CE Chapel of Merton College, Oxford 14th Oct 2015

[DracoM]

CE Chapel of Merton College, Oxford



Order of Service:



Introit: Diliges Dominum (Byrd)
Responses: Smith
Office Hymn: O God most holy, God most high (Song 34)
Psalms 73, 74 (Crotch, Ouseley, Smart, Noble)
First Lesson: Isaiah 51:1-6
Canticles: Watson in E
Second Lesson: 2 Corinthians 1: 1-11
Anthem: Lord, thou hast been our refuge (Bairstow)
Final Hymn: Sing praise to God who reigns above (Palace Green)



Organ Voluntary: Postlude in D minor (Stanford)



Organ Scholar: Peter Shepherd
Director of Music: Benjamin Nicholas

[DracoM]

Gentle reminder of today's service @ 3.30 p.m.

[VodkaDilc]

Gentle reminder of today's service @ 3.30 p.m.

I've heard the choir live several times in the last few months. They are certainly proof that a good female top line can be as convincing as boys. I'm looking forward to hearing the wonderful Dobson organ again too.

[mopsus]

I've been to other broadcasts by this choir; sometimes it is reinforced by past members who are used as 'bumpers'. Their last evensong (for the Britten anniversary in 2013) was given to them at short notice when another choir withdrew; I think this one was arranged quite quickly too.

[DracoM]

So maybe a smattering of Tallis Scholars in the ranks?

[TimR]

I've been to other broadcasts by this choir; sometimes it is reinforced by past members who are used as 'bumpers'. Their last evensong (for the Britten anniversary in 2013) was given to them at short notice when another choir withdrew; I think this one was arranged quite quickly too.

I understand that both of these broadcasts were arranged a year in advance!

[TimR]

So maybe a smattering of Tallis Scholars in the ranks?

I was in attendance today and there were certainly no members of the Tallis Scholars in the choir!

[VodkaDilc]

So maybe a smattering of Tallis Scholars in the ranks?

There certainly haven't been any in the recent performances I've heard at Merton. The choir is more than able to stand on its own; Tallis Scholars are used to singing about two to a part and would probaly not blend well in a bigger choir, where the singers are predominantly aged 18-21 or so.

[DracoM]

Thx for info.

[Gabriel Jackson]

Tallis Scholars are used to singing about two to a part and would probaly not blend well in a bigger choir, where the singers are predominantly aged 18-21 or so.

Why wouldn't they?

[VodkaDilc]

Why wouldn't they?

Two very different choirs. One a group of students, the other a professional choir, where the singers have, by and large, more mature voices and are up to a generation older. I rate the Merton Choir highly. They would not need reinforcement from anyone. I am not criticising the Tallis Scholars (before someone tries to suggest I am.)

[jean]

Tallis Scholars are used to singing about two to a part and would probaly not blend well in a bigger choir

That does seem a rather odd thing to say.

I believe it used to be thought that once you went above one voice to a part, you couldn't achiecve a good blend without at least three. But Petetr Phillips (so it is claimed) selected his voices so carefully that the hitherto-unimaginable blend of two voices was achieved.

Why this would mean they coudn't blend in larger numbers I can't imagine.

(But neither can I see why anyone would think the Merton choir needed such stiffening.)

[VodkaDilc]

The most recent Tallis Scholars concerts I've seen have had a choir of 4-2-4-2, with sopranos and tenors often divided - so frequently two to a part.

Can we get back to the subject of Choral Evensong? An earlier suggestion of choral stiffening has let us seriously off-topic.

[ardcarp]

I enjoyed the CE very much. I'm no expert on matters of sound engineering, but it did seem to me that the choir sounded as if singing at the far end of a tunnel (I exaggerate maybe) whilst the organ was more 'forward'. Did anyone else get this effect? It seemed particularly so in the psalms. I was listening on reasonable kit today, not the car radio.

[VodkaDilc]

I enjoyed the CE very much. I'm no expert on matters of sound engineering, but it did seem to me that the choir sounded as if singing at the far end of a tunnel (I exaggerate maybe) whilst the organ was more 'forward'. Did anyone else get this effect? I was listening on reasonable kit today, not the car radio.

I also listened on good equipment and I thought the organ came over superbly. Perhaps I'm saying the same thing as ardcap, but with a different interpretation. It's a resonant building and I thought the acoustic was conveyed well in the broadcast.