Sunday 25th - a feast of choral music

[ardcarp]

Perhaps 'feast' isn't the right word for a penitential season, but a glance at Radio 3 schedules shows virtually wall-to-wall choral music from around Europe, some of which has been flagged up already. There are two Requiems (Pizzetti and Durufle), Stainer's Crucifixion conducted by Barry Rose, not to mention the St Matthew Passion. Ending up at midnight with Orthodox chant.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

The Dream of Gerontius too.

[Alain Maréchal]

Would somebody liturgically informed advise what happens to The Feast of The Annunciation when it coincides with Palm Sunday?

[jean]

...In the tradition of the Western Churches (Catholic Church, Anglican, Lutheran, and Western Rite Orthodoxy), the feast is moved if necessary to prevent it from falling during Holy Week or Easter Week or on a Sunday on the liturgical calendars. To avoid a Sunday before Holy Week, the next day (26 March) would be observed instead. In years such as 2016 when 25 March fell within Holy Week or Easter Week, the Annunciation is moved to the Monday after the Octave of Easter, i.e., the Monday after the Second Sunday of Easter.

In the tradition of the Eastern churches, (Eastern Orthodox, Oriental, and Eastern Catholic) the feast of the Annunciation is never moved under any circumstance. They have special combined liturgies for those years when the Annunciation coincides with another feast. In these churches, even on Good Friday a Divine Liturgy is celebrated when it coincides with the Annunciation. One of the most frequent accusations brought against New Calendarism is the fact that in the New Calendar churches (which celebrate the Annunciation according to the New Calendar, but Easter according to the Old Calendar), these special Liturgies can never be celebrated any more, since the Annunciation is always long before Holy Week on the New Calendar. The Old Calendarists believe that this impoverishes the liturgical and spiritual life of the Church...

Hope this helps.

[Alain Maréchal]

Yes jean, it does, somewhat. Thank you. It seems perverse to celebrate it on any day other than nine months before December 25th. In spite of my Calvinist upbringing, or perhaps because of it, I think the Eastern churches have the better idea on this matter. If you have a calendar you should stick to it.

[jean]

There's more...

[Alain Maréchal]

so there is, jean, thank you. I think I need to read that carefully with Robert-Collins on my desk, or ask my pastor, who is broad-minded ecumenically (ie all churches are equally in error, except us - and we're not absolutely certain about us).

[Andrew353w]

This is a great day of programming! Not only am I listening avidly to this, I'll be using the i-player to listen again over the next few days.

[Nick Armstrong]

my pastor, who is broad-minded ecumenically (ie all churches are equally in error, except us - and we're not absolutely certain about us).

[Bella Kemp]

This is Radio Three at its best

[Alain Maréchal]

Radio Three cannot claim all the credit: the day was compiled by the EBU, and it varied slightly from station to station. The logistics must have been difficult, this was all live, as far as I could tell from some of the panic-sticken announcements and sudden fades.

I was surprised by the performance of the Duruflé, a work I have known most of my life, and which speaks personally to me. There was not a hint of grégorienisme, and it was not remotely French in style, but the conductor conveyed great anguish and found sonorities in the very full orchestration which I had not previously noticed.

Apologies for the hurt this may cause: I felt obliged to listen to the Stainer, and wish I had not: has the English church still not sloughed off musical Victoriana? I was grateful when called to table about three quarters of the way through.

[ardcarp]

Apologies for the hurt this may cause: I felt obliged to listen to the Stainer, and wish I had not: has the English church still not sloughed off musical Victoriana? I was grateful when called to table about three quarters of the way through.

I have a strange relationship with this piece. I abhorred it as a young person, and let's face it, it's weak compositionally...far too many phrases ending on imperfect cadences for one thing. However, many people of an older generation adored it, and it was capable of being performed by choirs of limited ability. The 'love' bit, as far as I'm concerned, is that I have earned more money singing the tenor solo and playing the organ for it (not simultaneously I would add) than any other single piece, including Messiah and Elijah. So thanks Mr Stainer. Probably about the best things in it are the hymn tunes. Nowt wrong with a Victorian hymn-tune.

Apparently the guy singing the tenor solos tonight was the treble who sang 'Walking in the Air' on the film sound-track.

[jean]

Apparently the guy singing the tenor solos tonight was the treble who sang 'Walking in the Air' on the film sound-track.

This is why you might have thought otherwise.

[ardcarp]

I knew it wasn't Aled on the film.

[mopsus]

Gerontius is being broadcast again on Radio 3 on the evening of Good Friday, from King's College Cambridge, with Christopher Robinson replacing Stephen Cleobury as conductor.