Music and Worship

In Quires and places where they sing is found in the Prayer Book, but how much of that phrase do we really understand?

In this course, we explore the music and worship of the English Church, acquainting ourselves with the history and the characters who have shaped it, and gaining a greater appreciation for two admired ‘pillars’ that define the Anglican tradition. This course has been designed with those who wish to learn ‘from scratch’, but also for those who wish to expand their knowledge base and who wish to engage in a friendly, open atmosphere.

Learning Outcomes:

Participants will be able to exhibit a greater understanding of the use of music in Anglican worship, charting the liturgical evolution from Reformation to the present day, gaining a greater knowledge of composers and the core repertoire of Anglican cathedral choirs, and an understanding of the socio-historical context of performance of liturgy and music within the English church..

Session 1 Music in Worship: An introduction Wednesday 5 October, 7pm (on Zoom - see details above)

Session Overview: Many of us have preconceived ideas regarding Music in Worship – but are we entirely sure what we’re on about? In this session, we’re going to start by defining what we think it is and cover (albeit briefly) the period prior to the English Reformation.

Learning Outcomes:

• We will have engaged with the principal traditions of choral worship in the Church of England.

• We will gain some understanding of early thought and practice of music in worship.

• We will gain some understanding of pre-Reformation liturgical worship (the Sarum rite and the offices).

Session 1 Suggested Reading

Note: If there is a hyper-link, it takes you to a free resource. Registration may apply.

Harper, J, The Forms and Orders of Western Liturgy from the Tenth to the Eighteenth Century, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1991 [Click for link]

Cumming, G, A History of Anglican Liturgy, Macmillan, Basingstoke, 1992 [Click for link]
Long, K, The Music of the English Church, Hodder & Stoughton, London, 1971 [Click for link]

Temperley, N, The Music of the English Parish Church, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1979 [Click for link]

Gant, A, O Sing unto the Lord, Profile Books, London, 2015 [Click for link]

Orme, N, Going to Church in Medieval England, Yale University Press, New Haven & London, 2021

Hiley, D, Gregorian Chant (Cambridge Introductions to Music), Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2009.

Saulnier, D, tr Berry, M., Gregorian Chant: A guide to the History and Liturgy, Paraclete Press, Brewster, Massachusetts, 2009.

Session 1 Suggested Resources

Sarum Rite Mass (for the Presentation of Christ in the Temple)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VDqeISnfJE

The Sarum Mass (in English)

http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/Sarum/English.htm

Experience of Worship – an AHRC funded exploration of medieval worship: this included videos, liturgical resources and documents relating to late medieval worship http://www.experienceofworship.org.uk/

Session 2 Reformation and the English ‘Renaissance’ Wednesday 12 October, 7pm (on Zoom)

Session Overview:

The English Reformation is something spoken about as ‘an event’ – but it lasted decades, and within the world of our sessions, only resolved in 1662. This session builds on the knowledge gained in the last, by understanding the changes in worship practice through the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I, as well as exploring the music and musicians contributing to the music life of the church during the period.

Learning Outcomes:

• We will gain some understanding of the English Reformation in terms of sociohistorical, musical and theological context.

• We will be able to demonstrate the changes in worship practice following the accession of Edward VI through to the reign of Elizabeth I

• We will gain an understanding the changes in musical life during the period

Session 2 Suggested Reading

Note: If there is a hyper-link, it takes you to a free resource. Registration may apply.

Harper, J, The Forms and Orders of Western Liturgy from the Tenth to the Eighteenth Century, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1991 [Click for link]

Cumming, G, A History of Anglican Liturgy, Macmillan, Basingstoke, 1992 [Click for link]

Long, K, The Music of the English Church, Hodder & Stoughton, London, 1971 [Click for link]

Temperley, N, The Music of the English Parish Church, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1979 [Click for link]

Addleshaw, G, The Architectural Setting of Anglican Worship, Faber and Faber, London, 1955

Haigh, Christopher, English Reformations: Religion, Politics, and Society Under the Tudors. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1993,

MacCulloch, D., The Later Reformation in England 1547 – 1603, Palgrave Macmillan, London (2nd edition)

Maltby, Judith, Prayer Book and People in Elizabethan and Early Stuart England. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998

Session 2 Resources

Thomas Tallis: Litany a 5 [Click for PDF link] [Click for Audio link]

Thomas Tallis: Audivi vocem de coelo [Click for PDF link] [Click for Audio link]

Thomas Tallis: O Lord, give thy Holy Spirit [Click for PDF link] [Click for Audio link]

James Macmillan explores the faith of Thomas Tallis in relation to his compositions: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000q3g1

Session 3 The End of the Settlement Wednesday 19 October, 7pm (on Zoom)

Session Overview:

Carrying on from the previous session, we observe the end of the Elizabethan renaissance, and the tumultuous Puritanical Commonwealth period.

Learning Outcomes:

• We will join-up our learning from the last session and be able to discuss the English Renaissance and its musical development.

• We will undertake a case-study into the composer Thomas Tomkins and his musical family as an example of musical patronage through the period.

• We will be able to articulate the changes in church and state in the Stuart and later the Commonwealth period, and its effect on worship practice.

Session 4 Restoration then Decay: The long Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries Wednesday 2 November, 7pm (on Zoom)

Session Overview:

Church music of the late Seventeenth, Eighteenth and early Nineteenth centuries is often derived as second-rate (and worse!) – but why? In this session, we’ll explore the Restoration and the composers and music of the period, and discuss the reasons why the end of this era is seen very much as a ‘low point’ in English Cathedral life.

Learning Outcomes:

• We will gain knowledge of the build-up to the 1662 Prayer Book and the liturgical stability it has given; we will gain an understanding of worship in the late seventeenth, eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, and touch on varying movements emanating within the Church of England.

• We will learn of the English Baroque era and gain understanding of the music and musicians of the period.

• We will explore the history and some music of the later period, learn about the key composers and musicians and discuss further whether the period is rightly deserving of its ‘second-rate’ moniker.

Session 5 Awake! Liturgical and Musical Reforms of the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries Wednesday, 9 November, 7pm (on Zoom)

Session Overview:

This session will explore the attempts (both in music and in worship) to ‘up the ante’ and rediscover the genius of English Cathedral and Music. We will look at reforms of the era, the growth and attempts at liturgical reforms, and the changing musical palate from large ‘Germanic’ composition to folk music rooted nearer to home.

Learning Outcomes:

• We will discuss the brewing liturgical developments both at home and on the continent, which challenge the conformity of the Book of Common Prayer almost to the limit.

• We will explore the movement of improvement within church music, through reformers such as John Jebb, Maria Hackett and John Stainer.

• We will explore the narrative surrounding Prayer Book revision, culminating in the 1928 Deposited Book.

• We will also look the changing nature of composition – from grand ‘Germanic’ symphonic to a resurgence in both plainchant and folksong in the early twentieth century.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Session 6 Reform of the Reforms: The mid-to-late Twentieth Century Liturgical Reforms and Music Wednesday, 16 November, 7pm (on Zoom)

Session Overview:

We take a look into our rear-view mirror as we hurtle towards the present day. We see the direction of the liturgical reforms, the growing distance between English Cathedral Music and the Church, and the growth in composition for cathedral worship. We’ll look at the growth in popularity, how church music still plays a role in leading moments of our national life.

Learning Outcomes:

• We see the need for liturgical revision within the Church of England driven from both within and without.

• We explore the commercialisation of the English Choral Tradition, and its popularity abroad.

• We look at the role of commissioning and performance – particularly for major state service – and see the changes in composition and performing practice.

• We look at the limited appeal of the English Choral Tradition in alternative worship (particularly with The Alternative Service Book).

• We assess the present state of English Cathedral Music and ask ‘Where are we heading?’.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Ben Phillips is a researcher in music, religion, and culture. Having recently completed post-graduate work at the University of York, Ben is presently preparing further research into Welsh Anglican choral foundations. Ben began his chorister career at St Davids Cathedral under Geraint Bowen and Timothy Noon, before proceeding to read Music at Royal Holloway, University of London, holding a choral scholarship under Rupert Gough. From there, he spent a year at King’s College, London, before working in Arts Management positions. He undertook an MA in Church Music at the University of York under Professor Jonathan Wainwright, combining further study with four years as a Liturgist at Durham Cathedral, working both at a regional and national level. He presently works on projects relating to creative arts research and development at the University of York. His interests are politics, books, and his two cats – Fred (5) and Cosmo (2). He can often be found on Twitter @liturgicalben