Tavener was born on 28 January 1944 in Wembley, London, England, and is a direct descendant of the sixteenth century composer John Taverner. He attended Highgate School (where a fellow pupil was John Rutter) and later studied at the Royal Academy of Music, where his tutors included Sir Lennox Berkeley. He first came to prominence in 1968 with his dramatic cantata The Whale, based on the Old Testament story of Jonah.
This voyage began in the middle of the 1990's in Moscow, Russia, when a group of artists and musicians led by Alexey Tegin and based at the legendary Fabrique of Cardinal Art commenced their studies of traditional ritual music, drifting away from the field of contemporary electroacoustic and industrial music with the intent to delve deeper into the ancient musical cultures of the ancient Egypt, Iran and Tibet.
http://www.vasarisingers.org/ The Vasari Singers, under Jeremy Backhouse, is one of the UK's leading chamber choirs. Now in its 31st year, the choir performs a wide range of repertoire with passion and sensitivity to exacting standards and considerable press acclaim.
MusicWeb International's review of recording of Will Todd's Mass in Blue described Vasari as "one of the world's finest choirs".
Cappella Caeciliana is a 20-strong chamber choir from Northern Ireland which specialises in singing sacred music. The choir was formed in 1995 and is led by Donal McCrisken. It has a wide repertoire, from plainchant to the present day.
1) A professional chamber choir, founded and directed by Nigel Short. Often performing by candlelight, the choir creates an atmosphere of spiritual and musical reflection, where medieval chant and renaissance works are interspersed with contemporary works. The carefully selected team of singers uses the acoustic and atmosphere of the building to enable the audience to experience the power and intimacy of the human voice at its best.