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This week
Music at St Michael’s (22/12/2024)
The motet at Eucharist this morning is “I sing of a maiden”, by Lennox Berkeley, a leading composer of the 20th century, who died on Boxing Day in 1989. The text is a Middle English lyric poem written in the 15th century to celebrate the Annunciation and the virgin birth of Jesus. Described as one of the most admired short poems in the English of the late Middle Ages, it “offers within a deceptively simple form, an extremely delicate and haunting presentation of Mary and her conception of Christ.” Since its rediscovery in modern times it has become the basis of many choral works.
Tonight at 6.30pm the senior choir, joined by some of the junior choristers sing in a Christmas celebration of “Lessons and Carols”. As well as well-known congregational carols, the choir sings pieces by Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, John Rutter, John Tavener, and others. (Full words and translations in the Order of Service.)
For other Christmas services, please see the home page.
Chichester psalms, canticles and anthems. The On August bank holiday weekend 2024 the choir headed east on the M27 to visit a renowned ecclesiastical venue… Read about the choir’s visit to Chichester Cathedral on the parish blog here:
Join our Junior Choir
Our Junior Choristers start from Year 3 and Youth Singers from Year 7.
find out moreHalf-Term Singing Days
Open singing days run during half terms for those in years 3 and over.
find out moreListen to the Choir
Listen to audio and video recordings of the St Michael and All Angels’ Choir.
find out moreAbout us
We sing Choral Eucharists Evensongs, Carol Services,
The Family Service…We rehearse on Wednesdays from 7.30–9.00pm (6.30–7.45pm for younger singers) and before services. The choir doesn’t sing at St Michael’s immediately after Christmas and Easter, or during the school summer holiday, when cathedral visits are sometimes arranged.
Director of music: Andrew Hanley
The Choir and COVID-19
During COVID times, it was hard to keep singing! Yet as a choir, we found it more important than ever. We worked hard to keep a choral sound available, and keep practising. Virtual anthems and hymns were produced for services. We ran a “virtual pub” after Zoom-based choir practices, complete with the occasional “pub” quiz, and birthday and special occasion celebrations. From the first service featuring our recordings (Palm Sunday, 2020) through to the end of the second lockdown in May 2021, well over 100 recordings of our hymns, anthems, and psalms were used in our services.
You can view the recordings of these virtual anthems on the YouTube “NSABparish” channel. virtual anthems on YouTube