Saint Peter’s Cathedral was built between 1860 and 1866, with its striking twin spires added in 1886. For many years it served as the Pro‑Cathedral of the Diocese of Down and Connor, hosting the principal liturgical ceremonies of the diocese.
On 29 June 1986, Saint Peter’s was formally raised to the dignity of diocesan Cathedral during a Mass celebrated by Cardinal (then Bishop) Cahal Daly.
To inspire hearts and minds through the beauty of sacred music.
Music at St Peter’s Cathedral is dedicated to enhancing the liturgy with exceptional choral music, and nurturing emerging talent across the Diocese.
Saint Peter’s Cathedral’s music department is led by the Director of Music, James McConnell.
James is a Belfast-based accompanist, choral conductor, and is an advocate of evidence-based voice teaching. As Director of Music, James is responsible for the training of the boys’ Schola Cantorum, Girls ‘Choir and Cathedral Choir.
James has a long association with Saint Peter’s, both as a former pupil of Mr Raymond Lennon (Organist and Choirmaster of the Cathedral from 1969 – 2000) and in his role as Organist for the Cathedral Choir, beginning in 2014.
In February 2020, James was appointed Director of Music at Saint Peter’s Cathedral. Alongside his Cathedral duties, James teaches piano and organ in several Belfast schools, supporting and inspiring young musicians.
Music has been at the heart of Saint Peter’s since its foundation in 1866. Today, the Cathedral is served by three choirs, supported by our Singing for Schools programme and our annual Summer School.
Founded in 2000 as the Down and Connor Boys’ Choir, the Schola Cantorum was established in 2008 and is made up of boys aged 8–18. As well as supporting young treble voices, the Schola acts as a cambiata choir which allows boys to sing through voice change and to develop as emerging tenors and basses.
Saint Peter’s is also supported by The Cathedral Choir, which has contributed to the musical life of the Cathedral since 1866. The choir, consisting of men and women (SATB), rehearse once a week and sing regularly at the 5:30pm Vigil Mass, as well as other events which take place at the Cathedral throughout the year.
Established in March 2024, this is the first Catholic cathedral girls’ choir in Northern Ireland.Open to girls aged 11–18, the Girls’ Choir (SSA) rehearse once a week and sing on the first Saturday and third Sunday of each month.
The Choir is led by Rebecca Morris, Assistant Director to the Girls’ Choir.
We welcome enquiries from new singers for all of our choirs. To learn more or arrange an audition, please contact: cathedralmusic@downandconnor.org
Saint Peter’s Cathedral partners with the National Schools Singing Programme (NSSP) and Leeds Cathedral to bring high‑quality whole‑class singing to primary schools across Belfast and beyond.
The School Singing Programme at Saint Peter’s Cathedral is delivered by James McConnell, Director of Music at Saint Peter’s Cathedral, and Rebecca Morris, a trained primary school teacher specialising in music with over 10 years of classroom experience.
Together, James and Rebecca work on behalf of Saint Peter’s Cathedral and the Diocese of Down and Connor to bring high‑quality whole‑class singing to primary schools across the Greater Belfast area.
The project is designed to encourage, nurture, and celebrate singing in schools, supporting children in building confidence, musical awareness, and a love of singing.
Below you will find an outline of what the programme offers, along with a link to register interest.
Places are limited and allocated on a first‑come, first‑served basis.
The Singing for Schools workshops are aimed at children in Primary 5.
This year, we are offering:
...to all P5 classes in selected schools.
These sessions are designed to:
The programme complements the Northern Ireland Curriculum, specifically:
Through this programme, children will:
This year, we are offering:
If you would like your school to become involved with the School Singing Programme, please click the link to register your interest.
Each summer, the Cathedral Music Department hosts a Summer Singing Course for young people aged 8–18, offering 5 days of inspiring, high‑quality musical training. Participants receive
focused coaching in:
This year, we are offering:
The course culminates in a celebratory showcase performance in the Cathedral, giving young singers the opportunity to share their work in a truly special setting.
For the past five years, our guest tutor has been Matthew Reeve, a London-based musical director and voice consultant, who brings exceptional expertise and enthusiasm to the course.
Please click here for more detailed information about the Summer Singing Course.
To apply for a place on the course in July 2026, please apply here.
We also offer a limited number of partially and fully funded bursaries. If you would like to apply
for financial support, please click the bursary application link.
Launched in March 2026, Our Time is a short film inspired by our Summer Singing Course in July 2025.
Created with some of the girls who took part in the summer project, the film explores the joy of singing together and the importance of celebrating every voice.
Our Time reflects a message central to our work: no matter who you are or where you come from, we can all sing together.
The Cathedral Organ was rebuilt and restored by Kenneth Jones & Associates in 2005. The organ is of four manual keyboards and pedals, with detached drawstop console and electro-pneumatic action. With over 4,000 pipes, the organ has 59 stops and a comprehensive combination system with departmental pistons, general pistons and sequential stepper.
A second (3-manual) console, also with terraced drawstops and sited near the Altar, controls certain sections of the main organ.
The organ contains most of the pipes of the previous organ (John White, 1883 and Pels & Son, 1966), substantially remodelled and revoiced and augmented by a similar number of additional restored and new pipes, including the reed stops of the Swell, Solo and Bombarde/Great Organs.
