“The importance of music in biblical religion is shown very simply by the fact that the verb to sing… is one of the most commonly used words in the Bible. When man comes into contact with God, mere speech is not enough.” Benedict XVI, Spirit of the Liturgy
The Abbey Choir was re-established in October 2022 in time for the Visit of the Relics of Saint Bernadette which occurred later that month. The main function of the Abbey Choir is to provide an excellent standard of choral music for the main Sunday mass each week, and it tries reflect in everything it sings the richness and beauty of the Catholic faith.
For those who take part, it is a fantastic opportunity not only for social interaction, but is also a fantastic way in which volunteers can help beautify the mass on a weekly basis – everyone contributing to the beauty of the choir’s offerings to the best of their ability; the choir includes both professional quality and non-professional singers.
The Abbey Choir rehearses once a month, usually the first Friday from 7:15-8:30pm in the Abbey’s Unity Room. This gives the Abbey Choir a great chance to ‘get ahead’ for the coming month; we then meet to socialise as a group at the Crown Pub, Turners Hill.
The choir then meets every Sunday morning (except during July and August) at 8:45am to rehearse before Mass (which starts at 9:30am and finishes no later than 10:30am).
In August 2024, the Abbey Choir will be singing for Mass at St Mark’s Basilica, Venice (shown in pictures on the right). We also look forward to offering other concerts during our stay in this historic city, and we look forward to sharing more details on those concerts in due course.
