November 2017


Lady's Abingdon, which can involve anything from Bach to Justin Bieber. I also enjoy playing chamber music on the piano or clarinet. I con- duct Cumnor Choral Society, who will be per- forming the Brahms German Requiem with me at the beginning of December. When time permits, I sometimes sing with the Cathedral Singers in Oxford, who cover services at Christ Church when the Cathedral Choir is on their school holi- days.


What do you enjoy outside of music?


The natural talent I wish I had been endowed with is sport. However, I have still not given up hope of discovering some ability at cricket, and


Choral Evensong Norman Dawson


Choral Evensong has long been a staple in the lives of cathedrals and Oxbridge colleges, and the BBC Radio 3 broadcast of the service, usually live, every Wednesday at 3.30pm is the longest continuously running outside broadcast in histo- ry, having begun in 1926. Recent reports in the media describe the rise in popularity of Choral Evensong, probably now the best-known of the services in the Book of Common Prayer. There is even now a website www.choralevensong.org where you can find the nearest service of Choral Evensong on any particular day. Here, Norman Dawson writes about his own personal experi- ence of this very distinctive service.


Evensong owes its existence to Thomas Cran- mer’s Book of Common Prayer which set out the familiar services of the Church of England: Holy Communion, Matins and Evensong. From the start these were intended to be services with mu- sic; indeed in 1550 John Merbecke wrote a “noted” version with musical notes to be sung.


In my childhood, the Dawson custom was to at- tend Matins on a Sunday morning so it was not until I went to university that I really came to know and love the beauty of Choral Evensong. In those days of the 1960s, my (still all male) col- lege, Clare, had a small Chapel Choir (all male voices; the top notes being sung by counter- tenors). However, next door, was the glory of King’s College Chapel and next door but two in the other direction was, equally glorious, St John’s. There I heard Evensong several times a term.


Later, I too became a church chorister and shared in the joy of making music to the Glory of God.


When Alexandra asked me to write this she sug- gested I tell of my own experience of Evensong. Two stick in my memory:


When Elizabeth and I were first married we lived in Bradford and were members of the Bradford Cathedral congregation. Both our daughters were born in Bradford. When Mary (our first) was born I took Elizabeth into the Maternity Unit of Brad- ford Royal Infirmary and was then shooed away by the midwife who said that I would only be in the way and that I should come back later. It was Sunday evening and I went to the cathedral to hear Evensong; sitting quietly in the back row and wondering about becoming a father. I re- turned to the Infirmary to greet Mary who was born in the small hours of Monday morning.


When I was churchwarden of our country parish church in Cheshire I would routinely attend Evensong… to count the collection. One dark cold winter’s evening I walked down through the village to find the church empty apart from the vicar and the organist. But the Rev Geoffrey San- some, a bass, had been a member of the Hallé choir, Mary Kearns the organist taught music in Liverpool and sang soprano and I sang tenor. We sang the whole service, Canticles and Psalms the lot. Three gathered together in God’s name.


I love Choral Evensong. If you haven’t been be- fore, or even if you have, come along to St Helen’s at 5.30pm on the third Sunday.


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can often be found on a summer afternoon play- ing for Wytham Cricket Club. The other pastime in which I indulge when time permits is cooking, usually something complicated and spicy.


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