Mixed Media

Articles
 

What is Evensong?
 

Evensong Explained - W.K. Lowther Clarke, London: SPCK, 1922. A lucid and concise introduction to the history and liturgy of the Evensong service.

Liturgy bits: a spotter’s guide to Evensong - Gareth Hughes. Extended definitions of the different types of Evensong: Choral, Sung, Said, Solemn, Festal.

The British choral tradition: an introduction - Bob Porter (Bachtrack)

 

Why is Evensong a Good Thing?
 

Nico Muhly on Why Choral Music Is Slow Food for the Soul - Nico Muhly (New York Times)

Apostates for Evensong - Very amusing, yet brilliant, article (from Australia!) on why we need Evensong.

Sacred song, and where to find it - Rupert Sheldrake (Resurgence)

Choral evensong is one of England's richest traditions - Tom Service (Guardian)

Looking for Britain’s future leaders? Try evensong - John Bingham (Telegraph). A discussion of the rising popularity of College Evensong amongst Oxford undergraduates.

The joy of evensong - Dr Jonathan Arnold (Spectator)

9 Reasons to Keep the Church Choir Alive - Jonathan Aigner

If religion exists to make raids into what is unsayable, musicians penetrate further than most - Giles Fraser (Guardian). A thoughtful plea in support of church music.

Research demonstrates benefits of corporate singing as new website highlights choral evensong - Anglican News

The Atheist's Favorite Service: The Wonder of Choral Evensong - Heather Teysko

Choral Evensong - Liz Wilson. A personal, inspiring reflective blog post on Evensong. And you can read another of Liz's pieces, written straight from the heart, here.

The Sound of Music - Rupert Sheldrake (Theos Blog)

Home listening: the joys of evensong, on disc, online and on Radio 3 - Stephen Pritchard (Guardian)

"I spent two years walking to every cathedral in England – and made some incredible discoveries" - John Selborne (Independent)

 

BBC Radio 3's 'Choral Evensong'
 

Choral Evensong (BBC) - an introductory overview and history of the broadcast of choral evensong by BBC Radio 3.

In Quires and Places where they sing - David Winter (Church Times)

Sacred Mysteries: The longest-running outside broadcast on the BBC - Christopher Howse (Telegraph)

 

Boy and Girl Choristers
 

Something to sing about: the rise of the cathedral girls' choir - Sarah MacDonald (Telegraph)

The Boy and Girl Chorister Traditions Compared - Emily Freeman

What choristers can teach us about student engagement - Helen Cocks (Times Education Supplement)

Listeners' Perception of English Cathedral Girl and Boy Choristers - Howard, D.M., Szymanski, J. & Welch, G.F. (2002). A perceptual experiment designed to establish whether or not listeners can correctly distinguish between trained girl and boy English cathedral choristers when they are singing the top lines in samples of professionally recorded sacred choral music from Wells Cathedral Choir.

 

Radio/Audio

'Choral Evensong' on BBC Radio 4 'Sunday' programme - Dr. Guy Hayward, Sir Simon Jenkins and Dean Adrian Dorber.

"Choral Evensong", as part of the 'Science Set Free' podcast series - Rupert Sheldrake and Mark Vernon

Russell Brand in conversation with Rupert Sheldrake on Evensong and Pilgrimage - Russell Brand and Rupert Sheldrake

Choral Evensong - Tony Barnfield and Kathryn King (Cambridge 105 Radio)

 

Video

BBC Everyman Documentary on Evensong - Dame Betty Ridley, Winchester Cathedral Choir

Evensong Attendance Rises! - Global News Alliance Newsreel - Dean of Southwark Cathedral, Dr Guy Hayward, Dr Peter Wright

BBC TV Choral Evensong (1996) - a complete service of choral evensong (minus the anthem, possibly for editing reasons), in semi-documentary form, presented by the author Joanna Trollope - video preserved by the Archive of Recorded Church Music.

 

Press about this website

Independent - "Guy Hayward: Former choral scholar at Trinity College, Cambridge creates Time Out-style guide of evensong services"

Christian Today - "Why are thousands of people who've never set foot in church before suddenly showing up for choral evensong?"

Religion News Network - "Evensong sees a surge even as British church attendance declines"

Country Life - 'What to see this week: Choral Evensong"

Hampstead & Highgate - "Hampstead vicar to bless new website at church on Sunday"

Church Times - "Choral-evensong enthusiasts have new website to help them"

The Church of England Newspaper, page 10, /files/1232-1-1.pdf

Canadian Anglican Journal

Academic research

Singing as one: community in synchrony - Dr Guy Hayward's Ph.D. thesis on how group singing forms community in traditions around the world, and how the process of rhythmic synchronisation is a fundamental inspiration for this website, along with Guy's choral background. The PhD links choral singing with starling flocking movements and fish schooling, and the final chapter is a video case study analysis of synchronisation in Gregorian Chant. For more on Guy, visit his website here.