Lighten our Darkness: Celebrating Choral Evensong course
This course will introduce and explore the beautiful service of Choral Evensong, the so-called “jewel of the crown” of the Anglican Church and “best kept secret” of the Church of England, which is sung daily in Cathedrals and churches across the country and throughout the world.
At a time when campaigners have pushed for this service to be given world heritage status, we will consider the reasons for its enduring popularity in an increasingly secularised society. We will delve into its long history, looking at how its timeless words came to be formed in the first place, and consider how the music associated with it has developed over many centuries from the Reformation to the present. Finally we will look to its future, its mission potential for the Church in attracting those searching after faith and its adaptability in an inclusive age.
Sessions will include the history and development of its liturgical texts, musical elements including settings of the psalms and canticles (songs) that are sung within it, and its cultural value and potential in contemporary society. Combining lecture and group discussion, it will end with Choral Evensong at Salisbury Cathedral.
Anna Macham is Canon Precentor of Salisbury Cathedral, where she is responsible for the Cathedral’s Liturgy and Music. Previously she was parish priest of St Philip’s Camberwell, an inner-city parish off the Old Kent Road in South East London, and before that was Succentor at Southwark Cathedral and a Chaplain at King’s College London. She is a Visiting Scholar of Sarum College.
