In dulci jubilo

When Christopher Gray became director of music at St John's College, Cambridge in 2023, he stepped into a tradition 350 years in the making

- ASHUTOSH KHANDEKAR

When Christopher Gray became director of music at St John's College, Cambridge in 2023, he stepped into a tradition 350 years in the making, as he tells Ashutosh Khandekar

When Christopher Gray took on the role of director of music at St John's College, Cambridge, he inherited more than a prestigious choir: he stepped into a 350-year legacy. Following the long and respected tenure of Andrew Nethsingha, who was at the helm of St John's Choir for 15 years, Gray arrived in April 2023 to find a choral scene still finding its voice after the pandemic.

'Covid cast a long shadow,' Gray reflects as we settle into his comfortable study in a corner of the historic Cambridge college. 'There was a whole generation of singers – both choristers and students – who had crucial formative years interrupted.' During his time as director of music at Truro Cathedral, Gray had already weathered the complex task of rebuilding a musical institution that had lost its momentum. 'I think both Andrew and I did the heavy lifting in our respective places, getting things back on track,' he says. 'You only have the young choristers for five years. Take out a key year or two – as Covid did – and rebuilding is tricky. The effects aren't just short-term.'

Gray arrived at St John's after an altogether transformative period in the choir's history. Nethsingha had raised the choir's musical reputation by commissioning prominent composers and initiating a groundbreaking series of recordings. He also oversaw a succession of significant reforms – introducing girl trebles and women altos, and smoothing the way for St John's Choir School's independence from the College. 'I was lucky,' Gray notes. 'Those changes were huge. But they were done with care.'