Richard McVeigh returns to Winchester Cathedral

[Rowland Wateridge]

A temporary, but welcome, return playing for Evensong on 5th September 2021 when the choir ‘Index Cantorum’ (directed by Mark Williams) sang the services in Winchester Cathedral.

Richard McVeigh here accompanies the anthem, Herbert Howells’ “A Hymn for St Cecilia”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRk-LLtcs5U

After the service the voluntary was Duruflé’s ‘Fugue sur le thème du Carillon des Heures de la Cathédrale de Soissons’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lY7HwCR1AM&list=RD0lY7HwCR1AM

These might be preceded by the ‘ads’ which one can skip.

Many years since I climbed those tortuous stairs!

[Clarabella]

Glorious! The Howells was new to me.

Speaking of tortuous stairs, I don't remember Winchester's being particularly bad. And they are carpeted. My nomination would go to Rochester where the stairs are almost vertical. Some organists might not make it. But the organ loft when you get there is reasonably spacious. Wells' staircase is rather windy, and the loft has about room for a page-turner and that's it. Somewhat cramped.

[Rowland Wateridge]

Tortuous meaning twisting: four or is it five right-angle turns?  The Winchester ‘loft’ isn’t at all spacious.  Among older people it’s still known by its former somewhat archaic name ‘the ladies’ gallery’, referring to its function before H&H installed the detached console to replace the Father Willis on the opposite, north, side of the quire, and supplanting the ladies.  Incidentally they weren’t immediately allowed to sit in the back row of the choir stalls below, and at one time they would be politely ousted by the virgers.  Of course that would not be countenanced today, but when I mentioned this on a previous thread, someone responded that the same all-male in the back row tradition also formerly applied at Durham.