“The Closest I Have Heard to Notre Dame”: A US Choir Director Praises the Acoustics of Kingston’s Holy Trinity Cathedral

• A visiting US university choir said Holy Trinity Cathedral’s acoustics rivalled Notre Dame’s
• The cathedral was built in 1911 and has been restored
• Its copper dome rises 85 feet
• It is already listed among Kingston’s main tourist attractions for its murals and stained glass

Kingston’s Holy Trinity Cathedral has been compared to Notre Dame in Paris, not for its architecture but for its sound, the Jamaica Observer reported.

Dr Sheila McDonald Harleston, director of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) Choir, made the comparison after her choir sang in the empty cathedral during a Jamaica National Building Society-sponsored tour of the island. “The acoustics are breathtaking… and I just love the reverb. This is the closest I have heard to Notre Dame,” she said. “It is magnificent, just beautiful.”

Property manager Keeble Allen took the 28-member choir on a tour and outlined the building’s construction in 1911 and its more recent restoration. Members tested the sound directly under the centre of the 85-foot high copper dome, along the walls and from the first-floor balcony. Harleston said the acoustics could be “tricky” for faster music.

The neo-Byzantine cathedral, with its murals and stained glass, is described as one of the most beautiful churches in the Caribbean and is listed among Kingston’s main tourist attractions, but, the report noted, its acoustics had not generally been celebrated. The UMES choir has performed in France, England, Germany, several Caribbean islands and US cities.

A historic church is expensive to keep up, and its features can also earn money. Holy Trinity already has a property manager and draws tourists. A reputation for outstanding acoustics adds another use: concerts, recordings and choir tours, which can bring income to help maintain a century-old building. Churches with heritage buildings should look at what makes theirs special, whether the architecture, the art or the sound, and plan how to use it for regular concerts or tours, as Notre Dame does. For downtown Kingston, a busy cathedral also helps bring visitors to the surrounding area.