The heavenly blend of crisp, clear voices soaring through the roof of the Holy Trinity Cathedral Church on North Street in Kingston immediately lets you know that the group in rehearsal is no ordinary choir. They are in fact the world-famous Christ Church Cathedral Choir from Oxford, England - considered among the best all-boy choirs in the world.

They are currently in Jamaica for a two-concert performance, teaming up with Jamaica's renowned Kingston College Chapel Choir. The first performance takes place today at 4:00 pm at Holy Trinity, while on Wednesday they will journey to the Mandeville Parish Church for a 6:00 pm concert.

The Christ Church Cathedral Choir from Oxford, England rehearses under the direction of choir master Stephen Darlington at the Holy Trinity Cathedral on North Street in Kingston yesterday. They will perform at a concert at the same venue this evening and on Wednesday at the Mandeville Parish Church. (Photo: Lionel Rookwood)

"It's a wonderful experience being in Jamaica. None of us have ever travelled to Jamaica before. So it's an exciting prospect and we are especially very happy to be singing with the Kingston College choir," said choir master Stephen Darlington, a few minutes before the start of rehearsal yesterday.

He told the Sunday Observer that the choir, founded in 1526 during the reign of Henry VIII, currently comprises 14 "little boys" and 12 adults, who study at Oxford University. In the past, they have toured and performed in Brazil, Japan, Australia, the USA and in several European countries. "We've been all over the place and so far it has been good. Let's hope that Jamaica will be the best," the director said.

Their repertoire, he noted, comprises mostly 16th century work from classical composers, including Bach, Haydn and Handel.
"For our concerts here, we are hoping to offer a mixture of different works for the audience. We will start with some earlier work and then move into some other pieces. We are happy that we will also be performing the Hallelujah Chorus with the KC choir," Darlington said.

The concerts, divided into halves, will also feature renditions of the popular classics Ave Maria, Ave Verum, The Heavens Are Telling and Zadok The Priest.
Twelve-year-old treble Henry Chadwick, one of the choir's headboys, said he has been enjoying the warm weather and hospitality so far.

"It is really exciting. I have never been to the Caribbean before, so this is a new experience for me. I like the atmosphere and everyone has been so happy to see us," he said, his accent unmistakably Yorkshire. "I have been singing since I was about four or five years old. With the choir, you have different duties to carry out like helping out the choir master or lining up the choir for rehearsal or performance," Chadwick said.

Richard Anderton, a 21-year-old tenor who studies History at Oxford, and 20-year-old Henry Jones, who pursues Music, also described their visit to Jamaica so far as "wonderful".
"Jamaica is a lot hotter than all the other countries we have been to in the past. But we went swimming at the Liguanea Club yesterday morning and when we leave on Friday for cold, cold England, we will really miss the warm water," they said.

Principal of Kingston College, Rupert Hemmings, said the visit is a "tremendous experience" that should be cherished.
"We (KC Choir) are celebrating our 60th anniversary this year, so we thought it would be nice to get 'The Real McCoy' of boys' choirs to come and celebrate with us. This is an experience we should be proud of," Hemmings said.

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