The London Oratory Carol Service 2014

The London Oratory Carol Service takes place tomorrow evening, Monday 22 December at 7.30pm (doors open from 7pm). The service follows the pattern of the traditional English Carol Service, with the addition of Benediction. In the spirit of St Philip Neri's love of drawing the faithful to devotion through the powerful combination of scripture and music, all of the carols are closely related to the readings. Rachmaninov's Ave Maria follows the reading of Gabriel's Message, while Peter Cornelius's Three Kings, with its climactic 'offer thy heart to the infant King' is the motet sung before the exposed Blessed Sacrament.

A particular feature of this service is the interplay between the Oratory's Junior Choir, for boys and girls aged 8-16, and the professional Senior Choir, in medieval cantiones as well as in the traditional German alternation of Quem pastores, in which the 'Angels' (the Junior Choir) sing from the gallery while the 'Shepherds' (the Senior Choir) respond from below with 'Nunc angelorum gloria!'. The service will include a carol by the Oratory's organist, Matthew Martin, on the text of the 'O' Antiphon for December 22, O Rex Gentium.

Organ recording from the London Oratory

Matthew Martin, Organist of the London Oratory, has made a recording which was released earlier this year. The recording, on the Oratory’s historic 1954 Walker/Downes organ, is now available from iTunes as well as from Amazon (UK) and is part of Priory’s Great European Organs series. The CD includes works by Buxtehude, Cornet, Lebegue, de Grigny (with Gregorian chant alternatim verses), as well as twentieth century composers Demessieux, Duruflé, Tournemire and Litaize. ★★★★★ Choir & Organ

Here is the first track, the Buxtehude Magnificat:

Full track listing:

1. Magnificat primi toni BuxVW 203, Dieterich Buxtehude
2. Ach Herr, mich armen Sunder BuxVV 178, Dieterich Buxtehude
Antiphon: Regina caeli (4vs), Pieter Cornet
3. Regina caeli, laetare
4. Qui quem meruisti portare
5. Resurrexit, sicut dixit
6. Ora pro nobis Deum
7. Offertoire sur le Chant d’O filii et filae, Nicolas Lebegue
Hymn: Pange lingua (3vs)*, Nicolas de Grigny
8. En taille
 (vs 2 chant)
9. Fugue à 5
 (vs 4 chant)
10. Récit du chant de l’hymne precedent (vs 6 chant)
11. Te Deum, Jeanne Demessieux
12. Prélude sur l’introit de l’Epiphanie, Maurice Duruflé
13. Reges tharsis, Gaston Litaize
14. Épiphanie, Gaston Litaize
15. Paraphrase on Regina caeli, Guy Weitz
From l’Orgue Mystique, Charles Tournemire:
Office 48, All Saints:
16. Offertoire
Office 51, 23rd Sunday after Pentecost:
17. Fantaisie sur le Te Deum et Guirlandes Alleluiatiques