Chester Choral Week was founded by husband and wife team, Jeffrey Wynn-Davies and Fiona Clucas in 1991. After many successful seasons in Harrogate, Cranleigh and Chester, Jeff sadly died in 2020 and Fiona has remained as Director since this time. She has established an impressive and accomplished solo career as a versatile soprano soloist, singing oratorio and as a recitalist. She has sung with leading brass bands, male voice and concert choirs. Alongside her work as a choral director she is a vocal coach at Withington Girl’s School in Manchester, Fiona also coordinates the award-winning chamber choir, Canzonetta. Underneath her cheerful welcome, lies steely and expert choral direction that immediately inspires the joy of singing and the desire to raise your own game!

Marcus is a conductor based in Derbyshire and is currently the Musical Director of Friday Voices, a chamber choir in Burton-on-Trent.

Marcus has served several prestigious appointments, including the Choral Master of Central Festival Opera, and Musical Director for Huntingdon Philharmonic Chorus and Orchestra, Cranleigh Choral Society and the Surrey Festival Choir.  Marcus’ warm and generous conducting style brings the best out of all singers and orchestral players. He conducts the larger choral works for Chester Choral Week.

Mark is Musical Director of Milton Keynes Chorale and Oxford Pro Musica Singers. Mark is a busy conductor, working with a range of professional and amateur orchestras and trains conductors, as a member of the Association of British Choral Directors.
In addition to his conducting work, he remains a skilled choral accompanist and has previously held positions with Manchester Chorale, Canzonetta, Manchester University Chorus, John Lewis Partnership Music Society and Opera Unlimited. Mark is also a highly experienced choral singer having sung with several award-winning amateur and semi-professional choirs including Canzonetta, Choros Amici, Singscape, Encoro, Chantage, Ensemble 45 and many others.
Mark instantly puts you at ease with his light-hearted and engaging personality with fun and uplifting choral sessions.

Dexter is Musical Director of the Sitwell Singers in Derbyshire and the professional chamber orchestra The Sinfonia Stellaris.

Dexter combines his passion for orchestral and choral music and has worked for several prestigious choral conductors across the country. He brings these riches to Chester Choral Week alongside his passion for learning and improving. Expect complete investment in the music he is conducting, leading to a memorable experience.

Mezzo soprano, Janet Shell, is a prize winning recitalist, with a background in opera and education, and a gift for teaching singing. She is an outstanding communicator with the ability to facilitate and develop technique in other singers through her positive instruction. She has been with us for several years now and is a popular teacher and workshop leader and her sense of humour is never far away!

Christopher studied voice at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, the Lyon Opera Studio and won the Grand Prix at the 1990 Toulouse International Singing Competition. Christopher has enormous experience as a teacher, giving classes at the Guildhall School of Music, the Royal Academy of Music and Trinity College of Music. He was acting Head of Voice at the London College of Music. He has been a peripatetic singing teacher at Epsom College since 2000. He enjoys creating resources for singers, compiling numerous anthologies of French song and Oratorio arias, as well as writing a book on the science of the singing voice – The Simple Science of Singing.

Kath has been a repetiteur at Chester Choral Week since 2007. Throughout Kath’s musical career, she has found accompaniment to be the most enjoyable and rewarding. She is a graduate of the Royal Northern College of Music where she studied piano, flute and organ. She specialised in accompaniment, studying with David Lloyd and John Wilson. Kath accompanies the Mount Community Choir in Barlborough and two community choirs in Manchester, Irlam Mixed Voice Choir and the Aspire Choir. She is accompanist for Chesterfield Philharmonic Choir. As accompanist for the former Manchester Boys Choir and Kinder Children’s Choir, she played at the country’s major concert halls, including Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall, the Royal Albert Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Barbican.

Starting on the piano at an early age, Katie continued to study piano, orchestral percussion and composition during high school and then at the University of Birmingham. Katie has worked with various choirs in Norfolk as an accompanist, arranger and instrumentalist, including bass guitar and percussion. She has also performed recitals on the piano. In recent years Katie has acted as accompanist for several residential music courses and was delighted to join the Chester Choral Week team as an assistant accompanist in 2023.