Musical Director

Our Musical Director is Jeffrey Gray.

From 1981 – 1984, Jeffrey Gray was an Academical Clerk (Choral Scholar) at Magdalen College, Oxford where he read Music. After leaving Oxford, he sang in Worcester Cathedral Choir and held teaching posts in Worcestershire and York. From 1994 – 2002 he was Director of Music at Monmouth School in South Wales, where he directed the school’s celebrated Choral Society, which performed in Cardiff with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Welsh National Opera and toured widely throughout Europe and The United States. From 2002 – 2005 he was Director of Music at Caterham School.

Jeffrey maintains a programme of piano and singing teaching. He is an active performer, singing regularly as a deputy in various choirs, including Rochester Cathedrals, Croydon Minster and Reigate St Mary. He is organist of All Saints Church, Woodham. He is in his eleventh year as the Musical Director of Cranbrook Choral Society and he is increasingly active as a music examiner, working for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, both domestically and in the Far East.

PRESIDENT

Cranbrook Choral Society is delighted to announce that Stephen Langridge, Artistic Director of Glyndebourne Opera House has agreed to become its new president. He is following on from his father, the renowned tenor Philip Langridge CBE, who was president of the choral society for 12 years until his untimely death in 2010.

Janette Lloyd, Chair of the CCS, commented: “It is wonderful that Stephen will continue the link with the Langridge family and take on the role that has remained unfilled since the loss of his father. We are very much looking forward to working with him.”

Stephen Langridge’s career summary to date

Stephen Langridge is Glyndebourne’s Artistic Director. Before moving to Sussex he was Artistic Director for the Gothenburg Opera in Sweden, 2013-19. He is also a practising stage director and, amongst others, has directed operas for Glyndebourne, ROH Covent Garden, Salzburg Festival, Bregenz Festival, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Rome Opera, Theatres des Champs Elysees, Staatsoper Hannover, Gothenburg Opera, Royal Opera Stockholm, Norwegian National Opera, Greek National Opera.

He has also led creative work such as the performance of music theatre in diverse and unusual settings from townships in South Africa to prisons in Britain and running professional development laboratories with singers, composers and librettists.

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