Soundboard No. 07 - Church Music Dublin

SOUNDBOARD
A Newsletter for Church Musicians
Number 7 June 2004
Editorial Comment
Questionnaire
The results of last year’s questionnaire are published within, and
some interesting facts emerge from it, particularly from the if only
... “ section of it. A large number of respondents wished for a fourpart choir/more singers/an effective recruitment scheme.
Regarding this, the are a number of strategies that can help. In
this issue of SOUNDBOARD, David Wilkinson writes about his
twenty eight-member choir in Rathfarnham (do read his article),
and in recent years, the Editor has increased the size of his choir
in Howth to about twenth two. There must be many others who
have had success in assembling and/or maintaining choir
numbers, and we ask that they write a paragraph or two about
this for the next SOUNDBOARD. Material forthcoming, we will
assemble a article that should provide help for those that may be
struggling.
Another matter highlighted by the questionnaire is the desire for
one-day or afternoon seminars or workshops on various aspects
of church music. This are distinct possibilities here and the
Committee will investigate the practicalities of it for next
academic year. The Editor already has ideas! Perhaps others also
have specific ideas or suggestions? Practical help is also possible
for some of the other matters identified; keep in touch!
Book of Common Prayer
The new edition of the Prayer Book is very much a “hot” matter at
the moment. First thoughts on the part of the Editor were
personally (i) it is good to have the canticles (most of them
anyway) printed in the service of Morning Prayer, and not in
another part of the book — as was the case with the APB; (ii)
great disappointment that the text of some of the psalms has
been changed almost out of recognition and for no apparent
reason; in particular, the beautiful English of Ps. 65 (e.g., “Thou O
God art praised in Zion: and unto thee shall the vow be performed in
Jerusalem”) has been made so banal (“Praise is due to you, O God
in Zion; to you that answer prayer shall vows be paid.”). At least
the option is there of using the text of the 1926 prayer book.
Another disappointing feature is the omission of many of the
pointing symbols in the psalms and canticles — making it still
more difficult to chant (who was responsible for such a
decision?). In Howth — and no doubt in other churches — we
will have to have a session or two with red biros and add
approximately an estimated 1100 missing symbols to each of the
twenty choir prayer books.
WHAT’S IN THIS ISSUE?
Editorial Comment
The Questionnaire —
what it told us
A “Top Ten” Recessional
Voluntaries Here are some
ideas for voluntaries — from
ten amateur organists
Church Music in
Rathfarnham
David Wilkinson writes about
the high standard of music in
Rathfarnham Parish
Simple Organ Music — the
music of Caleb Simper and
William Lloyd Webber
The RSCM in Ireland —
what it is and what it does, by
Tom Gordon
The Kildare Cathedral
Choir Derek Verso describes
a novel approach to a provincial
cathedral choir
A Tale of Two Churches
David McConnell writes about
his “other” organist’s post
Notes & News
An Organist’s Crossword
SOUNDBOARD is published by the
Church Music Committee of the
Dublin & Glendalough Diocese of the
Church of Ireland. Views expressed
in signed articles, letters and
advertisements are not necessarily
those of the Church Music
Committee
Secretary: Ruth Maybury,
28 Lakelands Close,
Stillorgan, Co. Dublin,
Tel. 01 283 1845
E-mail:
[email protected]
Readership
It has come to the attention of the Committee that more people Editor:
would like to receive and/or read SOUNDBOARD than those that Randal Henly,
are on the mailing list, and the Committee is happy to make more 81 Offington Avenue,
copies available. Would your rector/minister be interested in Sutton, Dublin 13,
having a copy? Would you like a copy or two for your choir, or for Tel. 01 832 3647;
any particular members of it? If ‘yes’, send an e-mail to E-mail: [email protected]
[email protected], or contact David McConnell on
www.churchmusic.dublin.anglican.org
(01) 497 3745, who will make the arrangements.
RESULTS OF THE 2003 QUESTIONNAIRE
In November 2003 a questionnaire
was sent to the organists known to
play on most Sundays or less often
in all churches (but not the two
cathedrals) in the dioceses of Dublin
and Glendalough.
These churches are grouped into 54
parish units: 43 can be classified,
broadly, as being urban/suburban;
11 as being rural.
Questionnaires were sent to 86
organists. A reminder was posted at
the end of December. By 31 January
2004, 54 (62%) had responded.
Respondents were
six questions.
presented
with
QUESTION 1:
Do you find the Remuneration Guidelines (issued annually) helpful?
Yes 89% No 2% Not relevant 9%
QUESTION 2:
Is your remuneration greater than,
the same as, or less than the
guidelines recommended for your
situation?
Remuneration greater
17%
Remuneration the same
42%
Remuneration less
15%
No fee accepted
7%
Guidelines not relevant
13%
No information given
6%
QUESTION 3:
Do you have a written letter of
appointment/contract?
Yes 22%;
No 78%
QUESTION 4:
Are you interested in in-service
training/continuous
professional
development opportunities, if they
were easily available?
Interested 57%;
Not interested 43%
QUESTION 5:
Taking a broad overview of your
current position as organist and the
conditions under which you operate,
what three changes do you consider
would make things easier for you
and help you to be more effective in
your work as a church musician?
Your response may cover all relevant issues - musical, administrative,
organisational,
financial,
and the like. In responding, you may
find it useful to prompt your thinking
with the words ‘If only … …"
33 organists (61%) responded to
this question. Their expressed views
have been grouped by reference to
ten topics or issues. The number
preceding each ‘wish’ refers to the
number of those listing that item.
If only … …
Training
4 there were one-day or afternoon
training seminars/workshops,
perhaps funded by the parish
3 there was an objective
assessment of the effectiveness,
outcome and impact of the
church music training scheme
2 there were training sessions for
musicians on the new forms of
service
1 there were effective musical
training for theological students,
e.g. ‘how to get the most out of
your organist’
1 organists would update their
skills
1 I were able to improve my
personal musical ability
Lists of music
3 there were a display/lists of
appropriate choir and organ
music available
1 there was a music store with a
dedicated selection of music
relevant to parish church
musician
1 there was a list of recommended
chants for psalms
Choirs
10 I had a four-part choir
again/more singers/an effective
recruitment scheme
2 funds were available to pay a
core quartet
2 there was a junior choir/more
teenage involvement in
church/courses for teenagers
2 the choir would notify me of
intended absences and so
avoided wasted rehearsal time
2 there were a more serious
commitment/better punctuality
on the part of the choir
1 there was a periodic visit by a
roving choir trainer
Deputy/assistant organists
2 it were easier to find deputies
2 there were more young keyboard
players/deputy organists from
within the local congregation/
choir
1 more organists would agree to
deputise
Remuneration
1 the parish would pay the
recommended rate
1 the parish would apply more
resources to the music
Organs, pianos
3 the organ received the attention
and servicing it needs, perhaps
with funding from central sources
1
I had access to a piano for
rehearsals
Clergy
3 the services were planned more
in advance/good notice given of
any changes to readings, choice
of hymns, etc.
1 the clergy were willing to try new
hymns and settings and encourage the children to take part
1 the clergy would agree to a formal
planning meeting every (say)
three months
1 the clergy kept the traditional
services (such as the carol
services) going
1 there was better communication
between clergy and musicians
1 there was more give and take
between clergy and congregations
1 the clergy would provide pastoral
care to an organist not resident
in the parish
Revised liturgies
2 there were a moratorium on new
prayer and hymn books for at
least 25 years
1 the words of hymns in the new
hymnbook and not been changed
1 there were more awareness of
use of psalms and canticles
Congregations
1 there was more feedback from
congregations
1 the congregation were more open
and accepting to new hymns
Miscellaneous
1 I did not have to rush from one
church to the next on a Sunday
morning
1 there were an ‘organist’s society’
such as the defunct Leinster
Society of Organists and
Choirmasters
QUESTION 6:
Please add any other observations/suggestions you may wish to make.
5 respondents made observations
• Deputy organist list is valued
• Next hymn book should be
capable of opening flat
• The new hymn book with melody
lines is too heavy
• Some deputy organists appear to
be unwilling to travel far
• The work of the Committee is
valued
• Has an excellent relationship
with Rector and Select Vestry
A “TOP TEN” RECESSIONAL VOLUNTARIES
Janet Ashe, Judy Cameron, Randal Henly, Valerie Johnston, Philip Lawton, Ruth Maybury,
Donald Maxwell, John Rowden, Derek Seymour, Derek Verso,
Ten amateur organists were asked to list their ten most-often-played recessional voluntaries — and this
has resulted in the list that follows. Asterisks indicate the number of those listing a particular piece. Some
of the contributors mentioned the fact that some pieces are seasonal, being played on a particular Sunday
of the year. It is hoped that this article will provide some ideas for organists to add to their repertoires.
It is also hoped, for the next SOUNDBOARD, to continue the series, with an article A Top Ten Introductory
Voluntaries — in the same style. So, we appeal to all organists out there: please let us have a list of the ten
introductory voluntaries that you play most often. Please don’t assume that there will be enough
contributions without yours; the more there are, the more objective the article will be.
*
****
*
*
*
**
**
*
Adamson, John
Bach
Bach
Bach
Bach
Bach
Bach
Bach
*
*
**
**
*
Bach
Bach
Bach
Boëllman
Boyce
*
**
***
*
*
*
*
Burt, W.H.
Charpentier
Clarke
Clementi
Daquin
Dubois
Elgar
*
*
*
Fletcher, Percy E.
Gotsche
Grieg
**
*
*
Guilmant
Guilmant
Gluck
*
Gluck
*
**
Handel
Handel
*** Handel
*
Handel
*
*
*
Handel
Handel
Handel
**
*
**
*
Handel
Handel
Hollins
Howells
Postlude in C major
Toccata in D minor
Toccata from Adagio in F
Sheep may safely graze
Prelude in G mi from Book 1
Jesu, joy
Prelude in C from Book 1
Prelude & Fugue in B flat from
Book 1
Air on a G string,
St Anne Prelude & Fugue
Wachet Auf
Suite Gothique (parts or all)
Vivace in D from Ten
Voluntaries for the Organ or
Harpsichord
Marche des Troubadours
Te Deum Prelude
Trumpet Voluntary
Sonatina No. 5
Noel
Toccata
Triumphal March from
Caractus
Postlude
Wedding Prelude, Op. 55
Homage March from Sigurd
Jorsalfar
Grand Choeur
March Triumphal
Che Faro (What is life to me
without thee)
Dance of the Blessed Spirits
from Orfeo et Eurudice
March from Scipio
March from Occasional
Overture
Hornpipe from Water Music
Minuet & Trio from Water
Music
Bouree from the Water Music
Arrival of the Queen of Sheba
Let the Bright Seraphim from
Samson
Hallelujah Chorus
He was despised
A Trumpet Minuet
Psalm Prelude Set 2, No. 3
*
Karg-Elert
*
**
*
*
*
*
Karg-Elert
Lang, C.S.
Lefebure-Wely
Maunder
Mendelssohn
Mendelssohn
*
Mendelssohn
*
*
Mendelssohn
Meyerbeer
*
Mozart
**
*
Mozart
Nicolai
**
**
*
**
*
Purcell
Purcell
Stanford
Stanley
Stanley
*
*
*
*
*
**
**
Pachelbel
Praetorius
Rossini
Verdi
Vivaldi
Wagner
Wagner
*
*
*
Walford Davies
Walton
Walton
*
*
Widor
Young, Gordon
Chorale - Improvisation on Nun
Danket Alle Gott
Choral Improvisation in A
Tuba Tune in D
Sortie in E flat
Excerpts from Bethlehem
War March of the Priests
Italian Symphony (1st
movement)
Heaven & Earth Display from
Athalie
War March of the Priests
Coronation march from Le
Prophete
March of the Priests from Die
Zauberflote
Alleluia from Exultate Jubilate
Overture to Merry Wives of
Windsor
Rondo from Abdelazar
Trumpet Tune (and Air)
Love came down at Christmas
Trumpet Tune in D
Several movements from
Voluntaries for the Organ
Canon in D
Ballet des Marelotz
William Tell overture
Grand March from Aida
Four Seasons (Spring)
Grand March from Tannhauser
Pilgrim's Chorus from
Tannhauser
RAF March Past
Spitfire Prelude
Scherzetto from Three Pieces for
Organ
Toccata from Symphony 5
Prelude in the Classical Style
CHURCH MUSIC IN RATHFARNHAM
David Wilkinson
Rathfarnham is a thriving Church of
Ireland parish with 535 families,
making it one of the largest in the
Republic. Last year we launched
our Christ First Project, the aim of
which is to implement a new form of
collaborative ministry, led by both
laity and clergy, which will meet the
needs and aspirations of people in
a changing cultural environment.
The Project Steering Committee, of
which I am a member representing
"Music", covers every facet of parish
life from "Welcome" to "Spirituality
and Faith".
Music is a key element of worship
in the Church of Ireland, and plays
a most important part in our
services. It is seen as one of the
strengths of Rathfarnham and
therefore, in the context of Christ
First, it is a case of continuing to
develop along current lines. The
music
must
enhance
parish
worship, which is lively and relevant within an Anglican framework.
There are three choirs in the
parish:
• Senior Choir, with 9 sopranos,
8 altos, 6 tenors and 5 basses
• Junior Choir, with 7 boys and
14 girls
• Youth Choir, with 7 members
There are four services each
Sunday: 8.00 a.m., 10.30 a.m.,
12.00 midday, 7.00 p.m. The main
service is the 10.30 a.m., with an
average congregation of 230. The
actual services vary throughout the
month: Holy Communion, using a
form of service from another part of
the Anglican Communion e.g., New
Zealand, South Africa; Family
Service, in which the Junior Choir
participates;
Holy
Communion,
using BCP contemporary language
service; Morning Prayer. The choirs
operate, therefore, in an exciting
environment of varied and, at all
times, relevant forms of worship.
The Senior Choir leads the worship
at all 10.30 a.m. services. There
are rehearsals each Wednesday
evening in the Church, at which the
average attendance is about 22.
The reason for this dedication and
commitment is largely due to the
fact that rehearsals are both
challenging and enjoyable. While
we sing settings of the Gloria,
Gospel Responses, Sanctus and
Lord’s
Prayer
at
communion
services, only a small proportion of
rehearsal time is devoted to basic
music for the following Sunday. As
everything is planned well in
advance, and the hymns for the
following month are chosen by the
Rector and myself at our monthly
meetings, forthcoming new items
are included in rehearsals where
appropriate. The Choir also has a
wide,
and
ever-increasing,
repertoire
of
devotional
music
which is sung during Communion.
The main purpose of each rehearsal
is to learn special music for future
occasions such as Harvest Festival,
Advent, Carol Service/Christmas,
Palm Sunday and Easter, and other
Sundays throughout the year. For
example, on the fourth Sunday of
each month we include, where
possible, an appropriate anthem,
occasionally with flute or clarinet —
which
allows
time
for
quiet
reflection.
Congregations
enjoy
listening to as well as participating
in hymn-singing. The music at all
times is varied, challenging, and
appealing – both classical and
modern – and includes compositions by, for example, Carter,
McCann,
Mendelssohn,
Mozart,
Rizza, Rutter, Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi,
Wilcocks.
The Junior Choir rehearses each
Friday from 2.15 – 3.00 p.m. in the
Church. It generally provides three
items at the monthly Family
Service, and also participates in the
Sunday
evening
Organisations
Services at Harvest Festival and on
Palm Sunday. At the time of writing
they
are
rehearsing
the
"Resurrection
Rock"
by
Sheila
Wilson for April 4th. They are a
very
lively
bunch,
looking
resplendent and angelic in their
Junior Choir sweat-shirts, and
certainly enjoy the challenge of
participating in the Choir.
The Youth Choir is small but very
enthusiastic, and consists mainly of
former members of the Junior
Choir. Accompaniment is provided
by guitars, with special effects as
appropriate,
plus
piano
occasionally. Unlike the Senior and
Junior Choirs where I select the
music, the Youth Choir is very
much a joint effort, and the
members are encouraged to come
up with their own ideas. Owing to
the pressures on secondary-school
students, the Youth Choir only
participates in services at Advent,
Christmas,
Confirmation
and
Easter, with rehearsals on the five
preceding Sundays from 11.45 to
1.00 p.m. Last Advent Sunday the
choir combined with the Senior
Choir in opening the service with
"Prepare Ye" from Godspell —
commencing with Youth Choir and
guitars, and gradually building-up
to a spine-tingling climax as piano,
Senior Choir, choir descant, and
finally organ joined in.
On those Fifth Sundays during "The
Season" (September to May) we try
to do something different at 10.30
a.m. On Advent Sunday we held a
Songs of Praise, and on 29th
February the Dublin Gospel Choir
led the music at Morning Prayer.
This added another dimension to
our worship, and the attendance of
about 600 (almost all parishioners)
equalled that on Christmas Day.
The
Youth
Choir
was
very
impressed, and it is planned to
send them to the next Workshop
organised by the Gospel Choir.
The choirs also get involved in
some "extra-curricula" activities!
The Senior Choir produced a CD/Cassette — "A Joyful Celebration" —
in 2001. At Christmas they always
sing in some local nursing home,
and also are involved in ecumenical
services. All three choirs have
participated in charity concerts
with
the
Stedfast
Band
in
Rathfarnham Church – which
affords an opportunity to sing
entertaining secular music. Last
summer, during June and July, the
tenors
and basses
thoroughly
enjoyed learning some Barber-Shop
songs, which were performed at a
parish dinner/cabaret as part of the
launch of the Christ First Project.
And of course it cannot be all work
all of the time! There must be some
time for relaxation and socialising.
"Thank-You’s" take various formats:
• The Senior Choir is asked to the
Rectory for mulled wine before
Christmas; come to our house in
January for supper and a chat, and
also to hear the choir items from the
recent Carol Service; have an endof-season BBQ in the Rectory
garden in May.
• The
Youth
Choir
is
more
adventurous! — last year the Rev.
Anne Taylor and I brought them
Quad-Biking, while the previous
year we "roared" past Dalkey Island
with Sea Thrill.
• The Junior Choir is brought on two
outings per year — after Christmas
to a show, and in May to some
outdoor activity — for example, to
Fort Lucan. Each trip includes a
mandatory stop at MacDonalds.
Obviously a lot of hard work and
effort goes on behind-the-scenes in
order to run three successful
parish choirs. But I believe that the
effort is well worthwhile when one
receives such ongoing support from
each choir, and positive feedback
from parishioners. In addition to
the music provided by the Choirs, I
play the organ for approximately 15
to 20 minutes before each morning
service — classical/non-classical,
traditional/contemporary music —
and also, of course, a concluding
voluntary. As we very seldom use
Anglican chanting, we incorporate
the psalms into our services either
in the form of anthems, or read with
quiet background organ or piano
music. Some of Ludovico Einaudi’s
piano pieces are very appropriate,
and can also be used for variation
during Holy Communion.
Life is never dull in Rathfarnham
from a musical perspective. On the
contrary, it is full of energy and
vitality. To attract people into
choirs, and, more importantly, to
hold onto them, I believe it is
necessary to:
• Provide challenging music. The
degree
of
complexity
will
obviously vary from choir to choir
• Vary the styles of music to make
it more interesting for both Choir
and Congregation
• Hold weekly mid-week rehearsals, always ensuring that there
is a definite reason for choir
members to attend;
• Be
innovative.
The
music
provided by choirs and organists
in parish churches must be
relevant to the present age. In an
era of constant change, Church
Music cannot stand still as if
locked in a time-capsule;
• Involve choir members in some
extra-curricula activities;
• Organise
appropriate
gettogethers/outings as a way of
saying "Thank You".
Certainly the above works in
Rathfarnham.
SIMPLE Organ Music
Randal Henly
There have been frequent requests
for information about simple organ
music
and
some
helpful
suggestions have already appeared
in previous issues of SOUNDBOARD. The music of Caleb Simper
may be another answer for those
looking for such material.
A prolific composer of Victorian
church music, Caleb Simper was a
humble musician whose works sold
in vast quantities, rightly deserving
the publisher's accolade as being
'sung
throughout
the
civilised
world'. Born in Barford St Martin,
Wiltshire in 1857, Simper was
largely self-taught. He attempted a
number of professions, including
piano tuning, before finding his
vocation as an organist, and it
appears that his first opportunity in
this field came in 1881, when he
was appointed organist of St Mary
Magdalen's, Worcester. He was also
briefly manager of a music shop
next door but one to the Elgar
family business. Ten years later he
moved to Barnstable, and there he
remained, occupying a number of
posts as organist and choirmaster
until shortly before his death in
1942.
Acutely aware of the limitations of
many church organists of the
period, and that churches and
chapels had, in many instances,
only access to a harmonium or
American organ, he set about
composing voluntaries for two
staves only. Now in the 21st
century,
many
churches
find
themselves using a competent
pianist as organist, and the ability
to provide the congregation with a
voluntary without needing the
ability to 'pedal' is again to the fore.
However, the bottom notes of most
Simper pieces can be pedalled with
effect, and the tune of many pieces
can be played as a solo, again with
effect.
Simper’s Voluntaries have been
described as a help in times of
trouble — most can be sight read
with little or no effort, and can often
save the day when an organist has
nothing prepared for a Sunday
morning! Published by Stainer &
Bell, there are twelve books, each
containing seventeen voluntaries,
made up of pastorals, communion
pieces,
postludes,
matches,
meditations, melodies and so on.
While some of the pieces lack
substance, there are many items
well worth having in a voluntaries
repertoire. S & B report that the
Simper albums are a steady seller,
and are constantly being reprinted.
Simper also produced much choral
music; there are 162 anthems
under his own name and others
under the pseudonym Edwyn A
Clare. His anthems, noticeably
influenced by the style of S.S.
Wesley, are simple and offer
singable and practical music for
church choirs of limited technical
ability for the main festivals of the
Christian year.
William Lloyd Webber, although
never as famous as his two sons
Andrew and Julian have become,
also produced some volumes of
simple organ music. Stainer & Bell
have two volumes entitled Chapel in
the Valley written on two staves,
each containing six voluntaries.
Keith Wakefield of Stainer & Bell in
a recent note to the Editor wrote: A
fascinating
programme
about
William on Radio 4 this Tuesday,
reminded me of just how good an
organist he was, and, indeed, an
excellent composer in the romantic
school. I used to go to hear him at
the Central Hall, Westminster.
The RSCM in Ireland – New Directions
The Revd Tom Gordon, RSCM Ireland
For many people the RSCM (Royal
School of Church Music) in Ireland
over the years has been associated
with the characteristic ‘Meet and
Sing’
evenings.
These
were
occasions where the latest choral
publications would make their debut
amongst hearty and enthusiastic
groups of organists and choir
members. These evenings often gave
confidence to diverse groups of
amateur musicians and mostly —
although not exclusively — centred
on
a
broadly
Anglican
base.
Successive Regional Directors in
their roving capacity ventured forth
upon
their
arrival
in
Ireland
journeying to the various nooks and
crannies throughout the island,
North and South, to dispense the
musical goodies. There was the
characteristic bonhomie of such
‘hands on’ tours and the existence of
a shared church music office in
Dublin — with the luxury of a
secretary(!) — gave a sense of focus
and structure.
In recent years the cluster of church
music bodies familiar to the Church
of Ireland has either declined or
disappeared. The increasing patchiness of the RSCM’s presence has to
be seen in this context, as does its
changing ethos under the direction
of Professor John Harper. The focus
has noticeably moved away from a
‘top down’ approach in the task of
musical training towards a much
more
educational
role in
the
provision of resources, new departures in extension studies (with
university validation) and a much
more contemporary liturgical vision.
but one which is nonetheless more
responsive to the expressed needs
of the churches. But does this mean
the absence of ‘events’? Not at all. In
aiming by trial (and error!) over the
past few years to carve out a new
way of working, recent activity has
been fairly substantial.
Since October there has been a
strong RSCM association with the
introduction of the Book of Common
Prayer [2004]. Canon Rountree as
Central
Liturgical
Officer
has
combined with various liturgists and
musicians acting on behalf of the
RSCM to present the new prayer
book within the context of accessible
and
appropriate
resources
for
musicians and clergy. These have
been broadly well-received and have
involved most of the dioceses of the
Church of Ireland. Attendances have
ranged from twenty to around one
hundred at each event. Taken
together this has been one of the
largest
exposures
to
RSCM
workshop material to date and has
already generated a number of local
follow-on events.
The
new
diocesan
Foundation
Certificate in Liturgy and Worship
has also taught the liturgical music
content exclusively through the
RSCM material. This course for
Parish Readers, Lay Readers and
Church Musicians has seen around
fifty people enrolled for the year’s
programme. Again, this is a sub-
Whilst the RSCM has always strived
to work within an ecumenical
mission, it is now much more
obviously so in its ethos and
embrace. Much of its concentration
is now on background resources
evidenced in such point-of-contact
publications as ‘Sunday by Sunday’,
the Voice for Life scheme and the
newly-launched modular third-level
qualification for church musicians.
This is however but the tip of an
enormous iceberg where the energy
of the RSCM now centres in a
renewed way on the provision of
resources for those who wish to
advance their practical competence
and liturgical repertoire.
It is in this context too that the
RSCM has to find its new feet in
Ireland. It is no longer possible to
work
the
previous
models
of
function and administration. The
intention is that the RSCM might
have a much more slender presence
The Elliot organ in
Waterford Cathedral
stantial exposure to the resources of
the RSCM. Whilst these have been
tailored to Anglican requirements,
the recent workshop in Ballina has
its base in the broader community.
This one-day course for church
musicians in the West of Ireland is
in association with the Newman
Institute. In all these events,
musicians
and
liturgists
of
excellence such as Mark Duley,
Theo Saunders and Margaret DalyDenton have ensured the quality of
the events, each of which it should
be noted are resourced from within
our own context.
So what next? There is much to do
in continuing these new beginnings.
Perhaps most important is the task
of eliciting ideas from you as church
musicians as to how the RSCM can
help resource you. It is especially
important
that
musicians
and
worship leaders identify their needs
and then frame them by way of
suggestions and practical requests
for
workshops,
courses
or
information. Other immediate tasks
include setting up a formal structure
for administration such as affiliation
administration, insurance etc.
Any able and willing Hon Treasurers
out there??
Tom Gordon ([email protected])
RSCM Ireland
Next issue: Information, contacts
and resources from the RSCM
CIRCLE OF LIGHT is a new
CD of music for organ and
choir by Eric Sweeney,
recorded on the restored
Elliot organ in Christ Church
Cathedral, Waterford. It
features the Lassus Scholars
and Piccolo Lasso choirs
conducted by Ite O'Donovan,
with
the
composer
as
organist.
Available from Eric Sweeney,
Rockfield,
Carrigavantry,
Tramore, Co. Waterford,
price € 15 (which includes
postage and packing).
Kildare Cathedral’S Choir
Derek Verso, Director of Music,
St Brigid's Cathedral, Kildare
Recently I took up the position of director of St Brigid's
Cathedral Choir, and since last September am enjoying
enormously working with this highly-committed group of
people.
Liam Lawton
What makes them different?
Well for a start this cathedral choir sings only four or
five services per year, all of which are in the afternoon
or evening For the rest of the year there is a regular
Sunday organist and a few people who sing in the choir
stalls.
Who is in the cathedral choir?
There are approximately 26 singers at present — five
basses, four tenors, five altos and twelve sopranos, and
they all sing in other choirs throughout the surrounding
counties. Some live close by but most travel a fair deal
to attend (two people travel 35 miles). Another unique
aspect is the choir is drawn from all the Christian
churches — so a truly ecumenical spirit prevails and
infuses our work together.
How does this work?
The idea is that they come together to sing at the major
church festivals in the cathedral and that their
participation in St Brigid's Cathedral does not interfere
with their other choral commitments.
So in practice they come together for three or four
rehearsals before Christmas, Easter, Confirmation etc.,
etc. I have been very impressed by their hard working
and committed approach; this is no easy sing through a
few hymns and a psalm, a chat and a cuppa, no, this is
two hours of intensive singing and learning of new
music, where everyone is anxious to do his or her best,
in a church hall type situation with a simple keyboard.
This choir learns more in four rehearsals than the
average choir learns in a year! They just drink up new
challenges so it's a great pleasure (though there’s a lot of
preparation) to work with them.
What happens at a service?
Well in fact, usually two hours before a service, they are
all there, going through the final and only rehearsal they
will have with the organ in the cathedral. I am free to
conduct as we always engage an organist — usually the
talented Dr Kerry Houston — and that ensures
everything runs smoothly. Then the choir robe and
gather at the west end of the cathedral and soon the
service starts, and we all process up the aisle and off we
go.
In brief, the attraction for the singers is that they get to
sing in a cathedral environment with a wonderful
acoustic, which makes music a central platform to its
worship. We try to practise the best traditions of
cathedral worship in what we do, and how we do it and
this cathedral choir offers the only opportunity in the
Diocese for singers to work in this way, and they really
enjoy the challenge this offers. From the cathedral's
point of view, it has its own really good choir for the
major festivals of the year, which is quite independent of
the more usual "parish type" music for the rest of the
year.
7–8 Lower Abbey Street, Dublin 1
Tel. 01-878 8177 Fax 01-874 4913
E-mail: [email protected]
Sligo • Ennis • Letterkenny • Derry • Cork
www.veritas.ie
Does it work?
Yes, extremely well. Having just finished my third
service with them, I am impressed at how well it works
and how much it is appreciated by the capacity
congregation each time. We recently did a Songs of
Praise for Ascension, and as the choir left the choir
stalls at the end of the service to process back to the
west end of the cathedral, the congregation began to
applaud spontaneously together. This has never
happened before. What appreciation.
What do we sing?
Well we sing a broad range of music — from Tallis to
Bruckner, Matthias, Rutter, Ó Riada, Stanford and at the
Songs of Praise we had four instrumentalists (age 16 to
30 something!) and they lead the choir/congregation in
three contemporary songs by Graham Kendrick and
others). This was another first for the cathedral!
Is that it?
No, we've been invited to sing in St Fin Barre's
Cathedral Cork for a Sunday in August and we have just
started to record our first CD, due out hopefully in time
for St Brigid's Day next year.
Perhaps this is a model that could be copied in other
dioceses where a good cathedral choir for 52 weeks of
the year is just not possible any longer.
A Tale of Two Churches
David McConnell reflects on his experience as musician for two traditions
Last September I was invited at short
notice to play at the 12 noon Mass in
a local Roman Catholic church.
Almost twelve months on, I am still
there most Sundays. The Anglican
liturgy in Zion ends at 11.30 so
there is just enough time to move
from one church to the other. I have
found the experience stimulating
and
enriching
and
hope
the
arrangement will continue.
On paper, our liturgies are almost
identical in structure. Now that the
Church of Ireland has adopted the
three-year
lectionary, the
bible
readings are usually the same. The
hymns used in Catholic worship are
familiar to me. But there the
similarities end. A combination of
five centuries of worshipping apart,
together with historical, tribal, and
sociological factors, results in the
ethos of post-Christendom worship
by two affluent, middle-class, suburban communities, living cheek-byjowl being markedly different.
Not so long ago, a church musician
friend said to me "We Catholics find
Anglican
services rather intimidating". This started me thinking. I
might reasonably have responded by
seeking a little more formality about
some aspects of Catholic community
worship. And certainly, there are few
things more intimidating than a High
Mass I attended recently in the
London Oratory. However, I can
empathise with my friend. And the
manner
in
which
an
almost
indefinable lightness of presentation
is juxtaposed and intertwined with
the solemn Liturgy is something
many Catholic priests have brought
to quite a high level. Increasingly at
times I feel like saying to our clergy:
"Loosen up a bit … quicken the pace
… be aware of the language of your
body". Certainly, those of our younger
priests who have abandoned the stiff
and constricting medieval cassock
and
surplice
for
the
more
comfortable alb are getting the message that drama, like music, provides
a powerful support for liturgy.
But to return to Sunday mornings: At
the 12 o’clock Mass there are two
hymns, at the Entrance and the
Going Out. Invariably, only two verses
are sung and this is usually quite
enough. The 16th century Reformation may have been born on song,
but Anglicans and Protestants must
maintain a balance. Hymns help the
Liturgy; they must not hinder it. And
a plethora of hymns with too many
verses, especially long ones, not
only holds things up, but also can
smother the drama and movement of
what we are doing in church. A
Lutheran theological student working for a time in Ireland last year was
highly critical of the length of our
hymns. "Why do you sing so many
verses?" she complained. In a sound
-byte world, hymns with eight-line
verses should be used sparingly.
While there is no choir, the church
has a cantor with a trained voice,
and it is a joy to work with her,
particularly
in
choosing
and
preparing vocal music, which she
sings during the Communion of the
People. She also sings the Psalm
and I have grown to love the simple
Gelineau-type inflexions and the
attractive Responses, mostly composed by the late Fintan O’Carroll.
For several years I have sought to
move away from Anglican chant.
While I can find it very satisfying in
a cathedral context, at this stage I
am convinced that Anglican chant is
often inappropriate and unhelpful in
contemporary community worship.
But try persuading my choir and
congregation of this! One of the
strategically biggest misjudgements
in the new BCP (in my view) is that
the bar-lines for Anglican chant are
printed in the Psalter. This seems to
give undue status to a method of
singing the psalms that many church
musicians nowadays recommend we
should not use in community
worship. We must have regard for
the huge corpus of study, writing
and praxis relating to other ways of
singing
the
psalms
–
the
fundamental song of the Christian
(and Jewish) traditions — as those of
us who have attended church music
courses in England and North
America will be well aware.
There is a widely-believed myth that
‘Catholics can’t/won’t sing’. Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has referred
to this twice recently in reported
comments. But to experience every
Sunday the fervour and gusto with
which the entire community in the
Church of the Three Patrons sings
the ‘Holy, holy, holy Lord’ and the
‘Our Father’ at the climax of the
Eucharistic Prayer would challenge
the most Wesleyan of Methodists! If
only the Anglicans up the road
would do the same. On the other
hand, other than a small number of
pieces, deeply embedded in folk
memory, the hymns are not well sung.
If I continue to be engaged as
musician, I hope I may be allowed to
make some practical suggestions as
to how this can be improved. This is
an area where musicians of the
reformed traditions can usefully
bring their experience to Roman
Catholic worship.
But perhaps the most unexpected
outcome of my new involvement is
other than musical. The welcome
and affirmation I continue to receive
is heart-warming. And in no way do I
under-value forty years experience
of the Church of Ireland community.
But I am now stopped in the neighbourhood regularly by complete
strangers who say things such as "I
saw you at Mass last Sunday … you
and Aisling are doing great things
for us… keep it up". While I have
lived in the same street for twentyfive years, overnight I feel more part
of the entire local community.
Which, as I said earlier, all makes
one think!
David McConnell is organist and
choir director at Zion Church,
Rathgar and a member of the
Church Music Committee.
HINTS & TIPS 2
Peter Barley,
St Patrick’s Cathedral
Liturgical index
A while ago I started to keep a
categorised index of choral/church
music
approprate
for
certain
seasons/themes, e.g., Easter, Christ
the Teacher, Discipleship, etc, and
feed new information into it on a
year by year basis. This makes
choosing suitable music (which
could of course include organ music
and hymns) much quicker, as I can
quickly
access
ideas.
After
a
performance, I like to make a note in
my copy of anything I wasn't happy
with at the time so that when I come
back to the piece again I remember
what
I
would
like
to
work
on/possible problem areas.
HINTS & TIPS 3
Derek Seymour
One thought from experience! When
playing in the RTE studios for TV
broadcasting, bring some paper
clips
for
marking
pages,
as
mysterious gusts of wind can sweep
through the studio throwing your
music into confusion!
Editor’s Note
More “Hints & Tips” are needed. A
few more have been received and
are on hold for the next issue, but
there must be dozens of little
items
like
the
above
that
organists can pass on to each
other. Keep them coming!
SUMMER ORGAN COURSE
Ann Keary reports on the St Giles
International Organ Summer Course,
in which she took part last summer
N
otes
and
ews
On 4th August last, I set off to
London to take part in the St Giles
International Organ Summer Course.
Not having participated in anything
of its kind before, I was very
apprehensive about (1) my ability;
(2) my age! and (3) leaving my family. My fears were
quickly dispelled when I arrived at St Giles Church to
see a great range of students of all ages — from 13 to
70! I also soon learned that organists of all abilities,
even beginners, are catered for.
This highly-organised course is led by Anne Marsden
Thomas, Musical Director of St Giles. A team of eight
excellent and highly-regarded organists guided us
throughout the week in master classes, improvisation
classes, private lessons, accompanying classes and
aural training. These classes were held for all levels in
fourteen different churches! Visiting these churches and
playing on their various organs was a wonderful
experience in itself. The days’ classes culminated in a
service of Evensong and in the evenings we had the
privilege of listening to each other perform in concert.
After this, the nightcap in the local pub was a must, of
course!
St Giles Cripplegate
is in the City of
London
and
is
looked down upon
by the tower blocks
of the Barbican
Being one of fifty eight organists present, all from
different backgrounds, but all with the same aim — to
improve one’s skills and become more rounded in
ability — was indeed a very stimulating experience. I
learned so much there, and yet I feel I only touched the
tip of the iceberg of what this course has to offer.
This year’s course will be held during the week 2nd to
7th August. Further information about it is obtainable
from the RSCM, Cleveland Lodge, Westhumble, Dorking,
Surrey, RH5 6BW, Tel. 0044 1306 872807, e-mail:
[email protected], or see the course web pages at
www.rscm.com.
MUSIC FOR SALE
David Bedlow
Having moved house recently I have less space for
books than I used to have, and so must part with some
of them. I am offering them to any church organist who
would make good use of them, at very reasonable prices.
The proceeds will go to Pipeworks — the Dublin
International Organ and Choral Festival. The list
includes the complete series of annual magazines
published by the RSCM from 1963 to 1986, originally
entitled English Church Music, changed later to The
World of Church Music. These annuals contain articles
and reviews which are still of great interest. Other
interesting items are Herbert Westerby's The Complete
Organ Recitalist (which was the subject of an article in
the recent edition of Organists'
Review), and bound copies of Organist
& Choirmaster for years 1905—08 and
1913—17.
Anyone interested should contact me
at
(01) 214 8457
or
e-mail:
[email protected]
for
the
complete list. (Editor’s note: On
checking with David Bedlow that he
really did mean 1903, the following
interesting reply arrived.
“Yes
Randal, I really mean it. They are bound copies (four
volumes). I was talked into buying them from a vagrant
as a work of corporeal mercy! They were expensive
enough too. I bought The Complete Organ Recitalist for
the same motives — from a decayed, pensioned piano
player whose father, I believe had been an organist!
David”
ST MICHAEL’S DUN LAOGHAIRE ORGAN RECITALS
27 June:
Mark Keane (organ) and Geraldine
O Doherty (harp)
4 July:
Claudia Dumschat (New York)
11 July:
Thomas Trotter (United Kingdom)
18 July:
Anne Page (United Kingdom)
25 July:
Simon Stroughair
1 Aug:
Simon Harden
8 Aug:
Malcolm Proud
15 Aug:
Gerard Gillen
22 Aug:
Stefano Vasselli (Italy)
29 Aug:
David Lee
5 Sept:
David Adams
All concerts begin at 8.30 and entrance is as last year:
€ 8/€ 4
PIPE ORGAN SOCIETY OF IRELAND (POSI)
Norbert Kelvin, Interim Chair, POSI
Your ideas are always welcome on how the Pipe Organ
Society of Ireland might better serve you and the cause
of the pipe organ. As our reach is nation-wide, we know
that busy people find it difficult to attending the
Society's events. We have run some modestly-successful
events, a Cork Organ Day in November 2003 where we
visited and played five notable Cork City pipe organs,
and the AGM in March 2004 at Galway Cathedral, with
visits to a number of noteworthy Galway organs. Despite
our best efforts people found that they couldn't get to
Galway for the AGM, so the election of a committee has
been postponed.
Our next event is likely to be in Dublin where we hope
to visit a number of that city's fine organs. The Society's
big event for 2005 will be next May — the Cork
International Pipe Organ Festival, where we are
planning to show off Cork's historic organs played really
well in concert and liturgical settings.
Perhaps all of this high-flying frenetic activity doesn't
appeal to the ordinary church organist who, in addition
to carrying a regular job, is required to organise the
music, rehearse the choir and practise the organ parts.
A fine pipe organ helps to make all this hard work a joy.
That's why POSI is so keen to foster the pipe organ as
the prime instrument in worship. This includes organs
of every age, but we especially want to ensure that
worthy historic instruments are conserved as working
examples of their superb artistry and not allowed to
deteriorate or be lost.
POSI's
new
website
www.irishpipeorgans.com.
(under
development)
is
ORGANISTS’ CROSSWORD 7
Correct entries to Crossword 6 arrived from
E. Ashmore, Mary Carrick, Anne Corry, Eric
de Courcy, Aileen Godden, John Godden,
Valerie Johnston, Robert Keogh, Iris Maguire,
Barry Magill, Sheila Pigott, Hilary Poole,
Derek Seymour, Adrian Somerfield, William
Yeoman, as well as one anonymous entry. The
full solution to the puzzle appears below.
The lucky two whose names came out of the
hat were Mary Carrick, organist of St
Michael’s Castlepollard, and William Yeoman
from Terenure. Well Done to both; some
musical notebooks have been sent.
Puzzle 7 follows, and solutions to this should
reach the Editor by the end of August. Be
sure to include full name and address.
Clues Across
1. Tune for the hymn Guide me O
Thou great Jehovah (10)
8. Powerful 4 foot reed organ stop
(6)
10. A German organ (5)
11. Seasonal alternative to the
Venite at Morning Prayer (6,7)
12. “Jesus shall ..... where’re the
sun” (5)
13. Denomination that asserts the
unity of God as opposed to the
Trinity (9)
14. Charles, 18th-century English
composer and organist includes
a car-rental company (6)
15. Wachet ..., Bach’s Sleepers
Awake (3)
16. Bach wrote lots of two-part and
three-part ones (10)
18. Religious pamphlets or leaflets
(6)
19. Famous public school that has
a boating song (4)
20. The wind one in the organ
holds air (5)
21.
(5)
22. An addition to a quaver makes
it smaller! (4)
34. Kent Association of Organists
(1,1,1)
20. Patron saint of music (7)
36. Have fun and perform on a
musical instrument (4)
21. Organ stop with more than one
pipe to each note (7)
37. The Cornopean is such a stop
(4)
23. The biblical priest in Samuel
(3)
Clues Down
1. Very important church officials
(5,7)
3. The lady of Troy (5)
30. Mr Stravinsky (4)
4. An admirable mass by Haydn
(6)
32. Above the clear blue .... in the
children’s hymn (3)
5. To which tune the hymn “Fight
the good fight” is set (4,6)
6. Modified male singer used in
churches choirs in the 18th
century (8)
28. Manual aid to registration (6)
8. A seat at the old choir organ (5)
9. 4 ft flue stop with a slightly
reedy or nasal quality (5,5)
31. Original editor of the Dictionary
of Music and Musicians, or the
Ash of the hymn tune (5)
13. Of one voice (6)
32, “And this shall be a ? unto you:
you shall find the babe..........”
(4)
17. Palindromic principle or
doctrine (5)
33. Jeremiah, who composed the
Trumpet Voluntary (6)
27. Requested (5)
28. Slightly, perhaps crescendo or
rallentando (4)
26. Hail Maria (3)
29. Beasts that roar after their prey
in the Harvest anthem (5)
26. The messenger in 23 down (5)
2. A canticle at Evening Prayer
(10)
7. To which saint Anne Marsden
Thomas’s church in London is
dedicated (5)
24. Otherwise Whit Sunday (9)
25. Repetitive traditional carol with
harmony by Stainer (6)
15. This year it occurred on 20th
May (9)
19. A piano concerto for a penguin!
(7)
Solution to Organists’ Crossword 6
A
NOTES & NEWS (continued)
JOHN GODDEN
We were very sorry to read of the sudden death earlier
this month of John Godden of Glendalough. Retired
engineer and organist of St John’s Laragh, John was a
regular contributor to SOUNDBOARD, a great writer of
e–mails to the Editor and his crossword entry always
arrived, usually with a cryptic remark or two. It was
thought appropriate to include his short article in this
issue, which was received some weeks before his
untimely death.
TRAINING SCHEME
Brochures about the diocesan training scheme for
church musicians have been circulated widely. The
course includes twenty-eight one-to-one organ lessons,
and group sessions on choir direction and liturgy. The
student, the nominating parish and the diocese share
the cost of the scheme. The closing date for applications
for the 2004-05 year is Friday 20 August. Details are
also on the Committee’s website.
SUMMER SCHOOL FOR CONDUCTORS
This year, for the first time, our students will participate
in the Cumann Náisiúnta na gCór Annual Choral
Conducting Summer School in Cork, from 23 to 27
August. The School offers a range of courses that allow
experienced and inexperienced conductors to progress
and achieve in a sociable, musical and fun environment.
Strongly recommended and just the sort of training
select vestries will be delighted to support. [email protected]@
www.cnc.ie. (021) 431 2296
ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS
SOUNDBOARD is posted free to all those on our mailing
list: in the dioceses of Dublin, Glendalough, Meath and
Kildare, and wider afield. There is no obligation on
musicians to send an annual donation but many
organists, particularly those who have benefited from
the 65% increase in recommended fees secured over the
past seven years, do so. So, if you haven’t already
helped us this year, perhaps we will hear from you
soon. Most people send € 25/€ 30.
DEPUTY ORGANISTS
There is anecdotal evidence that some of those on the
deputy organist list are never available and seem
irritated by requests for help. Others (it is alleged)
refuse to travel any distance, particularly to the ‘north
side’. Of course, no one is prepared to mention names,
so perhaps it is all untrue (?).
E-MAIL ADDRESSES
If you have got e-mail recently and have not sent us your
address, will you do so, please: to churchmusic
[email protected]? In fact, even if you are not on the
Internet we like to be kept in touch with changes in your
contact details: postal address, phone, etc.
MAILING LIST
Do you circulate SOUNDBOARD to your choir and
clergy? Additional copies are available for a small
charge. Contact David McConnell on (01) 497 3745,or
[email protected]
FINALE
John Godden, late of St John’s, Laragh
Randal, my disappointed Editor, this is a rather
pointless ramble around ‘tips’, requested in your recent
e-mail.
I so often explain that I am not an organist, but play the
organ! My bit on our organ here and my playing of it,
that got its way into the first SOUNDBOARD, says it all. I
was addressing mainly a readership that didn’t exist,
those that attend a church with a silent organ yet who
could re-awaken old skills and get up there and play it
acceptably. Unfortunately where they exist, and I’m sure
they do, they are not on Soundboard’s circulation list.
And I had zero response!
In that bit I gave a couple of tips, but they would not be
for the erudite ‘organist’ readership, in that they are
definitely for the likes of me. Don ’t misunderstand me.
Elsewhere I have suffered betimes from a tone-deaf
musician who couldn’t recognise wrong notes and who
yet was happy to play them. Better as an exponent of the
bag-pipes. No offence to that fine instrument! I’m not
talking of that, but of some of the many who learned
piano basics in their tender years and could certainly
make a reasonable fist at easy hymns, and a large
proportion of our over 700 hymns are easy indeed. But
in our parish grouping of three churches there are two
silent organs, one, when awakened for special occasions
by brought in genii, being a fine instrument indeed.
Mine is one too, but has to suffer me!
Tips.
Perhaps not for publication, and anyway perhaps
already known and practised by the Organists among
us.
1. Wear kick-offable shoes if perhaps it is an
advantage to find your way around the pedal-board
by touch.
2. If a voluntary is de rigueur choose one that that your
audience, if they listen, do not know, so that you
can choose your own tempo. It is no good trying the
familiar ‘Sailors’ Hornpipe’ on them largo! They
might twig that it is one of your bad mornings, or
that their organ deserves someone with nimbler
fingers!
3. More often than not, since I know for a fact that a
voluntary is luxury that my own friends wouldn’t
miss, and since I have no choir as such to help me
with unfamiliar hymns, instead of a voluntary I play
over the hymns for the service, with accent on the
ones that need help. A choir would seem to be
essential for the introduction of brand-new hymns, a
luxury that most rural churches do not have. It is a
great credit to my own singers that I have chosen all
of eighty-five hymns in the six months past that they
know, and it is not the end of the list yet. Credit
where credit is due! Once, and I do not want a
repeat of the experience, I picked a hymn that I
knew well, but no-one else did. I actually played
totally solo through I think seven verses. Of course I
value the dignity of worship in the Church of
Ireland, but it would have been a saver if the
tradition of dignity allowed
4. The preacher to stop me in mid gallop and suggest
choice of something different. Alternatively I might
have stopped at verse two and given in in the
unequal struggle. Whatever. A brave voice might
have been getting the drift as verse followed verse!
But no such luck!
Enough nonsense for now. If any of it can be tailored
acceptably for SOUNDBOARD so be it.