Monday-Wednesday music list is still up in the air, but Fri-Sunday I’ve had a much clearer idea of what I’d like us to sing — and a weekend of evensong attendance has finalised a few decisions.
At Bristol yesterday we sang exactly the line up I’d pictured for the traditional unaccompanied Friday service: Gray in F minor, Faire is the Heaven and Shephard responses. I’m happy to report they fit together perfectly. It’s all double choir though so I hope we get the numbers.
Saturday, I’m really keen to resurrect the Leighton Second Service we got nearly right in St David’s — or else do his ‘Col Mag’. I had been preoccupied with finding an anthem and responses of the same style. But evensong at Magdalen on Saturday (a joint affair with New College, celebrating Ives’ tenure at Magdalen which comes to an end this term) reminded me that nothing quite beats Rose responses and a good bit of Victoriana (and that the latter mixes perfectly well with something more modern, in their case Wood Col Reg and Ives’ Let all the World). So possibly I will please one of my favourite altos and dig out Balfour Gardiner’s Evening Hymn.
As it’s Ascensiontide, we simply HAVE to do Finzi’s God is Gone Up at some point — one of my all-time favourites, and so rarely suitable. If we don’t do it earlier in the week, that will be Saturday’s anthem. Coelos Ascendit (Stanford) will also make an appearance as might The Spirit of the Lord (Elgar) for Pentecost (although, frankly, I have a bit of trouble understanding what Pentecost is actually about and therefore struggle to pick appropriate music for it. If it’s got the word ’spirit’ in the title it’s probably OK, right?).
I’m struggling to choose Mattins music whereas Eucharist will be a no-brainer (Rheinberger) if we’ve got the numbers and still cool Walton Missa Brevis even if we don’t.
So for completeness, here’s the provisional weekend music list for Wells:
(update: here is the most recent provisional list — for the week)
Fri
Shephard responses
Gray in F minor
Faire is the Heaven - Harris
Saturday
Leighton Col Mag or Second Service
Evening Hymn — Balfour Gardiner or God is Gone Up - Finzi
Sunday Eucharist
Rheinberger or Walton Missa Brevis
Mattins
Shephard responses
VW Te Deum?
Evensong
Rose responses
Murril in E
The Spirit of the Lord - Elgar
