Rupert Edward Elessing Jeffcoat (born 23 June 1970) is a Scottish organist, composer and Anglican priest.Rupert Jeffcoat website
Retrieved 4 February 2022.

Early life and family

Jeffcoat, whose family's roots are in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, was born and raised in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. He was a chorister at St Mary's Cathedral in Edinburgh under Dennis Townhill before attending

Glenalmond College Glenalmond College is a co-educational independent boarding school in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, for children aged between 12 and 18 years. It is situated on the River Almond near the village of Methven, about west of the city of Perth. T ...

as a music scholar. He later studied music at

St Catharine's College, Cambridge St Catharine's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. Founded in 1473 as Katharine Hall, it adopted its current name in 1860. The college is nicknamed "Catz". The colle ...

, where he was also an organ scholar, studying under Peter Hurford, David Sanger,

Robin Holloway Robin Greville Holloway (born 19 October 1943) is an English composer, academic and writer. Early life Holloway was born in Leamington Spa. From 1953 to 1957, he was a chorister at St Paul's Cathedral and was educated at King's College School, ...

, Hugh Wood and

Alexander Goehr Peter Alexander Goehr (; 10 August 1932 – 26 August 2024) was a German-born English composer of contemporary classical music and academic teacher. A long-time professor of music at the University of Cambridge, Goehr influenced many notable c ...

. Jeffcoat became a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists at the age of 20. In 2001, he married Catherine Corrigan in a service at

Coventry Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midla ...

featuring some of his own compositions,"Wedding ancient and modern", ''The Coventry Telegraph''
26 June 2001. Retrieved 4 February 2022. and has three children.

Career

Early in his career Jeffcoat held positions with the

Edinburgh International Festival The Edinburgh International Festival is an annual arts festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, spread over the final three weeks in August. Notable figures from the international world of music (especially european classical music, classical music) and ...

(premiering operas by James MacMillan and Craig Armstrong), Ampleforth College in Yorkshire and the Birmingham Bach Choir under Paul Spicer. He became Assistant Organist at

St Philip's Cathedral, Birmingham The Cathedral Church of Saint Philip, also called the Birmingham Cathedral, is a Church of England cathedral and the seat of the Bishop of Birmingham. Built as a parish church in the Baroque style by Thomas Archer, it was consecrated in 1715. Lo ...

, under Marcus Huxley, in 1995 and was appointed Director of Music at

in 1997. At Coventry he led choir tours to Europe, America, South Africa, Russia and Japan. In 2005, he moved to Australia as Organist and Director of Music at St John's Cathedral, Brisbane, but left the post in 2010 following disagreements with the cathedral authorities. He was ordained to the priesthood at St John's Cathedral in 2006, having trained at The Queen's Foundation in

Edgbaston Edgbaston () is a suburb of Birmingham, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It lies immediately south-west of Birmingham city centre, and was historically in Warwickshire. The Ward (electoral subdivision), wards of Edgbaston and Nort ...

, England. He has also been published as a

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

by Epworth Press, in a symposium entitled ''The Edge of God'' (2008). As a composer Jeffcoat has composed in numerous languages, including English, Welsh, German, Dutch, Russian, Hungarian, Czech, Arabic, Aramaic, Vietnamese and Maori, as well as the more usual liturgical languages (Latin, Greek, Hebrew and Church Slavonic). As an organist and pianist he has performed widely, recording with Emma Kirkby (music by

Francesco Scarlatti Francesco Scarlatti (5 December 1666 – c.1741) was an Italian Baroque composer and musician and the younger brother of the better known Alessandro Scarlatti.D booklet">Hair, Christopher (2003): "Francesco Scarlatti". Francesco Scarlatti: Dixit ...

) and giving recitals on some of the world's most prestigious organs such as those at

Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral, officially the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Most Precious Blood, is the largest Catholic Church in England and Wales, Roman Catholic church in England and Wales. The shrine is dedicated to the Blood of Jesus Ch ...

Liverpool Cathedral Liverpool Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Liverpool, England. It is the seat of the bishop of Liverpool and is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Liverpool, diocese of Liverpool. The church may be formally re ...

St Giles Cathedral St Giles' Cathedral (), or the High Kirk of Edinburgh, is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in the Old Town of Edinburgh. The current building was begun in the 14th century and extended until the early 16th century; significant alteratio ...

in Edinburgh, Queen's College in Oxford, Sydney Town Hall, Caird Hall in

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

and Lambertikirche in

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

. Special achievements include two Firsts in music from

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

, prizes from the

Royal College of Organists The Royal College of Organists (RCO) is a charity and membership organisation based in the United Kingdom, with members worldwide. Its role is to promote and advance organ playing and choral music, and it offers music education, training and de ...

and a Best Entertainment award from the Royal Television Society (for a

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Songs of Praise ''Songs of Praise'' is a BBC Television religious programme that presents Christian hymns, worship songs and inspirational performances in churches of varying denominations from around the UK alongside interviews and stories reflecting how Ch ...

programme).

Works

Compositions (selected)

Jeffcoat has composed over 200 works, as well as numerous psalm chants. * 1998, ''Missa Jacet Granum'' for Canterbury Cathedral. * 2000, ''Here is my servant'', composed for the National Service commemorating the work of the Home Front attended by HM the Queen, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Prime Minister. * 2000, ''Third Service'', a setting of the

Magnificat The Magnificat (Latin for "y soulmagnifies he Lord) is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary or Canticle of Mary, and in the Byzantine Rite as the Ode of the Theotokos (). Its Western name derives from the incipit of its Latin text. This ...

and

Nunc Dimittis The Nunc dimittis (), also known as the Song of Simeon or the Canticle of Simeon, is a canticle taken from the second chapter of the Gospel of Luke, verses 29 to 32. Its Latin name comes from its incipit, the opening words, of the Vulgate transl ...

(in Gb and F# respectively) and broadcast frequently on

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

. * 2000, ''The Prophet'', a setting for choir, organ, trumpet and congregation of the translation by

Ted Hughes Edward James Hughes (17 August 1930 – 28 October 1998) was an English poet, translator, and children's writer. Critics frequently rank him as one of the best poets of his generation and one of the twentieth century's greatest writers. He wa ...

of a paraphrase by Pushkin of a biblical text from

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "Yahweh is salvation"; also known as Isaias or Esaias from ) was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. The text of the Book of Isaiah refers to Isaiah as "the prophet" ...

. * 2000, ''Laudate Dominum'' for two-part trebles, two pianos and organ, composed for the International Church Music Festival, Coventry. * 2000, ''Abun devashmayyo'', a setting of the

Lord's Prayer The Lord's Prayer, also known by its incipit Our Father (, ), is a central Christian prayer attributed to Jesus. It contains petitions to God focused on God’s holiness, will, and kingdom, as well as human needs, with variations across manusc ...

in Aramaic. * 2001, ''Mass for

Oakham Oakham is a market town and civil parish in Rutland (of which it is the county town) in the East Midlands of England. The town is located east of Leicester, southeast of Nottingham and northwest of Peterborough. It had a population of 12,14 ...

''. * 2002, ''Advent Calendar'', a setting for violin and processing choir of words by Rowan Williams,

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

. * 2008, ''Toccatarama!'', a

palimpsest In textual studies, a palimpsest () is a manuscript page, either from a scroll or a book, from which the text has been scraped or washed off in preparation for reuse in the form of another document. Parchment was made of lamb, calf, or kid ski ...

of 26 French Organ toccatas. (The composers' dates are listed as 1835–1992.) * 2009, ''The Disciples Awakening'' for 12 string players composed for the Consecration of Brisbane Cathedral, 29 October.

Recordings

* 2004, ''Rupert Jeffcoat Plays Organ Music From Coventry'' ( Regent Records) * 2005, ''La Nativité'' ( Regent Records), collection of

Christmas music Christmas music comprises a variety of Music genre, genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas and holiday season, Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or in the case of Christmas ...

by Messiaen, Harvey, Leighton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jeffcoat, Rupert 1970 births Musicians from Edinburgh English composers Living people People educated at Glenalmond College Alumni of St Catharine's College, Cambridge 21st-century English Anglican priests Clergy from Edinburgh