{"id":1992,"date":"2019-12-02T14:09:17","date_gmt":"2019-12-02T14:09:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/cantusfirmus\/?p=1992"},"modified":"2019-12-02T14:19:58","modified_gmt":"2019-12-02T14:19:58","slug":"cecilian-choir-launches-the-advent-season-in-meditative-breathing-space-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/cantusfirmus\/2019\/12\/02\/cecilian-choir-launches-the-advent-season-in-meditative-breathing-space-event\/","title":{"rendered":"Cecilian Choir launches the Advent season in meditative Breathing Space event"},"content":{"rendered":"

Congratulations to the University Cecilian Choir<\/strong>, which launched the season of Advent last Friday with a highly atmospheric combination of antiphons, carols and periods of silence in a special\u00a0Breathing Space<\/em> occasion at\u00a0St Michael and All Angels, Hernhill.<\/p>\n

\"\"The interior of the church was bathed in candlelight for this unusual event, which is part of a series run by the church during the dark winter months, as an opportunity to escape from the pressures of the Digital Age and find the chance to enjoy a reflective, meditative space on the last Friday of each month. The Cecilian Choir travelled out to the fifteenth-century church to sing a sequence of carols, each prefaced by one of the great Advent antiphons, creating a contrast between the solemnity of the plainsong and the colours of the carols which followed.<\/p>\n

\"\"The sequence began with a glass-clear rendition of the opening verse to Once in royal David’s city from second-year soprano, Felicity Bourdillon, which opened the door into the ensuing procession of carols and antiphons, punctuated by periods of stillness illuminated by the dancing candles set around the church.<\/p>\n

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The Choir, comprising staff and students at the University, relished the opportunity to usher in the season from the closeness of the choir-stalls. Afterwards, congregation and performers left in silence, following the line of candles flickering along the sides of the footpath leading away from the church and into the Christmas season.<\/p>\n