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Your Ideal Evensong!


Philip

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I'm always intrigued to see what repertoire (both organ and choral) interests other people on this board, so here's a poser - pick the music for your ideal Evensong service! That is to say, the music which you would include in a service encompassing your favourites.

 

You can choose (some or all of) the following:

 

Opening Voluntary

Introit

Responses

Office Hymn

Psalm

Canticles

1 or 2 Anthems

Two Further Hymns

Concluding Voluntary

 

Since this is designed to just find out what people like, then it is not limited by seasons - so you can mix music from Christmas, Easter, or whichever part of the year you want!

 

I would post mine, but I haven't fully decided yet - I will add it in due course.

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Opening Voluntary: Bridge Adagio in E

Introit: O Bone Jesu - Ratcliffe (have not heard it for 35 years and I think that's the title/composer)

Responses: Stanley Vann Set 1

Office Hymn: The royal banners forward go (Gonfalon Royal)

Psalm: 78 (15th Evening)

Canticles: Stanford in A

Anthem: Thee will I love - Howells

Two Further Hymns: Christ Triumphant (Guiting Power) + Lead Kindly Light (Alberta)

Concluding Voluntary: Toccata in D flat Jongen

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I'm always intrigued to see what repertoire (both organ and choral) interests other people on this board, so here's a poser - pick the music for your ideal Evensong service! That is to say, the music which you would include in a service encompassing your favourites.

 

Nice idea!

 

Harris - Holy is the true light

Shephard Responses

Blair in B minor

Wesley - The Wilderness

 

Final volley - Fanfare Whitlock

 

Richard

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OK - I've had a think and come up with this:

 

Opening Voluntary: Whitlock - Folk Tune

Introit: Stanford - Beati Quorum Via

Responses: Rose

Office Hymn: Dear Lord and Father of mankind (Repton)

Psalm: 121 - to the Walford Davies chant where the first and third quarters are solos

Canticles: Noble in B minor (closely followed by Stanford in C)

Anthems: Finzi - Lo, the full, final Sacrifice

Balfour Gardiner - Evening Hymn

Hymn: O thou who camest from above (Hereford)

Hymn: I bind unto myself today (St. Patrick's Breastplate)

(Final Responses: Rose)

Concluding Voluntary: Vierne - Finale from Symphony 6 (if you can't play that, then Carillon de Westminster which is considerably easier! I struggled to choose between the two anyway.)

 

The Noble and Stanford canticles are both just great sings, and also good fun to accompany. And both accessible to your average parish choir.

The Finzi leaves me amazed every time I hear it - 15 minutes which I think takes you to another place altogether. It is a simply extraordinary work, without equal as far as I'm concerned. Perhaps the concluding lines "When this dry soul those eyes shall see..." are the most moving.

Balfour Gardiner is another one which is pretty accessible but I think is just the perfect anthem for any Evensong.

I've chosen three hymns which I would enjoy both singing and playing. All moving and relevant in their own ways.

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Opening Voluntary - silence

Introit - Keep me as an apple, Fielding

Responses - Shephard

Office Hymn - hymns make evensong too long. Should be omitted, just like the sermon.

Psalm - hmm... 18, possibly. Coram Chant maybe?

Canticles - Tomkins 5th

1 or 2 Anthems - Hear my prayer Purcell. Dum Transisset Taverner

Two Further Hymns - see above.

Concluding Voluntary Any Bach trio sonata.

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Nice idea!

 

Opening Voluntary - Pastorale from Guilmant 1

 

Introit - Bring us O Lord God (Harris)

 

Responses - Smith

 

Psalm - 130 (Out of the Deep) - Walford Davies

 

Office Hymn - When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

 

Canticles - They're in C Minor (I think) by Hugo someone or other (possibly Cole?) - last heard by me in about 1978/9 when we performed them at St. Mary's Warwick. Absolutely super!

 

Anthems - Vox Dicentis (Naylor) and Evening Hymn (Balfour Gardiner)

 

Final Hymn - The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, is Ended, with a big lush reharmonisation of the final verse, maybe even with a few extra bars afer the last word!

 

Closing Voluntary - Final, Guilmant 1

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Here goes:

 

Opening Voluntary - Clair De Lune (Vierne)

 

Introit - In Ieiunio Et Fletu (Tallis)

 

Responses - Rose

 

Psalm - 122 (I know the chant, but not the composer(!))

 

Office Hymn - Before The Ending Of The Day (plainsong)

 

Canticles - Byrd Second Service

 

Anthem - My Beloved Spake (Purcell)

 

Final Hymn - Christ Is Made The Sure Foundation (Westminster Abbey)

 

Closing Voluntary - A Fancy For Two To Play (Tomkins)

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I think it is also necessary to specify the general conditions necessary for the ideal evensong – the optimum ambience for the desired state to be attained:

 

Unrestored Willis organ

Impeccable punctuality

Weekday

An evening with three psalms for the day (and no single chants)

No announcements

Late autumn evening – slight chill, dampness

Shafts of light through stained glass

At least three clergy

Minimal congregation

NO tourists

 

PS One hymn is enough; which should not be played metronomically or at anything other than a Vaughn Williams tempo. And, even though the congregation is minimal, a gathering note is to be used.

The Old Testament lesson should be very long, repetitive and full af strange names of kings and places

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This is probably not the right topic for my narrative, but it involves the choice of music for a Eucharist at one of our Great English Cathedrals.

 

A visiting choir was expected and so, also, were the details for the setting and motet. Despite the best and continued efforts of the Cathedral Organist to find these out from the visiting choir’s director, answer, as they say, came there none.

 

How would you have filled in the blanks? It would, I think, have been almost impossible to improve upon the solution arrived at by the CO for the cathedral music list: suffice to say that the details for that Sunday appeared with the setting as “Missa Sine Nomine” and the Motet “Oh, that I knew” by Anon.

 

David Harrison

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Opening Voluntary - Psalm Prelude No1, Set1 - Howells

Introit - Makes a Mockery of the Liturgy, so should not be had.

Responses - John Reading

Office Hymn O Trinity of Blessed Light

Psalm - 84, to the Parry Chant.

Canticles - Dyson in D

Anthem - O Thou the Central Orb, Wood - My Soul There is a Country, Parry

Two Further Hymns; O Love Divine, How sweet thou art! ; Sun of My soul, Thou Saviour dear

Concluding Voluntary Fugue in g minor bwv 542

 

Unless anyone was up for Benediction tacked onto the end with added plainsong hymns instead of the two given?

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I think it is also necessary to specify the general conditions necessary for the ideal evensong – the optimum ambience for the desired state to be attained:

 

Unrestored Willis organ

Impeccable punctuality

Weekday

An evening with three psalms for the day (and no single chants)

No announcements

Late autumn evening – slight chill, dampness

Shafts of light through stained glass

At least three clergy

Minimal congregation

NO tourists

 

PS One hymn is enough; which should not be played metronomically or at anything other than a Vaughn Williams tempo. And, even though the congregation is minimal, a gathering note is to be used.

The Old Testament lesson should be very long, repetitive and full af strange names of kings and places

 

 

I can picture this perfectly! Thanks for the memory jog.... not sure about the Willis though...

 

And you forgot one thing at the end - to be able to walk home in the twilight without encountering traffic, ideally with nothing pressing to do in the evening after tea/supper, and with the day off tomorrow! Paradise indeed.

 

JE

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Etoile du Soir (Vierne)

Introit: Christus Factus Est (Bruckner)

Responses: Radcliffe

Office Hymn: Holy Spirit, ever dwelling (Salisbury)

Psalm: 66 (Garrett [A major chant])

...if 2 more were required then 64 (Turle) and 65 (EJ Hopkins)

Howells St. Paul's Service

Lo the Full Final Sacrifice (Finzi)

Final Hymn: Lord of our Life, and God of our Salvation (Iste Confessor)

Fete (Langlais)

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More like quirky in my opinion and it befuddles the congregation (although I suppose that might be considered a good thing!!).

Richard

 

Why? With choir support it can be sung by an average congregation - after all is, arguably, not much more than a slightly elaborate psalm chant.

 

Peter

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Why? With choir support it can be sung by an average congregation - after all is, arguably, not much more than a slightly elaborate psalm chant.

 

Peter

 

Yes but much as I actually enjoy this tune, try doing it without a choir to lead the congregation...

 

R

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Guest Patrick Coleman
Yes but much as I actually enjoy this tune, try doing it without a choir to lead the congregation...

 

R

 

I have done exactly this in several different parishes, never with a choir, and it has never failed.

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Introit - Bring Us O Lord God (Harris)

Responses - Ayleward

Psalms 149 (Chant by Stanford) and 150 - Chant by Talbot

Canticles - Kelly in C (Followed closely by Stanford in A)

Anthem - O How Glorious (Harwood)

Hymns

Give Us The Wings of Faith (tune: San Rocco)

Angel Voice Ever Singing (plus John Cook Descant)

 

 

Neil S

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Opening Voluntary - Allegretto from 5 short pieces, Whitlock.

Introit - Coelos Ascendit Hodie, Stanford

Responses - Leighton

Psalm - 48 (Chant by Garrett)

Canticles - St Paul's Service, Howells

Anthem - Let all the World, Vaughan Williams

Hymn - Saviour again to thy dear name

Voluntary - Scherzo from Sonata in E flat, Bairstow

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Guest Patrick Coleman
O salutaris - Lalloux

Hymn - Sweet Sacrament Divine

Motet - Ave Verum (Byrd)

Tantum Ergo - Henschel

Adoremus in aeternam - Allegri

Quiet, meditative closing voluntary

 

Is there a better form of evening service than this?

 

Malcolm

 

Sounds like Benediction to me...

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