“Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises!” Psalm 47:6

All Saints' maintains the tradition of a Sung Evensong on the second Sunday of every month at 6.30pm.

If you join us for this service you will hear the choir leading plainsong responses, chanted psalm and canticles all of which the congregation can join in if they wish. Some of the congregation enjoy singing whilst others prefer to experience the 'respite and inspiration' offered by listening.

The Anthems sung by the choir include some of the much-loved pieces of church music such as Hide not Thou Thy Face by Farrant, and Purcell's Thou Knowest Lord, as well as pieces by contemporary composers such as Richard Shepard, Martin How and John Rutter.

What's the difference between our Sung Evensong and Choral Evensong?

Our Sung Evensong invites rather more congregational participation than is the case with the traditional Choral Evensong.

Choral Evensong was established in 1549 as part of the breakaway from Rome, led by Henry VIII. It is still going strong. Indeed there have been one or two articles in the press recently regarding the growing congregations attending Cathedrals for mid-week services and in particular Choral Evensong.

“Choral Evensong is a beautiful tradition just waiting to be witnessed that can give respite and inspiration during our busy modern lives” Guy Hayward, Editor, www.choralevensong.org.

This is perhaps the reason why BBC Radio 3 has maintained a weekly broadcast of Choral Evensong. It is the longest continuously running outside broadcast: begun in 1926 it is currently broadcast live on Wednesday afternoons and repeated on Sundays from locations across the UK. You can catch up online via the BBC iPlayer. I strongly recommend it.

Evensong at All Saints'

Do join us for Sung Evensong on the second Sunday of each month at 6.30 pm. 

Trevlyn Thomas, Choir Trainer