13 November
On
In Choir news

Late chorister celebrated in music and memory Pleased to be invited by his parents, the Abbey Choir was present in force for the Memorial Service of George O’Brien on 12 November. Members wished to pay a musical tribute to George, who had contributed so much to it during his life, cut sadly short by a sudden illness. The choir sang a number of George’s favourite anthems including Stanford’s Magnificat in C and Balfour Gardiner’s Evening Hymn. The boys gave a moving account of Howard Goodall’s setting of Psalm 23, more popularly known as the theme to The Vicar of Dibley. George sang it many timesMore »

03 November
On
In Choir news

On Sunday 2 November, the Abbey Choir welcomed the Choir of Sherborne Abbey to sing Choral Evensong together for the feast of All Saints. The occasion was, however, overshadowed by the sudden death on Friday 31 October of a member of the Abbey Choir, George O’Brien, 17, from a rare and virulent tumour on his chest. George joined the choir in 1999 as a probationer and was appointed Head Chorister in 2004. He began singing alto a couple of years ago after his haunting treble voice broke. ‘Quite capable of singing his part by himself, he was showing great promise as an adult singer. WeMore »

08 September
On
In Choir news

On Sunday 7 September Romsey Abbey Choir held a cream tea to raise funds for its tour to Belgium next year. Disappointing weather meant it was held in the church rooms, rather than the Abbey gardens as planned, but it was attended by some 70 people, who all greatly enjoyed the event. Some of them came from the Earl Mountbatten memorial service in the Abbey, for which the choir had sung that afternoon. As well as tucking into scones and playing football outside, the choirboys entertained with Bernstein’s One hand, one heart and the theme from The Vicar of Dibley. Julian Orchard’s account of Handel’sMore »

25 August
On
In Choir news

Abbey Choir sings at Exeter Cathedral Without warning, nine youngsters had to rise to a tough challenge during Romsey Abbey Choir’s visit to Exeter Cathedral from 21 to 24 August. Each year it visits one of the great English Cathedrals – previous destinations have included Durham, Norwich and Peterborough – and a handful of older boys are normally on hand to guide them through the music. But on arrival at Exeter, since the voices of the senior choristers in the choir had broken during the summer holiday, the younger boys unexpectedly found they had to carry the top line by themselves. Robert Fielding, Romsey Abbey’sMore »