Sunday 14th April 2019 Palm Sunday

The Crucifixion    John Stainer

A Meditation on the Sacred Passion of the Holy Redeemer  for solo tenor and bass voices and chorus with hymns to be sung by the congregation

Taken from the Novello edition 1998.

The Crucifixion was first performed in St Marylebone Parish Church on 24th February 1887 and published by Novello the same year. In 1915 Vovello issued a "revised edition" in which the only alterations made are substitutions of words, There is no obvious verbal or theological reasons for the changes, however the alterations may have been made by the librettist and have been retained.

The piece follows the story from Jesus and his disciples going to the garden of Gethsemane, and Jesus praying and asking his disciples to watch over him, moving the story to his arrest and trial, Calvary and the crucifixion and finished with the death of Christ on the cross.  The soloists set the scene and tell the story, with lovely choral interludes, many of which are well known, including "God So Loved The World" and beautiful hymns, whose "proper" titles are pretty meaningless, but the first lines are instantly recognisable, and our congregation joined in.

John Stainer was born in Southwark, London in 1840. He was an English composer and organist.  Much of his music is not longer performed except for The Crucifixion. His work as an organist and choir trainer set the standards for Anglican Church Music still used today.  He was a chorister at St Paul's Cathedral from age ten, and organist of St Michael's College, Tenbury at the age of 16.  He was later organist at Magdalen College, Oxford and later St Paul's Cathedral.  He had to give up due to ill health and poor eyesight, but became Professor of Music at Oxford.  He died suddenly in Italy in 1901 whilst on holiday.

Sir John Stainer, Wikipedia

Our soloists were:

Martin Ridley Tenor

Peter Webster Baritone

Our soloists were excellent and their voices blended so well.  Fred Walker, one of our basses, was the "voice from the choir".

The choir was augmented by other singers who joined us for this occasion and they were very welcome and we hope to enjoy their company on other occasions  (Our annual Fauré Requiem for instance).  Keep a look out on this blog site and also the main blog for details of upcoming singing days.

Sunday 7th April 2019 Passion Sunday Lent 5

Jubilate in B flat  Stanford

Taken from the Novello Copy:
Sir Charles Villiers Stanford has a perverse relationship with posterity.  Remembered today largely for his choral miniatures, this restless symphonist was the unwilling Janus of British music. A significant presence on the European scene in his own lifetime, he was an outspoken critic of Wagner, Strauss and modernism in general. Nevertheless, as a formalist with flair and skill, his influence catalysed much of the great English Music of the 20th century.  As fellow composer George Dyson said: "In a certain sense the very rebellion he fought was the most obvious fruit of his methods". The Jubilate in B flat displays the composer's trademark of thematic structures.
Also see 21.5.2017.

Stanford from Wikipedia

Sunday 24th March 2019 lent 3

"O Saviour of the world"  Sir John Goss (1800 - 1880)

Sir John Goss was a boy chorister in The Chapel Royal and later a pupil of Sir Thomas Attwood, organist at St Paul's cathedral.  He spend a short time in the chorus of an opera company before being organist at a number of churches, finally at St Paul's where he worked hard to improve the musical standards. His works are mostly vocal, both sacred and secular.  From 1827 until 1874, he was a professor at The Royal Academy of Music teaching harmony.  He taught Arthur Sullivan and John Stainer who succeeded him as organist at St Paul's.

"O Saviour of the World" is a suitable anthem for Lent, Holy Week or Communion, The words are from the Anglican Order for the Visitation of the Sick.

Sir John Goss from Wikipedia

Come and Sing  The Crucifixion by John Stainer

We are hosting a Come and Sing performance of  The Crucifixion by John Stainer on Sunday 14th April (Palm Sunday). Non singing supporters are most welcome to come to the performance and to join in the hymns.

If you already know the work - great, but if not don't let that hold you back.  The pre-rehearsal will take you through it and you'll be with fellow singers who know it well, so if you haven't done any choral singing since you were at school, then this is your chance to start again.

Participants who don't own a score can borrow one on the day - just ask at registration.

Singers should arrive from 3pm so the rehearsal can begin promptly at 3.30pm.  There will be a break at about 5pm for tea and the performance will be at 6pm.

Sidlesham Church is just off the B2145, Chichester to Selsey road.  There are regular buses (the Selsey Link) from Chichester Bus Station and Selsey.  The nearest bus stop is by The Anchor and the church is a 100m walk down Church Lane to the north of the pub.  If travelling by car, parking is available by the Church Hall in Church Farm Lane which is the road just south of the pub.  Car share if you can.  The route from the hall to church will be marked.

There is disabled access to the church, contact us through the "contact us" page on the website if you require one of the small number of disabled parking spaces.  Toilets are in the Parish Rooms adjacent to the church.

The cost is £5 for singers and £2.50 for members of the audience (Students £4 and £1).  You can book in advance or pay on the day, cash or cheque only, as we do not have facilities for debit and credit cards.

If you have any other inquiries, please contact our Director of Music via the "contact us" page on the website, 

Sunday 17th March 2019 Matins Lent 2

Jubilate in C Major    C V Stanford.

Because we are in Lent, we sing the Jubilate.  We used Stanford's setting in C major.

Sir Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924) thought to be one of our great British composers was actually Irish, born in Dublin, although educated at The University of Cambridge and then studied music in Leipzig and Berlin.

Whilst an undergraduate, he was appointed organist of Trinity College, Cambridge and was one of the founding professors of the Royal College of Music, where he taught composition for the rest of his life.  He was also Professor of Music at Cambridge.  His pupils included Gustav Holst and Ralph Vaughan Williams whose fame went on to surpass his own.

He is best remembered for his sacred choral compositions for church performance in the Anglican tradition. Along with Hubert Parry and Alexander Mackenzie, he was thought responsible for the renaissance of music in the British Isles.

C V Stanford from Wikipedia

 Hide Not Thy Face From Us      Farrant

The text is Psalm 27 verse 10.

Richard Farrant was an early English composer and like many from his era, his early life is not well documented. He is listed as a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal in 1552 so it is speculated that he was born around 1525.

He was active in ceremonies around the royal family participating in the funerals of Edward VI, Mary I and the coronations of Mary I and Elizabeth I.

As well as being a composer he also wrote plays and he created the first Blackfriars Theatre.

Sunday 10th March 2019 1st in Lent

The anthem was "Turn thy face from my sins" by Thomas Attwood (1765 - 1838)  based on Psalm 51 vv 9-11.

Attwood was born in London, the son of a musician in the royal band. He became a chorister in the Chapel Royal by the age of nine.  He was sent abroad to study at the expense of the Prince of Wales (later George IV) who was impressed by his skill at the harpsichord.  He was a favourite pupil of Mozart. He returned to London in 1787.

In 1796 he was made organist of St Paul's and the same year composer of the Chapel Royal.  For George IV's coronation he wrote the anthem "I was glad".

Much of his work is forgotten, only a few anthems regularly performed including "Turn thy face from my sins".

Thomas Attwood from Wikipedia

6th March 2019 Ash Wednesday

Call to Remembrance  Richard Farrant   d.1580

This is based on Psalm 25 verses 5 and 6.

Richard Farrant was an early English composer and like many from his era, his early life is not well documented. He is listed as a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal in 1552 so it is speculated that he was born around 1525.

He was active in ceremonies around the royal family participating in the funerals of Edward VI, Mary I and the coronations of Mary I and Elizabeth I.

As well as being a composer he also wrote plays and he created the first Blackfriars Theatre.

Sunday 3rd March 2019 Transfiguration

Ave Verum Corpus   Edward Elgar

Ave verum corpus  is traditionally a communion hymn written by Pope Innocent VI, set to music by many composers over the years.

Edward Elgar (1857-1937) was born in a village close to Worcester.  His father had a music shop in Worcester and tuned pianos. Elgar was mostly self taught.  His influence grew in the 1880's and 1890's  despite his being a Roman Catholic in a largely Anglican community. In 1889 he married one of his pupils, Caroline Alice Roberts, against opposition from her family. She played a major part in his career development.

Elgar is one of the great English composers, who has left a legacy of great orchestral and choral works.

from Wikipedia

The Irish Blessing   Bob Chilcott  The choir sang this to welcome Aleks into our Christian community, one of our junior choristers as he was baptised today.

This is a traditional Irish blessing put to music by Bob Chilcott

May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be ever at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields
and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

As a composer, conductor, and singer, Bob Chilcott has enjoyed a lifelong association with choral music, first as a chorister and choral scholar in the choir of King's College, Cambridge, and for 12 years as a member of the King's Singers. He became a full-time composer in 1997, embracing his career with energy and commitment, and producing a large catalogue of music for all types of choirs which is published by Oxford University Press.
Music for Christmas forms a considerable part of his most popular repertoire, and works for the season include Wenceslas, My Perfect Stranger, and On Christmas Night. In his carols he sets both new and traditional texts, and writes for mixed-voice and upper-voice choirs.
He has written substantial sacred works including the St John Passion for Wells Cathedral Choir and the Salisbury Vespers. A Little Jazz Mass and the Requiem are amongst a number of works which continue to be performed worldwide. Other works include The Angry Planet, composed for the 2012 BBC Proms, and The Voyage for Age UK Oxfordshire, which in 2017 was nominated for a Royal Philharmonic Society Award. He has written many pieces for children, including his much-loved song, Can you hear me?, and a significant amount of music for the church. In 2013 he wrote The King shall rejoice for the service in Westminster Abbey to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the coronation of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II.
Bob has conducted choirs in more than 30 countries worldwide and has worked with many thousands of amateur singers across the UK in a continuing series of Singing Days. For seven years he was conductor of the Chorus of The Royal College of Music in London and since 2002 he has been Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Singers.
His music has been widely recorded by leading British choirs and groups including King's College, Cambridge, Wells Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, The King's Singers, The Sixteen, Tenebrae, The BBC Singers, The Bach Choir, Commotio, and Ora. In 2016 Bob enjoyed a collaboration with the celebrated singer Katie Melua and the Gori Women's Choir on the album In Winter, which reached the top 10 in the album charts in the UK and Germany. His first Christmas disc, The Rose in the Middle of Winter, was recorded by Commotio. In 2017 two new discs were released by Commotio and Choralis – All Good Things on Naxos, and In Winter's Arms on Signum, his first recording collaboration with an American choir. Newer recording projects are with Gloucester Cathedral Choir, Houston Chamber Choir, and Wroclaw Philharmonic Choir.
In 2017 Bob was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of The Royal School of Church Music.

Taken from  bobchilcott.com

Bob Chilcott from Wikipedia