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Ship of Fools: Oratory of St Philip Neri, Birmingham, England

The Mystery WorshipperThe Mystery Worshipper Shipmate
edited August 2019 in The Mystery Worshipper

imageShip of Fools: Oratory of St Philip Neri, Birmingham, England

Breast-beating, clouds of incense, and a merciless organ

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Comments

  • Bishops FingerBishops Finger Shipmate
    Could it be that the acoustics of the church, and the location of the instrument, make it difficult to coordinate the sound/volume of the organ, and the singing of the choir?

    I agree, though, that Gregorian chant need not be sung to organ accompaniment, if there are enough singers.
  • LydaLyda Shipmate
    The organist must not want to take the time to adjust the stops and leaves them high throttle for the next English Mass. Pity. :unamused:
  • UrgandaUrganda Shipmate
    There were 12 singers and they made a good sound. I agree it would help if someone on the staff of the Oratory heard it from the nave. Much better unaccompanied though.
  • JTLarkin2011JTLarkin2011 Shipmate Posts: 1
    Personally, I think that unobtrusive organ accompaniment can enhance plainchant, though strictly speaking the practice is historically incorrect. Two and a half years ago I was present Choral Vespers in Westminster Cathedral, listening from the organ gallery to the angelic voices floating up to me in a continuous mystical tapestry of most discreetly accompanied plainsong interspersed with a capella polyphony. At the end my eyes were most with tears, so ineffably beautiful was the effect. At that moment I had heard the very finest choir in the country in tune with the divine.
  • Amanda B ReckondwythAmanda B Reckondwyth Shipmate
    A gentle celeste, with the swell box fully closed, can enhance the ethereal quality of the chant -- but not full diapason.
  • UrgandaUrganda Shipmate
    Thanks, JT Larkin. Unobtrusive and discreet are the operative words. I certainly think a drone on a single note (the voice of God) enhances some chant. That is very different from my experience in Birmingham. I suspect the organist needs Miss Amanda's sensitivity.
  • Amanda B ReckondwythAmanda B Reckondwyth Shipmate
    Where's Carol Burnett when we need her so badly?
  • Fawkes CatFawkes Cat Shipmate
    Edgebeston? (in 'The Neigborhood') I think you mean Edgbaston.
  • PDRPDR Shipmate
    I associate full diapason roaring away with the chanting of the Te Deum and Jubilate in a certain type of Anglican Church that has largely disappeared these days. Plainsong always got a much subtler treatment if it was accompanied. At the very least the 'blinds' were kept more or less shut if the organ only ran to about 5 stops.
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