There are still some places remaining on this year's courses. If you are interested in applying, please contact the course administrator.

Participants in Course 2 will be performing at the Cheltenham Festival on Saturday 17th July. This promises to be an exciting concert, including works by Pärt, Schumann, Finzi and Brahms.

If you are a parent or a friend of a participant, you will need to purchase tickets for this concert from the Cheltenham Festival website or by phoning 0844 576 8970.

Update: The Festival organisers have held some tickets for parents of performers. To obtain one of these tickets, please call using the phone number above and mention that you are a parent of a choir member.

Update: We've updated the telephone number for the Cheltenham Festival box office.

This article by Alex Stevens first appeared in the June 2010 issue of Music Teacher magazine:

Eton Choral Courses have developed a unique reputation as summer schools for young choral singers. Little has changed since Ralph Allwood set up the first course in 1980 aside from a gradual expansion and an ever- lengthening list of alumni. Allwood will step down from his position as Director of Music at Eton College itself in 2011, but hopes to continue running the choral courses. So why did he set them up in the first place?

‘I was aware that where I then taught, at Uppingham, they all knew about choral scholarships because they had me and several others to help them, but in other schools – where there were good, talented singers – they didn’t know, and so they needed some way of finding out. And the idea of getting together the most talented singers of about 17 or 18 years old from around the country appealed to me because we’d form a really good choir: which indeed we did.’

This year's courses will mark the 30th anniversary of the Choral Courses, and we'll be holding a celebration Evensong on Friday 30 July, in Eton College.

The programme for the celebration will be:

• 3pm: Tea in Bekynton
• 3.45pm: Rehearsal (with current course participants)
• 5.15pm: Evensong (with current course participants)
• 6.30pm: Drinks Reception and Dinner in College Hall

The Evensong will be an opportunity for current and former course participants to enjoy singing together. The cost for the full celebration is £40, and the dress code will be smart casual.

The music at the Evensong will include:

• Introit: Miserere nostri - Tallis
• Responses: Thomas Tomkins
• Psalms 147, 148, 149, 150
• Canticles: St Paul's Service - Herbert Howells
• Anthem: Blest pair of Sirens - Hubert Parry
• Hymn: 5, All creatures of our God and King

Places are limited to 120, so if you're interested in attending the celebration, please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to receive a booking form.