15/04/2026
It’s great to see St Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh celebrating the music of Charles Wood this month with their concert on 26th April. It’s brilliant to see Wood’s legacy being marked across the city in this special anniversary year.
And of course, this is just the beginning…
As we mark the 100th anniversary of his death, the Charles Wood Festival this August promises to be our biggest and most exciting yetwith concerts, workshops, special guests, new commissions, and plenty more still to be announced.
Armagh is definitely the place to be for Charles Wood in 2026 so please support all Charles Wood related events this centenary year!
On Sunday 26 April at 3.15pm, the Choir of St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral will pay tribute to one of Armagh’s most famous musical sons, the composer Charles Wood, the centenary of whose death falls in this year.
Wood was born in 1866, lived in Vicars’ Hill and sang in the Cathedral Choir as a boy, with his brother and father. He attended the Cathedral Choir School after which he obtained a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London, from over 1,500 applicants. Wood subsequently became Professor of Music at the University of Cambridge and Professor of Composition at the Royal College of Music. He was a skilled teacher and composer, who had a profound influence on the next generation of composers, many of whom he taught.
Speaking ahead of the tribute, Dr Stephen Timpany, Director of Music, said, “Choral Evensong will feature music almost exclusively by Wood, including his Evening Canticles in D, the anthem ‘Expectans Expectavi’, two hymns by Wood and a psalm sung to a chant by Wood. During the service there will also be more choral and organ music by Wood, with short spoken extracts detailing a brief history of the Choral Foundation in Armagh, which is incidentally the oldest in Ireland. We will also highlight Wood’s life from 1866 until his death in 1926, and a short survey of his music.”
All are most welcome to attend this event which will be the Cathedral’s tribute to one of Armagh most illustrious sons. Admission is free with donations to the Choir Fund most welcome.
