About The Woodmansterne Collection
The Woodmansterne Collection
The Orchestra of the Woodmansterne Collection is a group of freelance professional musicians dedicated to performing music on authentic instruments. The Choir of the Woodmansterne Collection is entirely made up of highly trained amateur singers. About half of the singers are from in and around St Albans, the rest from further afield across the South East.
Sponsorship Support
The Woodmansterne Collection is supported by Woodmansterne, the leading publisher of fine-arts and culturally inspired greeting cards in the UK. Woodmansterne also supports fine arts conservation efforts through its Art Conservation Awards and Scholarship programmes. The company also supports a range of other causes through its charity christmas card scheme.
Visit the Woodmansterne Website for more information
Paul Woodmansterne
Paul Woodmansterne is the conductor and driving force behind the Woodmansterne Collection. He started his musical training in piano 'cello and composition at the Watford School of Music and won an instrumental scholarship ('cello) to Christ Church, Oxford, where he studied music under Simon Preston. He joined Christ Church Cathedral Choir and after graduating went on to study singing at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. Whilst freelance singing in London for Westminster Abbey, Cambridge Opera Group and Tallis Scholars, he started to help out in the family photographic business, which he turned into a greeting card company over fifteen years.
Authentic Performance
Paul is often asked why he finds it important to use instruments of the period. He writes: "Quite apart from the exquisite sonorities of original instruments, there is often a more natural balance of forces (voices to strings to woodwind to brass) than can be achieved on modern orchestral instruments. But more important than this must be the attitude of the players themselves. 'Modern' players are primarily trained in music academies and learn to become performers first, for whom the composers' works exist in order to help them display their talents. 'Authentic' instrumentalists generally receive their main musical instruction at university and are trained first to offer up their talents as a vehicle to convey the intentions of the composer. Neither route, of course, has a monopoly on excellence."