There are no women in this choir! There are no notes in the hymnal, just words!! So, even when invited to sing along at Evensong, it's really difficult to do so - unless you already know the hymn from having sung it before. Being from America - even though I spent many years singing at Episcopalian churches - I was not familiar at all with the selection. I did pretty well because of my background as a singer and no one else near me even tried.
If you want to get good seats so you can actually see the choir and watch the conductor, you must get there at least 30 min early, or earlier. We arrived 15 minutes early and were sitting far enough out that we could barely see them. I mean, let's be honest, we weren't really there to worship at Evensong. As a professional chorister who has sung this type of music professionally, the boys in the choir were not always together, and the words were sometimes unintelligible as a result. That being said, they sounded otherwise beautiful and professional. I think only an experienced chorister or musician could pick that out.
Sometimes during the year, you can hear an organ concert after. Unfortunately, the one in the program was not happening. It would have been epic. read more