St Catharine’s has for many years had one of the strongest musical traditions of the Cambridge Colleges. Talented students are admitted as organ scholars by St Catharine’s through Cambridge’s Inter-Collegiate Organ Scholarship scheme, and go on to play a vital and much-valued role within our community.
The College Organ, a three-manual mechanical action instrument, is much in demand from teachers and outside players. As well as playing the College Organ for chapel services and directing the choirs in sectional rehearsals and occasional services, the organ scholars are encouraged to take an active interest in the general artistic direction of the choirs and their administration, alongside the Director of Music.
The organ at St Catharine's
Organ scholars benefit from unparalleled opportunities to develop their skills significantly during the period of their academic studies. There are a maximum of two organ scholars at St Catharine’s in any one year, who receive an award of £450 a year on top of free musical tuition and a generous contribution to the cost of music-related fees and purchases. They are also given subsidised accommodation within the main College site.
St Catharine’s organ scholars are encouraged to develop whichever elements of their musicianship are of most interest to them. To find out more about what this means for our students, we spoke with John Zhang, a second-year Music undergraduate, who was admitted as our newest organ scholar in October 2022.
How did you come to play the organ?
“I learnt to play the piano from the age of 7 years old. I was initially taught by a Catz alumnus Dr Frederick Stocken (1986, Music), who asked if I also fancied learning to play the organ. I can remember thinking that it was a very enticing prospect to have a keyboard to play with both hands and feet! As luck would have it, there was an organ being built at St Mary’s and St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Poplar, where I grew up in East London, which meant I had opportunities to play during services in my early teens.
John aged 11
How did you build on these early experiences before you applied to Cambridge?
“I joined the City of London School for my secondary education, which had its very own organ so I benefitted from regular practice. In 2017, I became the organ scholar for St Giles Cripplegate Church, and I later studied at the Royal Academy of Music, where Frederick and the director of music at St Giles Cripplegate (Anne Marsden Thomas MBE) were already teaching. During my second organ scholarship at the Chapel Royal at St James's Palace (2019–21), I became a member of the Royal Household and played weekly Sunday Morning services, as well as a Carol Service at Buckingham Palace that was broadcast on Classic FM – even meeting the late Queen in person at the Palace's Royal Mews. I also spent my gap year at Liverpool Cathedral, which was an amazing experience.”
How have you found life as an organ scholar at St Catharine’s?
“Life as an organ scholar here has been enriching in so many ways. There have been plenty of new opportunities and experiences, such as working with the choirs and conducting rehearsals. A standout moment for me was the coronation service in the Catz Chapel in June 2023, when I had the chance to play bombastic, majestic but decidedly tricky anthems from previous coronations. I was also thrilled to play Piers Maxim’s People, Look East during the Advent Sunday service broadcast live on BBC Radio 4 on 3 December 2023.
“I am also interested in composing and producing pop music, which I publish on Spotify under the pseudonym redhorse. I started writing in 2021 and my lyrics are quite personal, reflecting my feelings and state of mind at the time. I tend to be influenced by the music I encountered growing up in London – pop, rap and hip hop – as well as classical music. The supportive environment at Catz extends to my pop music as well – I first sang in public and performed one of my songs during a ‘chill in the Chapel’ session organised by the College’s Music Society.”
John playing the organ during the BBC Radio 4 Sunday Worship service
Come along to next term’s Chapel services for a chance to hear John on the organ, or book tickets for the Kellaway Concert on 16 February when John will accompany violinist Samantha Burley (a second-year medical student) on the piano.
