CE Chapel of Lancing College Wed, 27th Dec 2023

[Keraulophone]

Accomplished and lively singing. The Carter anthem beautifully done. I particularly appreciated the student prayers with a lovely performance of Edward’s gem ‘No small wonder’.

Agree completely. Lancing has a remarkable Music Department, and an ex-cathedral DoM directing the choir. Glancing at an online edition of The Quad from a few years back, 'around 400 pupils took part in over 250 performances; from French horn to Chapel organ, from a whistling trio to rock drumming'.

Not denying the accomplishments of the upper voices of the choir, the lower voices showed remarkable maturity for their age, including the excellent soloist.

It was good to hear the Contra Bombarde announce itself at suitable moments. See here for organ specification: https://www.for3.org/forums/forum/cl...oadcasts/page4

[mopsus]

It must be tricky choosing music for December 27th (of course most choral foundations don't have to), to have appropriately festive music for the octave of Christmas while honouring the Evangelist. Hence perhaps the mix of 'seasonal' pieces with the rather more sombre canticles and voluntary.

[Awm]

Agree completely. Lancing has a remarkable Music Department, and an ex-cathedral DoM directing the choir. Glancing at an online edition of The Quad from a few years back, 'around 400 pupils took part in over 250 performances; from French horn to Chapel organ, from a whistling trio to rock drumming'.

Not denying the accomplishments of the upper voices of the choir, the lower voices showed remarkable maturity for their age, including the excellent soloist.

It was good to hear the Contra Bombarde announce itself at suitable moments. See here for organ specification: https://www.for3.org/forums/forum/cl...oadcasts/page4

Thank you. Yes, we are very lucky with our DoM. With his background in the Cathedral world and when he gets the opportunity to play, he is well known for his brilliant improvisation skills.

We have roughly 65 in the choir.
The back row. On this recording we had 3 adults, also a former pupil who is choral scholar at Exeter Cathedral but otherwise the rest are pupils.
The sololist in the Darke is a former chorister of Ely and is 17.

I had a lot of respect for them that week as they had amongst lessons, that recording, followed by our whole school Eucharist the next day then a run of Carol services which for the non Cathedral trained would have been a shock.

[Keraulophone]

I had a lot of respect for them that week as they had amongst lessons, that recording, followed by our whole school Eucharist the next day then a run of Carol services which for the non Cathedral trained would have been a shock.

Admirable stamina; and thanks for the background info. I know from experience how motivated students can thrive on achieving what, at first, seem to be unattainable goals.

Four our Festival of NL&C in 2018, Truro Cathedral Choir commissioned a beautiful Christmas carol, I sing of a Maiden, from Neil Cox, a long-time Lancing DoM, at a time when Joseph Wicks (OL) was Assistant DoM. It is included on this CD of contemporary Christmas music: https://www.regent-records.co.uk/pro...ight-rejoices/

[teamsaint]

This post prompted me to look the place up - another of those "well I never" moments. What a stunning building.

The singing was pretty good too...

It is pretty hard to miss if you are meandering along the main road outside Shoreham airport, or on the coastal train route between Brighton and Worthing .
The present king was at the dedication of the huge rose window back in the late 1970s, FWIW.

[Finzi4ever]

For many years the post-Christmas week was a live broadcast from (I'm told a very cold) Tewkesbury Abbey by the Exon Singers.

Yes, quite true, I still recall the chilblains...but we sang some wonderful stuff with a varied array of distinguished directors over the years.