Paul McCartney Still Feels the Sting of Failing His Audition for Chorister as a Kid
Paul McCartney still feels the sting of failing his audition for chorister as a kid. It was his first rejection, so, of course, it stayed with him all these years. However, he returned to the same cathedral where he would’ve sung and played his own songs.
Paul McCartney still feels the sting of failing his audition for chorister
In 1991, Paul performed the Liverpool Oratorio at Liverpool Cathedral. In The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, Paul wrote that it was a “bittersweet occasion” because the same cathedral had rejected him for chorister. Paul explained that he still feels the sting of the rejection decades later.
“It’s strange that I still felt that sting, since it had been nearly forty years, but everyone I’m sure can recall that disappointment from a setback in childhood that never quite disappears,” Paul wrote.
“The idea then was that if you became a chorister, you got free books as a prize, and my parents were keen for me to have free books. But I failed the audition. The guy may have liked some other boys more than me. Who knows what he was looking for? But the sad reality was that I didn’t live up to his expectations.”
Despite the church rejecting Paul as a chorister, he loves cathedrals
Even though the church rejected Paul as chorister, he loves cathedrals and their grand architecture. Any sacred space interests him, which is surprising considering Paul didn’t grow up around religion.
His maternal grandfather was Irish Catholic, and his paternal grandfather was Irish Protestant. When he and his brother Michael were born, their mother Mary insisted on baptizing them Roman Catholic, but Paul claims his parents raised him in a non-denomiational household. Growing up, he’d hear the Catholics and Protestants argue even though they were all part of Christianity.
When Paul auditioned for a chorister, his parents were keener on him getting those free books rather than being a part of the church community.
Even now, Paul goes into sacred spaces wherever he can. Paul wrote that Liverpool Cathedral was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, who also did the U.K.’s iconic red telephone box, and Battersea and Bankside power stations; the latter is now Tate Modern.
“There are a couple of churches in New York, like St Patrick’s or St Thomas, that I don’t pass without going in,” Paul wrote. “They have this quiet majesty, which is funny, considering that they’re situated in the middle of a very busy city.”
The former Beatle wrote classical music for the choir and choristers of Liverpool Cathedral
In The Lyrics, Paul confessed that his interest in classical music was never that great, although he acquired a decent collection in the 1960s. Then, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic asked him to write something for their 150th anniversary.
Despite knowing very little about classical music, Paul was honored to do it. He worked with Carl Davis on the arrangement. When Paul worked with the choir, he loved it. He thought it was interesting that all the members came from different walks of life.
In the end, Paul didn’t find writing classical music daunting. Even returning to the place where he had his first rejection wasn’t too bad.
