...Lessons & Carols,1.0

in 1918, at King's College, Cambridge [England]...
a Christmas Eve service began the tradition...
that has come to be known throughout the world...
as a Service or Festival of Lessons & Carols...

there is no set format...
but this service, as we celebrate it...
has morphed over the years...
into a Procession with Carols on an Advent Sunday...

and although it's origins were Anglican...
many denominations have adapted the basic idea...
and non-Anglican services are not uncommon...

at St John the Evangelist Anglican Church in Mudville...
our current tradition was started by Dearest Dragonfly...
choir mistress, extraordinaire, several years ago...
and remains one of my favorite services of the year...

9 scripture readings take us from "the fall"...
through "the promise" of redemption announced...
and finally the "great mystery" of the incarnation...
the birth of the Christ in the form of a human...
both man & God...come to save us from our sins...

each reading is followed by choral music...
that has been selected to either illustrate the reading...
or includes part of the reading text...

this year... it was my job to seek out the selections...
for me, this was "kid in a candy store"territory...

our traditional prelude, Palistrina's "I Look From Afar"...
[from the Matin Responsory for Advent 1]
is a Medieval sounding series of solo "calls"...
followed by choral responses...
sung from the rear of the church...

the old hymn,"Creator of the Stars of Night"...
using the tune in the 1982 Hymnal, is our processional...
beginning with a "D" handbell tolling...
and the women singing verse 1 with just the bell tolling...

the men join for the 2nd verse...
still in unison with tolling bell...
verse 3 is in parts, with the bell...
adding the organ on the octave "D"'s...
before accompanying the congregation for verses 4-6...

after the first reading...
[the seed of Eve will bruise the serpent's head...]
the women of the choir will sing...
M.Larkin's ethereal "Adam Lay Ybounden"

after the 2nd reading...
[the spirit of the Lord will rest on the Holy One...]
we will sing the gorgeous Latin text, "O Magnum Mysterium"...
[O Great Mystery]set by M. Lauridsen...

after reading 3...
[the prophet proclaims good news to the people in exile...]
we will sing a magical arrangement of the old Latin hymn...
"Personet Hodie" by Vijay Singh...
very Medieval sounding... and gives me chills...
then there is a congregational hymn...
[Comfort, comfort ye my people]

following reading 4...
[God promises a child...to be known as "God with us"...]
and then we sing the contemporary sounding anthem...
"Mary, Did You Know?" by Lowery & Greene, arr. Schrader...
this is followed by another congregational hymn...
[Lo, How a Rose e'er Blooming]

reading 5...
[John the Baptist prepares the way for Jesus]
is followed by John Chorbajian's contemporary anthem...
"Watchman, Tell Us of the Night"...

after reading 6...
[the angel Gabriel salutes the Blessed Virgin Mary]
comes the mystical "Ave Maria" by M. Lauridsen...
which also gives me chills...

following reading 7...
[St Matthew tells of the coming birth of a savior]
comes the lively, joyful, "Tomorrow Shall be My Dancing Day"...
by John Gardiner...so rhythmic...
you have to move when you sing it...
followed by the final congregational hymn...
[Savior of the Nations Come]

after reading 8...
[the shepherd's come to the manger...]
we sing W. Todd's tone painting,"The Christ Child"...
a musical gift left behind for us by DD...

following reading 9, the final one...
[St John unfolds the great mystery of the Incarnation]
we will sing T.Fettke's "A Silent Holy Night"...
a lovely, simple lullaby...

following a blessing...
we recess singing the traditional carol...
"Once in Royal David's City"...
with the first verse a treble solo...
adding the full choir on verse 2...
and the congregation on verses 3-5...



I have found this service to be a marvelous spiritual...
as well as musical, experience...
over the last several years...

today, we had our first rehearsal after church...
and I couldn't wait to share a couple of new pieces with the choir...
I had a CD cued-up, so they could get the full effect...
and I wasn't disappointed...

they were as blown away as I had been...
the first time I heard the new arrangements...
then we sang through the new ones...
the singer's are so good...
even the first time through...
can paste a big old grin all over my face...

even rehearsal is fun...
when the singers are this talented & sensitive...
& the arrangements are "to die for"...[not easy, but worth it...]
[kind of like aural chocolate...
for those chocoholics out there...]

so I'm looking forward to sharing this music...
as we learn & shape it...
and then share it on Dec.21...

"...how can I keep from singing...
or smiling ?"