It was a bold undertaking. A Solemn High Requiem in the simple parish church of West Bromwich with a considerably reordered sanctuary, including no footpace around the freestanding Altar. A short complement of servers meant the MC had to double as the thurifer! He did a great job in the circumstances.
But with all this, over 150 were present on the rainy evening to see the sanctuary transformed with an array of unbleached candles (four on the altar itself and a further two shelved next to the newly-veiled tabernacle). A brand-new set of black-framed Requiem Altar cards had pride of place on the Altar. The choir ensemble 1685 sang a beautiful rendition of Richafort's Requiem. The Dies Irae was sung with the congregation for alternate verses. A Newman hymn ("Help Lord the souls which Thou hast made") was sung after the Last Gospel with great gusto.
Overall it was an exceedingly successful occasion. Prayers were offered up for all the deceased parishioners of the church, including its founding pastor Hon Fr George Spencer, ancestor of Lady Diana. My thanks go out to everyone involved.
Photos are up on the LMS photostream (embeded below) and hopefully a DVD recording of the occasion will be available in due course. If you are interested in obtaining a copy please get in touch.
But with all this, over 150 were present on the rainy evening to see the sanctuary transformed with an array of unbleached candles (four on the altar itself and a further two shelved next to the newly-veiled tabernacle). A brand-new set of black-framed Requiem Altar cards had pride of place on the Altar. The choir ensemble 1685 sang a beautiful rendition of Richafort's Requiem. The Dies Irae was sung with the congregation for alternate verses. A Newman hymn ("Help Lord the souls which Thou hast made") was sung after the Last Gospel with great gusto.Overall it was an exceedingly successful occasion. Prayers were offered up for all the deceased parishioners of the church, including its founding pastor Hon Fr George Spencer, ancestor of Lady Diana. My thanks go out to everyone involved.
Photos are up on the LMS photostream (embeded below) and hopefully a DVD recording of the occasion will be available in due course. If you are interested in obtaining a copy please get in touch.
2 comments:
Good work but lace albs for a requiem?! How very Gricigliano!
That barely counts as a lace alb by Gricigliano standards!!
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