RCO awards Diplomas, Certificates & Medals in cathedral ceremony
The Royal College of Organists (RCO) has presented Diplomas and Certificates to 51 members of the College and awarded the RCO Medal to three distinguished musicians.
At a ceremony at Southwark Cathedral on Saturday 8 March 2025, RCO President Sarah MacDonald conferred College Members with Fellowship of the College (FRCO), Associateship of the College (ARCO), and Colleague of the College (CRCO), and awarded Certificates of Accredited Membership (CAM) and the Scottish Churches Organist Training Scheme (SCOTS).
In recognition of distinguished achievement, the RCO Medal was presented to Mr Gary Cole, Ms Sofi Jeannin, and Dr Cecilia McDowall.
In her opening address, Sarah MacDonald said: “The RCO’s vast array of musical activities aimed at all levels of experience and taking place all over the country and online, is absolutely key to supporting the elite excellence on display in these seats around me.
“We need the FRCO Limpus Prize winners for beginner organists to look up to; we need the brilliant achievements of our RCO Medal holders as beacons to aspire to.
“My challenge to you all here is therefore: share your music-making widely. Encourage and enable anyone and everyone to participate in the wonderful musical world that we are so privileged to inhabit.”
The ceremony closed with the Ede & Ravenscroft Recital in which Dr Isabelle Demers played: Naji Hakim (b. 1955), Final, from Hommage à Igor Stravinski, Elsa Barraine (1910–1999), Prelude in G minor, Cecilia McDowall (b. 1951), Church Bells Beyond the Stars, J. S. Bach (1685–1750), Allein Gott in der Höh’ sei Ehr’ BWV 663, and Charles-Marie Widor (1844–1937), Allegro vivace, from Symphony No. 5, Op. 42.
The vote of thanks was given, according to custom, by Pascal Bachmann, winner of the Limpus Prize at Fellowship in Winter 2025. At the conclusion of the ceremony, Alastair Stone, winner of the Limpus Prize at Fellowship in Summer 2024, played a fugue in B-flat by the Rev’d Sir Frederick Ouseley (1825–1889), the first musician to be named as President of the Royal College of Organists in 1886.
Awards were made as follows.
RCO MEDAL
Mr Gary Cole in recognition of distinguished achievement in organ and choral recording
Ms Sofi Jeannin in recognition of distinguished achievement in choral directing
Dr Cecilia McDowall in recognition of distinguished achievement in organ and choral composition
CERTIFICATE OF ACCREDITED MEMBERSHIP (CAM) AND THE SCOTTISH CHURCHES ORGANIST TRAINING SCHEME (SCOTS)
SPRING, SUMMER, AUTUMN 2024, and WINTER 2025
Neil Athey (Beauly) Stage 1 (SCOTS)
Laura Buxel (Stirling) Stage 2 (SCOTS)
Karen Dodwell (Doncaster) Stage 1 (CAM)
Aidan Twomey (Orpington) Stage 2 (CAM)
John Urquhart (Hurlford) Stage 1 (SCOTS)
Stuart Watson (Kirkcaldy) Stage 1 (SCOTS)
DIPLOMA OF COLLEAGUE (CRCO)
WINTER 2025
Wing Chi Samantha Chan (Hong Kong, China)
Nicholas Courtman (Ivybridge)
James Janossy, Jr. (Lincolnwood, IL, USA)
Ivan Rodriguez Deb (Watford)
Sebastian Tucker (Buckingham)
Limpus Prize, Frederick Shinn Prize, and Durrant Prize
Wing Chi Samantha Chan
Sowerbutts Prize and Durrant Prize
Ivan Rodriguez Deb
Freemasons’ Prize (United Grand Lodge of England)
Wing Chi Samantha Chan
DIPLOMA OF ASSOCIATESHIP (ARCO)
SUMMER 2024
Neale Agnew (Belfast)
George Balfour (Great Gransden)
Suzanne Blagg (Worksop)
Benedict Braddock (Norwich)
Michael Burt (Cologne, Germany)
Oriel Chapman (Axminster)
Sakura Fish (Bishop’s Stortford)
Stephanie Gaunt (West Byfleet)
Stanley Godfrey (Ely)
Agnes Nakajima (Tokyo, Japan)
Timothy Stewart (West Horsley)
Harry Sullivan (Great Hockham)
James Watson (Hitchin)
Limpus Prize, Frederick Shinn Prize, and Durrant Prize
Michael Burt
Sawyer Prize and Durrant Prize
Stanley Godfrey
Lord St Audries Prize
Oriel Chapman
Sowerbutts Prize and Durrant Prize
Stephanie Gaunt
Doris Wookey Prize
Stanley Godfrey
Samuel Baker Prize
Stephanie Gaunt; Stanley Godfrey
WINTER 2025
George Charman (Malvern)
Joshua Hughes (Gunnislake)
Callum Knox (Queenscliff, NSW, Australia)
Patryk Korczak (London)
Giles Longstaff (Edinburgh)
Timothy Macklin (London)
Conor McGlone (St Albans)
Kamil Mika (Aberdeen)
Christopher Pilgrim (Camberley)
Jonathan Pilgrim (Brecon)
Alexander Rebetge (Nuremberg, Germany)
Nora Rechel (Norwich)
Jakub Scicinski (Greenford)
Limpus Prize, Frederick Shinn Prize, and Durrant Prize
Conor McGlone
Sawyer Prize and Durrant Prize
Jonathan Pilgrim
Sowerbutts Prize and Durrant Prize
Christopher Pilgrim
Doris Wookey Prize
Conor McGlone
Dr F. J. Read Prize
Conor McGlone, Christopher Pilgrim
DIPLOMA OF FELLOWSHIP (FRCO)
SUMMER 2024
Joseph Hyam (London)
Kai Yin Andrew Liu (Oxford)
Brett McKern (Bowral, NSW, Australia)
Colin Millington (Bitteswell)
Mary Pan (Rochester, NY, USA)
Alastair Stone (Ripon)
Clive Tuck (Uttoxeter)
Hamish Wagstaff (London)
Limpus Prize, Frederick Shinn Prize, and Durrant Prize
Alastair Stone
Turpin Prize and Durrant Prize
Joseph Hyam
Dixon Prize
Hamish Wagstaff
Harding Prize and Durrant Prize
Alastair Stone
Lawrence Phelps Prize
Hamish Wagstaff
Samuel Baker Prize
Alastair Stone
WINTER 2025
Pascal Bachmann (London)
Edward Byrne (Godalming)
Adam Chillingworth (Bury St Edmunds)
Lucy Morrell (London)
Yip Heng Jason Tang (London)
Limpus Prize, Frederick Shinn Prize, and Durrant Prize
Pascal Bachmann
Turpin Prize and Durrant Prize
Edward Byrne
Harding Prize and Durrant Prize
Yip Heng Jason Tang
Dr. F. J. Read Prize
Yip Heng Jason Tang
Coventry Cathedral Recital Award 2024/2025
Pascal Bachmann
PRESENTATIONS
During the ceremony, Stéphane Mottoul (Lucerne, Switzerland) also received his FRCO certificate from Winter 2024, and a special presentation was made to Mr. Martin Penny FRCO in recognition of his many years of dedicated service as an examination steward.
