CE Liverpool Cathedral Wed, 8th June 2016

[charles t]

You're right, there isn't really a place on the forum for this sort of thing.

It's a bit misleading too to call R H Benson Christian - he was part of the furious religious polemicism of the late nineteenth/early twentieth century when Catholicism, and its Jesuit manifestation in particular, was seen by many as nothing less than the Antichrist of the book of Revelation and perhaps even worse, un-English

This was what Benson was responding to, which is probably why The Sentimentalists portrays its Catholics as perfect upper-class English gentlemen.

Well, Jean...you succinctly summarized the brief novelistic career of cleric Benson (he died at age 43).
But with 15 books to show for it!

From the polite societal setting of The Sentimentalists (1906) to the harrowing spiritual and political travails of 'the man who lost his memory' in The Dawn Of All (set sixty years ahead from the time of Benson's' writing in 1911.)

[mopsus]

Several times recently when the BBC have televised something from Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, the associated adult chamber choir have been asked to sit together and be specially miked, to give the impression that the congregational singing was more enthusiastic than was in fact the case.

To go off on another tangent, why is it that Catholic congregations are still sluggish about singing hymns? The liturgical reforms of Vatican II, which might have been an incentive to congregational participation, were half a century ago.

[jean]

To go off on another tangent, why is it that Catholic congregations are still sluggish about singing hymns? The liturgical reforms of Vatican II, which might have been an incentive to congregational participation, were half a century ago.

Have you seen the rubbish they're offered in vernacular hymnbooks? Would you be persuaded to sing it?

[jean]

The service did come over better in iPlayer - especially the Byrd, which was so muddy from where I was sitting (as near the choir stalls as I could get) that I really thought they'd got lost once or twice.

The Stanford is much better suited to that building. Certainly both in the cathedral and on the radio, the trebles' high notes were terrific. It was boys and girls - boys on the front row either side, girls behind, lots of each, though I forgot to count. I thought one side a bit less decisive than the other. I couldn't tell who was singing the descant in the hymn.

[DracoM]

And the Ferguson?

[jean]

Oh yes, I almost forgot - didn't remember what it was at the service, the cathedral were too mean to print us a service sheet.

I thought it worked well

[DracoM]

Don't print a service sheet?

Blimey!!

[jean]

There wasn't one for this service.

[terratogen]

What a strange response from the Cathedral toward a broadcast Evensong.

I thought the service came across beautifully, though. I do love the Wesley chant for Psalm 42—but what happened to 41?—and felt the choir narrated very effectively throughout the chanting. A credit to singing and direction alike. The treble voices did soar in that space; even over the radio, there were moments of the Stanford that just rang. A big choir enjoying big repertoire in a big space? Great to hear!

[DracoM]

There wasn't one for this service.

Aha! Didn't they want the congregation to join in? Seems odd to me.
'Fraid I was less impressed by the Ferguson. Still.............we should be grateful the engineers did so much.

[jean]

...what happened to 41?

They told us there wasn't time for it.

[DracoM]

Right, so that DOES explain why the service finished way earlier than almost any live BBC CE I've heard in years. Pretty embarrassing miscalculation by someone, or...??

[jean]

Are you suggesting deliberate sabotage?

I did get the impression that they were anxious to fit in the whole of the voluntary.

[DracoM]

Yes, I can fully understand given the way the vol was billed as a Queen's 90th b'day tribute that they'd want it all in, but even with the whole vol, they still finished 6+ mins early. How come?
Absolutely not a conspiracy theory - it just seems a tad odd to have cut something because they thought service was too long and THEN to finish up so many minutes short. Why didn't they leave things as they were?
Does jean know at what stage in proceedings they made the cut?

[Magnificat]

It was boys and girls - boys on the front row either side, girls behind, lots of each, though I forgot to count. I thought one side a bit less decisive than the other. I couldn't tell who was singing the descant in the hymn.

Jean

The music list stated girls and men. I wonder why they changed to girls and boys for this repertoire?

VCC