Sermons in Music in St Patrick’s; Watoto Children’s Choir in concert at St Nicholas; Bon Jovi and/or Mendelssohn?; Aled Jones is walking off the air; New album and book from Jeremy Camp
Sermons in Music in St Patrick’s
During Lent the Choir of St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, will be presenting Sermons in Music at Choral Evensong on Sundays at 3.15.
LENT I February 17
Evensong (Men’s voices)
Tallis The Lamentations of Jeremiah
LENT II February 24
Evensong (Girls’ & Men’s voices)
Allegri Miserere Mei
LENT III March 3
Evensong (Cathedral Consort)
Pergolesi Stabat mater
LENT IV March 10
Evensong (Boys’ & Men’s voices)
Tippett Five Negro Spirituals
PALM SUNDAY March 24
Evensong (Girls’ & Men’s voices)
Bach Himmelskönig, sei willkommen
EASTER SUNDAY March 31
Festal Evensong (Boys’ & Men’s voices)
Finzi Lo the full final sacrifice
Britten Festival Te Deum
LOW SUNDAY April 7
Festal Evensong (Close Chorale)
Britten Rejoice in the Lamb
Watoto Children’s Choir in concert at St Nicholas
The African Watoto Children’s Choir will be in concert in St Nicholas’ Parish Church, 507 Lisburn Road, Belfast, on Tuesday February 12.
The Watoto Children’s Choir travel as advocates for the millions of vulnerable women and children across Africa and to share the vision of Watoto.
Watoto was started as a response to the overwhelming number of orphaned children and vulnerable women whose lives had been ravaged by war and disease. Its mission is to rescue the vulnerable, raise each one as a leader so that they in turn will rebuild their nation.
To see a short documentary about the work that Watoto is doing in Africa visit http://vimeo.com/22382931
The concert begins at 7.30pm. Entry is free but a freewill offering will be collected. Car parking is available at the Parish Halls on Cadogan behind the Fire Station.
Bon Jovi and/or Mendelssohn?
Go to a wedding today, you are likely to hear music from Bon Jovi, Meat Loaf and others just as much as the familiar Wagner, Mendelssohn or Widor.
It’s the same with funerals. A conference in Canterbury will consider how church musicians are responding to the increasingly diverse needs of those who occasionally come into a church for a family event or a special service. It will be held at Canterbury Christ Church University (CCCU) on Saturday 20th April 2013.
During the conference, entitled Church Music: Sound Ministry? speakers and delegates will consider the ways in which church musicians today respond to a variety of issues, with a particular focus on civic services, weddings, funerals and school services. Contributions will reflect on the increasing use of secular music, the place of traditional symbolism, and the church musician’s response to the multi-cultural community, with an emphasis on current practice and the issues which inform it.
The conference is being organised by Chris Price and Dr Andrew Larner of the Department of Music at CCCU, in collaboration with the RSCM. These two organisations are also partners in delivering the Foundation Degree in Church Music, and this conference will run alongside one of the course’s regular Residential Study Schools, with an opportunity for students to participate in the sessions. Chris said: “For many church musicians, they’re just as likely these days to push a ‘start’ button on a CD machine as well as play an instrument of some kind. That has enormous implications for the complexion and content of services such as funerals and weddings. We’re looking forward to discussing ways in which different churches have reached out to wider communities through their music, and – hopefully – stimulate new ideas through case studies and discussion.”
The keynote speaker at this non-denominational event will be the Revd Canon Peter Moger, currently Precentor of York Minster. In his former role as National Worship Development Officer for the Church of England, he produced liturgical resources for many public and family occasions, and has contributed to musical resources published by the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM). Peter said: ‘There is no doubt that occasional and special services have a crucial part to play in the Church’s mission: they challenge us to make connections through worship with many who normally never set foot inside a church.’
The cost of the conference is £25 (including all sessions, refreshments and buffet lunch), and students may attend without charge. To register, contact Concha Hyde at the Department of Music, Canterbury Christ Church University, on +44 (0)1227 782579 or concha.hyde@canterbury.ac.uk
More information about the conference may be found here: http://www.rscm.com/education/soundministry.php
Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) is an educational charity that promotes the best use of music in worship, church life, and the wider community. The RSCM also publishes music and training resources, and organises courses, short workshops and activities. With around 8,500 affiliates, members and friends in over 40 countries, it is an international network, supported by over 600 volunteers and a small team of staff based throughout the UK. More at www.rscm.com
Canterbury Christ Church University (CCCU) has, since its foundation by the Church of England as a teacher training college in 1962, developed a wide range of taught programmes, research and educational services. The University now has approximately 18,000 students at five campuses, and is the largest centre of higher education in Kent for the major public services. Its mission is to pursue excellence in academic and professional higher education thereby enriching both individuals and society. More at www.canterbury.ac.uk
The Foundation Degree in Church Music (FDCM) is run jointly by the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) and Canterbury Christ Church University (CCCU). It is now in its second academic year of operation, with students from a wide variety of church music traditions based all over the country. The course teaching is provided by CCCU, while the RSCM provides a team of mentors from its nationwide network of expert church musicians. More information is available on both the CCCU and RSCM websites; www.canterbury.ac.uk/studyhere/church-music and www.rscm.com/fdcm.
Aled Jones is walking off the air
Independent – Sad news for fans of Aled Jones, the baby-faced chorister turned housewives’ favourite. His glittering media career is losing some its lustre, for he has lost not one but three BBC jobs in quick succession. In October, he was toppled from Songs of Praise, and replaced with Breakfast presenter Bill Turnbull. Then, just before Christmas, Radio 2 announced they were replacing him on Good Morning Sunday after six years with Clare Balding, now officially the nation’s favourite personality. Now, Radio 3 has also ditched Aled as presenter of The Choir, the Sunday night show he launched in 2007. Intriguingly, the show will continue, but no replacement host has been announced. Today’s edition has a guest presenter, Suzy Digby. It would be tempting to suppose Jones is being punished for signing up with rivals ITV: last summer, he became the new face of troubled breakfast show Daybreak. But the BBC insists it is keen to work with him again. Aled’s people decline to comment.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/diary/the-feral-beast-aled-jones-is-walking-off-the-air-8478453.html
New album and book from Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Camp’s highly anticipated studio project, Reckless, is coming out from BEC Recordings on 12 February.
It’s his first studio album release since his Grammy-nominated release, Speaking Louder Than Before, back in 2008.
As the title suggests, this album draws from a desire to live his life recklessly for God.
Jeremy finds inspiration in the life of Paul and his decision to return to Lystra to share the Gospel, despite having been stoned and left for dead in the city just days earlier.
“[Paul] wasn’t being crazy for crazy’s sake, saying ‘I don’t care what’s going to happen. I just want to go.’ No, when you feel God calling you to do something, you have to be obedient. And that’s the difference. Paul was just obedient. That’s what reckless is,” he explains.
Coinciding with the album is the release of his new book, I Still Believe, from Tyndale Publishers.
It’s a personal account of faith through the ups and downs of life, from his impoverished childhood, through rebellious teenage years, his spiritual awakening at Bible College, the tragic loss of his first wife, Melissa, to cancer, and the new chance at love he got with his second wife, Adrienne.