ABOUT COLIN
The biography below is rather selective and a bit of a ramble, so be warned. There's a little bit more about me on the Biographies pages of the Mallard Music site. I last revised this page on 31/07/2008
There is now a page HERE about my organ playing career.
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| Colin at the organ in
Wittlich, Germany, October 1994 |
Colin on the beach at Bigbury on Sea, 2003 | Colin with Rex
Whitta, (OUCC Chaplain) 2004 |
At
my wedding, 1983! Somewhat younger! |
I was born in Peterborough in 1958 and educated at:-
- Brewster Avenue Infant School, Woodston
- St. Augustine's Primary School, Woodston
- King's School, Peterborough
- Bristol University (BA Music)
- Reading University (PGCE)
- The Open University (BSc Maths and stuff!)
I took up the piano in about 1965 and was taught by my aunt Lois Chapman then by Mrs. Phillips. I was a chorister at Peterborough Cathedral from July 1967 to December 1971 when Stanley Vann was Master of the Music.
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Me as a chorister (about 1970). |
Dr.
Stanley Vann |
When I moved to the King's School I studied the piano first with Mr. George and then with Freda Woodhouse. I passed 'O' and 'A' level music thanks to the efforts of Paul White (a.k.a. "Chalky").
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My first organ lessons were at St. John's Parish Church in Peterborough with
Lionel Morse and, later, with Andrew Newberry
at the Cathedral.
I was
appointed organist at
Fletton
Parish Church in 1973 and I moved to Woodston
church in 1976. I became an ARCO in the same year.
There is more about my organ playing 
HERE
Andrew Newberry tragically died in February 2000. I shall always be in his debt. |
I was taught to ring [See me in action!] at Fletton (see also here), Peterborough, in 1973 by David Clarke. I do not, now, get time to ring as much as I should like to, and so I shall never be as good as I had once hoped. However, I still find it a fascinating activity. I did hardly any ringing at Bristol University when I was there, but I rang a peal with the Reading University Society of Change Ringers during my PGCE year and I frequently rang at Tilehurst. I have occasionally tried to keep my ringing records up to date over the years but I think it is a lost cause now. See the Peals or Quarter Peals pages.
However, I digress. I was Organ Scholar at Bristol University from October 1977 to June 1980. My organ teachers during my years there were David Pettit (for a time), and then Glyn Jenkins in my 3rd year (and possibly some of my 2nd). I managed to gain my ALCM (under my own steam) and FCRO while I was there, later becoming a FLCM in 1985.
Having graduated in 1980, my friend Nicholas Horton (now Director of Music at the Maynard School in Exeter) and I both went to Reading University later that year in order to obtain our PGCE's to become qualified teachers. So it was that I moved to Northamptonshire in 1981 and I now live in Burton Latimer (near Kettering ), home of Weetabix.
I taught at Westfield Boys' School in Wellingborough from 1981 to 1983 and Sir Christopher Hatton School in Wellingborough from 1983 until 2005. In September 2005 I became Director of Music at Maidwell Hall.
How I found time to study for an Open University degree (mainly in mathematics) I cannot now imagine, but I did, and was awarded a BSc. in 1994. I embarked on this course by way of a personal challenge having been useless at mathematics at school!
I met Susan when I was in Reading and we got married in 1983; we have two daughters, Jennifer (b.1989) and Charlotte (b.1995). It is mainly because of Jennifer that we bought a PC in 1998. Until then I was still using a Commodore 64. Both girls are now able computer users, so I had to buy myself my own computer to use upstairs! Jenny now has her own laptop. She is a student at Clare College Cambridge and a Choral Scholar in the Chapel Choir. Here are Colin and Jennifer Ashworth at Norwich Cathedral during the CCC visit in 2007.
Sue and I run Mallard Music. In 2000, Sue won a competition to write a Hymn for the Millennium 'Songs of Praise' in Northamptonshire. She was also commissioned by Glapthorn School, near Oundle to write a carol. The composition of which I am most proud is my set of Evening Canticles in D which you can read about here.
Other than music an bell-ringing, my interests are computers, canasta,
and cooking.