Given that I’m doing five services over Easter, I thought I’d post my schedule here, for anyone who is interested, rather than try to keep up with upcoming performances.
Thursday, March 28 (Maundy Thursday)
Evening service at Christ Church Brunswick, 8pm. This is new liturgy to me, but it will be a choral mass (Palestrina), with washing of feet and then stripping the altar. I’m excited about this one – it sounds like a fascinating service, and you can always rely on the Anglo-Catholics to do liturgy *well*.
Friday, March 29 (Good Friday)
Morning service at Wesley Uniting Church in Lonsdale St, Melbourne, 9:30 am. This is a short service that precedes the Way of the Cross through the Melbourne city churches. I’m singing Bach’s Erbarme Dich, and then joining the Way of the Cross, which I’m helping to lead. The Way of the Cross starts at St Francis’ Church in Lonsdale Street at 10:00 am, and wends its way up to St Peter’s Eastern Hill, and then down again to end (for now) at the Anglican Cathedral, collecting congregations as it goes. This is basically a peripatetic service, and procession, with lots of Taize chants, and stops for reflection, readings, more singing, and prayer at each Church on the way. It’s ecumenical and a really lovely piece of liturgy. It’s also enormous and can be fairly physically taxing, just because you are on your feet and singing and walking for about 2-3 hours.
(if you are feeling particularly strongly moved, you can then finish the Way of the Cross at dawn on Sunday morning, gathering at 6am at the Cathedral and then crossing the river to St John’s in Southbank, which, pleasingly, you have to go down the steps to get to, very appropriate for entering the tomb…)
Saturday, March 30 (Holy Saturday)
Easter Vigil at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Middle Park, starting at 7:30 pm. This will have candles, braziers, incense, robes, descants, trumpets and timpani. And chocolate Easter eggs, if last year is anything to go by. Again, it’s a rather gorgeous liturgy, that starts in darkness, with candle flame passed from person to person at the start of the vigil, and the church only erupting into light for the start of the Gloria. Very much your proper Easter Vigil service if you were brought up old school, going to church late at night on Easter Eve…
Sunday, March 31 (Easter Sunday)
Easter Morning service at Wesley Uniting Church. I know, I know. It’s very unenterprising of me to sing at the same church twice. Sorry about that. Anyway, this is your standard Easter Morning service, with traditional hymns and some good choir anthems, which I’m not being too specific about, because I don’t know what they are yet, other than the really gorgeous version of I Know That My Redeemer Liveth by a Bach relative.
Monday, April 1 (Easter Monday)
No, no, no, that is *quite* enough church singing for one weekend. I’m going to sleep in. And probably bake a cake.
Here, have a suitable Bach Chorale to get you in the proper mood for all this.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2qt2d-k2_o&w=420&h=315]