The legal framework governing music within the Church of England parish churches, cathedrals and college chapels

Wright, Charlotte 2024. The legal framework governing music within the Church of England parish churches, cathedrals and college chapels. PhD Thesis, Cardiff Univeristy. Item availability restricted.

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Abstract

This PhD explains and evaluates the legal framework governing music within Church of England parish churches, cathedrals and college chapels. Firstly, it considers the theological reasons underpinning the legal regulation of music in the liturgy, looking at the close inter-relationship between music, theology and church law as these three areas inter-act within the liturgy and Church worship, before reviewing the historical development of the regulation of Church music. Secondly, it reviews, analyses and evaluates the current law as it relates to the parish churches, cathedrals and college chapels. This is achieved through a review of the legal framework relating to music in the parish churches, looking at the regulation of music within church liturgies, followed by an analysis of the law relating to parish church musicians: their appointment, their duties and rights, how a position may be terminated and on what basis. Next it reviews the legal framework for music in cathedrals: considering the extent to which the legal instruments recognise music’s importance in cathedrals; how national law and cathedral domestic laws govern the individuals involved in cathedral musical life; and the ways that national law and the cathedral legal instruments govern bodies involved in cathedral musical life. Then it reviews the regulation of music in the Oxford and Cambridge college chapels, considering how the college statutes provide for divine service and the maintenance of a chapel choir and how music’s importance is reflected in the college objects; how the college legal instruments govern the individuals involved in the college chapel musical life; and how chapel music is influenced by different bodies which are involved in chapel music. Finally, it addresses two topics central to church musicians: safeguarding and dispute resolution, and their impact on church musicians and those involved in music.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Date Type:	Completion
Status:	Unpublished
Schools:	Schools > Cardiff Law & Politics
Subjects:	K Law > KD England and Wales
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Canon law; Church of England; church music; church musicians; cathedral music; college chapel music; liturgy; church disputes; church safeguarding.
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	9 September 2025
Last Modified:	10 Sep 2025 08:56
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/181019

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