Five members went on the Bec visit, four leaving Canterbury in the early morning to get to there in time for Mass and lunch. Helen arrived much later due to earlier commitments in London (and rubbish directions from Jonathan!).
The objective was to experience the rhythm of life in a Benedictine house for a few days and to observe the pattern of offices and prayer life of the community. There were too few of us confidently to offer any of our singing, so "silent participation" was the order of the day. This did not mean that we were not involved! Jonathan was asked to read in vespers and Helen, having asked to try the organ in the abbey which had been recently restored, was asked to play for Sunday Mass (Trinity Sunday) at which the Bishop of Evreux was presiding. No pressure there then!
All the offices at both the abbey and the monastère were in French to Bec composed chants, although most of the antiphons were Gregorian. Mass was also Gregorian. It was a delight to see and hear the experts sing. On Saturday night, the sisters joined with the brothers at the abbey to sing vigils, a beautifully choreographed office, which starts in the dark and slowly all the lights come on. It ended with them processing to the rear of the church to sing the solemn Salve in front of the statue of Our Lady. On Sunday, the sisters again joined with the brothers for Mass.
We stayed in a delightful self-contained annex to the Monastère Ste. Françoise Romaine a couple of km from the abbey itself. Prior knowledge of the ever present mosquitoes meant that we were well prepared! As ever, we were delightfully entertained by the sisters and the group had an audience with Mère Prière Placide and other sisters after supper one evening.
Between offices we went on local visits to Brionne, Le Neubourg and to Rouen where we visited the cathedral and the lovely modern church of Ste. Jeanne d’Arc which shares its roof with the local market. Many walks were taken between the monastère and the village of Le Bec Hellouin (where the abbey is) along the beautiful valley of Le Bec.
The weather was very kind to us, only raining at night, so we were able to take full advantage of the opportunities offered.
Jonathan Butchers
Well 2008 was certainly a busy one with our visit to the Canterbury Cathedral archives which proved to be a fantastically interesting morning in a most agreeable venue. We also had the very first ever (to our knowledge - feel free to get in touch if we’re wrong!) Gregorian 101 - a basic nuts and bolts Chant primer enjoyed by a small but enthusiastic group of chanters in October.
Earlier on in the year of course, we had had a chance to hear how it should be sung when we were lucky enough to spend an afternoon at Minster Priory. We are hoping for a return visit at some point this year so watch this space for details. Prior to that (no weak pun intended) abbet you all remember (that time it was, sorry) the morning we spent in Greyfriars in Canterbury.
Of course the big event of the year was our now annual Day of Chant: a candle-lit church, enthusiastic ‘Alleluias’, All Souls in Haiti and lots of fantastic chants for All Saints made for an unforgettable day in spite of the weather- it rained torrentially absolutely all day!
Philip Duffy of the Schola Gregoriana of Cambridge returned to lead our day. We had a mix of more experienced singers and beginners which helped with tackling the music. Philip had chosen some really beautiful antiphons and canticles for the Vespers Service we were to prepare. The ‘Alleluias’ of the New Testament Canticle were unforgettable, especially when Philip got us to sing them really enthusiastically. A talk by Helen Nattrass reviewed different traditions of observing All Saints and All Souls in different cultures. Jonathan Butchers stepped in at short notice and talked about the Monastic Community at Bec in France.
Father Mark Ball, Parish Priest of St. Mildred’s welcomed us to his Church for the Vespers Service. He had made a special effort, lighting the church with a host of candles and making every effort to observe the Solemnity of the Feast as we sang the First Vespers of All Saints at which he presided.
We are most grateful to Philip Duffy for his inspirational coaching and to Father Ball for his welcome and for making the Vespers itself such an atmospheric and lovely occasion.
Looking forward to an equally Chant-filled 2009!
The flyer for our ‘Chant 101′ session has gone out confirming that once again our good friends at Orange Street Music are kindly allowing us to use their venue. If you are interested in coming please let us know at the usual email address.
Saturday 18th October 2008
10.00-12.00 in Orange Street Music Venue
Interested in Gregorian Chant?
Haven’t a clue about neumes, four lines, where ‘doh’ is?
This session is for you! We will look at the absolute basics
- What are those square notes?
- What key is it in?
- Basics of reading the music - in which order are the notes sung?
- Some common ‘shorthand’ used in printed copies
- Practice some simple melodies which we will use in the November workshop
