Katherine Dienes


Katherine Dienes is a New Zealand-born organist, conductor and composer. She is currently Organist and Master of the Choristers at Guildford Cathedral and is the first woman to hold the most senior musical post in a Church of England cathedral. Her husband is Patrick Williams, librarian of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and they have successfully birthed a daughter, Hannah, who is currently a chorister at Guildford Cathedral.

Early career and education

Dienes was born and educated in Wellington, New Zealand, and studied for a BA in Modern Languages and a BMus at Victoria University, Wellington. She was organ scholar at Saint Paul's Cathedral, Wellington from 1988 to 1991 when she was appointed Assistant Organist there. She also acted as Assistant Conductor of the Wellington Youth Choir and appeared as a soloist with Wellington Youth Orchestra.
Dienes came to England in 1991 to take up the post of organ scholar at Winchester Cathedral and Assistant Organist at Winchester College.

Appointments

Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick

Dienes was appointed Director of Music St Mary's, Warwick, in 2001 where she directed and trained the choir of gentlemen and boys, the girls' choir, and Collegium, an adult concert choir based at the church. With the choirs of St Mary's she made a recording of Advent and Christmas music, A Spotless Rose, on Regent Records.

Guildford Cathedral

In September 2007, Dienes was appointed Organist and Master of the Choristers at Guildford Cathedral. She assumed the post in January 2008, taking over from Stephen Farr and becoming the first woman to hold the senior music post at a Church of England cathedral.

Compositions

Dienes has composed a number of sacred works, mainly for upper voices, as well as some secular compositions. She was commissioned to write a Mass setting commissioned by Norwich Cathedral.
Treble Clef Music Press published her music as follows:
The Washington Post, reviewing Songs for Hannah, noted "Joy and glee, of course, can be subjective. The Hannah texts are pretty severe: There's a lot of 'the wicked shall be put to silence in darkness' and 'they that strive with the Lord shall be broken in pieces.' But music was luminous, with insistent rhythms and an almost ancient, incantatory feel."
John W. Lambert, reviewing the Guildford Cathedral Choir's visit to Raleigh, NC during its US East Coast tour, observed that Dienes-Williams "has a huge and altogether favorable reputation among church musicians." He went on to say that the reputation was "richly deserved"; she was a "highly animated director, and she elicited some of the most remarkable “church choir” singing heard hereabouts in a long time." A Haydn motet "left many members of the audience awe-struck."