About Us
Our Musical Director
Dr Sarah-Jane Gibson is a music lecturer at York St John University. As well as the Stamford Bridge singers she leads the York St John vocal ensemble, a chamber a cappella singing group. Prior to her work at York St John, she was the director for the Queen’s University Chamber choir where she also completed her PhD (2018). Sarah-Jane's PhD focused on community choirs in Northern Ireland, exploring how the choral singing space constructs collective identities and how this may impact community building in areas of conflict. It was recently published as a monograph (2023).
She has extensive choral singing experience, having worked as a professional chorister during her Master’s Degree in the United States (2005-2008), and also singing in the Philharmonia choir during her undergraduate years at the University of Cape Town (1998-2000).
Her repertoire experience ranges from the larger oratorio and requiem works of the Baroque, Classical and Romantic periods, to shorter religious and contemporary pieces of music. Moving beyond the Classical Genre, she has conducted workshops in South African folk choral music and was the musical director for a number of school musicals and choirs during her years as a music educator in South Africa, the United States and the UK. Her main motivation as a choral director is that the singers are enjoying the repertoire they perform.
Our Accompanist
Nicholas Page is an Associate of the Royal College of Organists, as well as a Fellow of both the Victoria College of Music, London, and the London College of Music. Nicholas is well-known in the York area and further afield as a church organist, recitalist and choral accompanist.
He was Accompanist of The Occasion Choir from 2001 to 2017 and is the Organist at St Lawrence's Church in York
Our Chair
Richard Carberry
Richard graduated from Durham University in 1970 and the following year completed his training as a language teacher. He moved to York, and from 1984 took the post of Head of Languages at Manor C.E. School, York, from where he retired in 2006.
Alongside his teaching career, an interest in classical music and an active participation in choral music has been an important part of his life. As a young person he trained as a chorister at St. Barnabas Church, Heaton, Bradford under Keith Rhodes (subsequently organist and choirmaster at Bradford Cathedral).
He joined the Stamford Bridge Singers in 2002 and loves the range and complexity of the music we sing. He has organized choir visits to Dublin in 2010, North Wales in 2014 and Edinburgh in 2016, and was elected Treasurer for 2012-2018.
Richard recently rejoined the committee and was elected Chair in July 2022.
Our Secretary
Annette Aylett
Our Treasurer
Sue Bancroft
Our Safeguarding Officer
Kathryn Page
Our Publicity Officer
Nicola Brunger
Web Site maintainer
Gary Morgan
Committee members
Gaynor De Barr
Tony Holland
Sue Thomas
Our Founder
Michael Wiles , Musical Director Emeritus
Michael spent his life in education retiring in 2006. He conducted the Stamford Bridge Singers since its inception and was keen that young people, as well as those more "mature in years" should have the opportunity to enjoy the thrill of quality live music-making. After 25 years of service he stood down as Musical Director in July 2014. His other interests include Friends of Cathedral Music and Friends of York Minster.
Previous MD
Stuart Nettleship
In July 2023 we were sad to lose our musical director, of 9 years, Stuart Nettleship. Stuart has been Musical Director of numerous school and adult choirs and orchestras and has performed extensively in England and Wales including performing in Paris with his choir and orchestra. He was delighted to be appointed Musical Director of the Stamford Bridge Singers in 2014. Some years ago he composed a "Battle Cantata" to celebrate the 950th anniversary of the battle of Stamford Bridge (25th September 1066). We performed the work along with four other choirs, including one from Norway, in October 2016. More recently Stuart's "An English Requiem", which is based upon a sequence of texts from 7 poems by English poets, was performed by us along with the Pocklington singers.
Stuart's legacy will last for many years due to the plethora of songs that he arranged for the choir.
Stuart intends to devote his time to composition and recording his compositions. Find out more about Stuart and his compositions, and listen to some of his music, on his website - www.nettleshipmusic.com