Cathedral in the presence of the Princess Royal.

Lisa Thomas

Lisa has played the piano since the age of five and enjoyed numerous successes in local and national competitions from an early age. She was first given the opportunity to accompany choirs and soloists whilst a pupil at Ysgol Glan Clwyd, St Asaph. Lisa continued her Music studies at Bangor University where she was a member of various vocal and instrumental ensembles. She performed a Piano Concerto with the University Symphony Orchestra before graduating with 1st class honours in 2002.

Lisa joined the Sirenian Singers in 2007 and is currently Head of Music and Performance at St Richard Gwyn Catholic High School, Flintshire.

History

Founded in 1990 by the celebrated conductor, Jean Stanley Jones MBE, Cantorion Sirenian Singers are a choir of some 50 voices based in North East Wales.

Achieving international recognition on the competitive and concert platforms, they are recognised for their unique sound, excellent technique and breadth of repertoire, achieving particular recognition for their promotion of Contemporary Welsh music.

The choir’s reputation has been founded on its considerable success at British and International Festivals.  First prizes were achieved at Budapest, Cork, Riva del Garda, Elgar Festival, Worcester, Choir of Choirs Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Freckleton and Peterborough. In 2011 they swept the board at Bangor International Choral Festival (Northern Ireland), winning four first prizes and the prestigious Choir of Choirs award. At home they have secured numerous prizes at the National Eisteddfod of Wales, Aberteifi Festival, and twice won the mixed competition at Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod before becoming the first Welsh choir to win the coveted Choir of the World Trophy in 1998.

The Sirenians have given concerts at leading venues including the Dom Cathedral in Berlin, the Thomaskirche in Leipzig (where J S Bach was Kapellmeister), Symphony Hall Birmingham and St. David’s Hall, Cardiff; appearing with leading artists such as Lesley Garrett, Bryn Terfel, Rebecca Evans, Dennis O’Neill, Catrin Finch and Philip Madoc.
They were the choir selected to represent Wales in Barcelona during the ‘Wales in Catalonia’ Celebrations and in 2009 were chosen by the Ballet Rambert as their guest choir in performances at Theatr Clwyd of Howard Goodall’s innovative choral ballet ‘Eternal Light –a Requiem', composed in 2008.

Cantorion Sirenian Singers regularly appear on radio and television and have released three CDs – ‘Rachmaninov to Rutter’, ‘Sirenians’ and ‘Christus Natus’.

Awards

COMPETITIONS AND AWARDS
1991 H.T.V. Welsh Choral Challenge, Wales
  Royal National Eisteddfod, Bro Delyn, Wales
   
1993 Choir of the North, Newcastle upon Tyne, England
  Winners of The Choir of Choirs competition, Eisteddfod Aberteifi, Wales
  Winners of the mixed Choral Competition, Llangollen International Eisteddfod, Wales
   
1994 Awarded the Gold Medal and the Jury’s discretionary award for ‘ the Performance and contribution to contemporary music.’ International Choral Festival, Riva del Garda, Italy
  Winners of the Mixed Choral Competition, The Elgar Festival, Worcester Cathedral, England
   
1996 Winners of the Lady Dorothy Mayer Trophy at The International Choral Festival, Cork, Republic of Ireland
   
1998 Winners of the Mixed Choral Competition and ’Choir of the World Competition.’ Llangollen International Eisteddfod, Wales
   
1999 Winner of The Gold Medal at The International Choral Festival, Budapest, Hungary
   
2001 Winner of the Gold Medal at The International Festival of Advent and Christmas Music, Prague, The Czech Republic
   
2003 Winner of the P.E.A.C.E Trophy at The International Music Festival Cork, Republic of Ireland
   
2004 Winners of the ’ Choir of Choirs’ competition, Freckleton, England
   
2011 Winners in all four categories of the mixed choral competitions at The Bangor International Music Festival, Bangor, Northern Ireland
   

 

Contact Us

E-mail: sireniansec@hotmail.co.uk