Day Off - Holy Trinity Church

The church dates from the 13th century, although the box pews were added in the Victorian era.

Day Off - York Minster

Despite being our day off, I was back at the Minster this morning, albeit later than normal, to take some photographs. More will follow later on my website.

Choral Evensong - 12th August 2009, York Minster

We had a hard day rehearsing today, with a focus on the music for Friday and Saturday, as well as today. I think everyone is looking forward to the day off tomorrow. After today's service we are halfway through the week, in terms of singing days, but have still only sung 3 out of 8 services. The busiest days are yet to come.


Today's canticles were by T. Tertius Noble (the first "t" stands rather prosaically for Thomas), previously an organist at the Minster. The clock in the camera cantorum was donated by his son, in his memory.

• Responses: Tomkins
• Psalms: 66, 67
• Canticles: Noble in B minor
• Anthem: And I saw a new heaven, Bainton

Choral Evensong - 11th August 2009, York Minster

The camera cantorum, where we are practicing is adorned with numerous photographs and portraits of distinguished York personae, most of whose names are familiar, and some of whose music we have sung in the past, or will be singing this week.

3 (of 4) generations of Camidges, all organists at the Minster. Matthew, the one on the right, wrote some psalm chants that are still used today.

Yet again, we had a good congregation, even larger than yesterday's.

• Responses: Grayston Ives
• Psalms: 59, 60, 61
  
• Canticles: Sumsion in A
  
• Anthem: The Lord hath been mindful, S S Wesley
  

Choral Evensong - 10th August 2009, York Minster

Monday morning visits to Manchester Airport are more or less business as usual in my life, but this morning's was a bit different. Instead of heading off to Terminal 3 to take a Fokker 50 over to Rotterdam, Dad dropped me at the station to catch a train up to York for a week's singing at York Minster with the ECS.

This is my fourth ECS cathedral visit, and having vowed each year that I would work for an RSCM medal before the next trip, finally I've managed to achieve it. The six of us that took the exams in June wore our medals on a cathedral trip for the first time today.

Generally, congregations at a weekday evensong, even in the big cathedrals, can be quite small (think less than 10). Whilst I expected York to be an exception to this rule, I was amazed when we entered the quire to realize that there were upwards of 100 people listening to us. As if the large numbers weren't enough to give us nerves, the fact that Andrew Carter, the composer of this evening's anthem had made a special effort to come and listen to us, certainly did the trick.

* Responses: Nardone
* Psalms: 54, 55
* Canticles: Wood in E flat (number 1)
* Anthem: God is Love, Carter

Choral Evensong - 9th August 2009

For the first year since 1996 when I joined the choir in Bowdon, I'm not going on choir camp with them.  Tomorrow, they head off down to Wells for the week, and I will be heading east to York, where I'm going to be singing with the ECS.  I did, however, join them for evensong tonight.

• Introit: Jubilate, Britten
• Responses: Sanders
• Psalms: 53 (Walmisley) and 54 (Martin)
• Canticles: Ireland in F
• Anthem: Morley
  

As a memory exercise, I tried to recall the trips I have been on with the choir.  I think it is as follows: Norwich (1997), Wells (1998), Ely (1999), Windsor (2000), Beverley (2001), Beverley (2002), Bath Abbey (2003), Lincoln (2004), Salisbury (2005), Wells (2006), Durham (2007), Winchester (2008).

SD226 Day School

Since I was in the UK this weekend, I took the chance to go to Leeds to attend a day school for my ongoing Open University course in Biological Psychology.  Having given most of my attention to the Human Biology course over the last few months, the day school was a great opportunity to refocus on this course, and receive some tuition that didn't come out of the text books.  I attended two tutorials, one on experimental design, particularly relating to the End of Course Assessment (ECA) and the other on schizophrenia.  Both were informative and well presented.  It was also great to meet some other people on the course (predominantly women, and most studying psychology).

Afterwards, Mum and Dad picked me up (they'd taken the opportunity to visit a stately home in the area) and we went to the Middleton heritage railway.  We arrived just in time to catch the last train ride of the day.  We finished the day off with a birthday meal for Mum, at Swadesh, a fairly new (well, to me, anyway) Indian restaurant in Bowdon.