Organ Scholars

Lincoln's Chapel choir is led by its two Organ Scholars. They share the conducting, organ playing, and overall administration of the choir. As such, there is no director of music, and the dynamic, friendly, and unique character of the choir owes much to this setup.

Arthur Vickery ~ Hollingsworth Organ Scholar

Arthur’s first music lessons took place at the piano at the age of five. He then took up the violin and the bassoon, and received his first organ lesson at thirteen. After finishing his A levels, he was appointed as Organ Scholar at Bilton Grange School, where he taught and played for one academic year whilst holding a Choral Scholarship (alto) at Coventry Cathedral. He then commenced studies at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, where he received tuition from James Parsons, Nick Wearne, Henry Fairs, and Daniel Moult, along with various visiting tutors from abroad. He is now studying music in his second year at Lincoln.

Arthur has performed a large variety of music at several venues around Europe, including the Royal Festival Hall, the Petrikirche (Hamburg), and at the Montreux Jazz Festival. He gave an organ recital at St. John’s Smith Square as a showcase for the Royal College of Organists in 2014. He is also a keen photographer, and is pursuing exciting opportunities in film production.

William Parkinson ~ Van Linge Organ Scholar

William hails from Worcestershire and held academic and music scholarships at Bromsgrove School. He went on to organ scholarships at Worcester Cathedral and St. Mary’s Collegiate Church, Warwick where he accompanied the liturgies and worked with the various choirs. After being awarded the organ scholarship at Lincoln College, he moved to Albany, New York to take up an Artist-in-Residence position at The Cathedral of All Saints. Here, he worked for nine months with the Choir of Men and Boys, the USA’s oldest continuously singing choir of its kind. William regularly conducted the choir, including at large scale services and in recordings. During his time in the USA, he was vocal coach to the Cathedral’s treble section and worked with the music department to plan liturgy and coordinate events such as concerts and recruitment drives.

William has been involved with other musical projects which include conducting the Birmingham Baroque Consort in works by Bach and Handel, performing organ continuo with the London Handel Orchestra and working with VOCES8 and the VCM Foundation.