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Music to help you celebrate Hallowe'en, Advent and Christmas at St Mary's Portsea
| Published: 17th October 2016 11:30 |
"DID YOU KNOW?":
Hallowe'en is a shortened term for All Hallows Eve, the night before All Hallows, otherwise known as All Souls day, when we remember our departed loved ones and pray for them.
MUSIC FOR ALL HALLOWS, ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS AT ST MARY'S PORTSEA
St Mary's church exists to serve the community in which it is placed. We want to help everyone celebrate important events in their life (christenings, marriages and funerals), and to help the community celebrate the great festivals of the year. It doesn't matter if you're not sure what you believe, belong to a different faith or none, or if you haven't stepped into a church for years - we are just to glad to see people when they come, just as Jesus was glad to see anyone who came to Him. To help us celebrate important events and festivals it is good for everyone who can sing to sing together, and to have music that in its lyrics and composition reflect the festival or event being celebrated. We are approaching a time of very important festivities and St Mary's has a wealth of wonderful music to put you in the mood whether it is for Hallowe'en, Advent or Christmas.
All Souls is celebrated on Wednesday 2nd November, and St Mary's will have a service to allow people to remember their departed loved ones. The music setting for the service will be from Mozart's Requiem Mass, which has a sombre beauty that expresses so well our feelings of grief and yet hope of seeing our loved ones again. You can provide the names of those you wish to remember and their names will be read out in the service. In a similar vein there is a Bereavement Service at 4pm on Sunday 30th October, when you can light a candle for departed loved ones while the Choir sings the Lacrimosa from Mozart's Requiem.
Following All Souls comes Remembrance Sunday when we remember and honour those who died to protect us and the freedoms we enjoy. You can join the British Legion at 3pm on Sunday 13th November for an act of remembrance. The music provided by the British Legion band and the Choir of St Mary's will provide a fitting tribute.
Soon after follows another major festival, Christ the King, Christ in majesty and glory. The music chosen reflects this, and the service on 20th November at 10am will use parts of a joyful Mass setting, Schubert's Mass in G. St Mary's Choir will join forces with Cantilena Youth Choir and local instrumentalists.
Advent is the time just before Christmas when we look forward to the joy of Christmas. It is a time of hope and expectation, and the Advent music reflects this anticipation. The shops start gearing up for the Christmas season, Cascades shopping centre switches on its lights, and St Mary's choir will be there to sing carols for the shoppers at 5pm on 17th November.
But the real start of Advent is initiated by a truly beautiful candle-lit service, this year held at 6.30pm on Sunday 27th November. As well as advent carols sung by everyone, many of which you could well recognise even though many think they are Christmas carols, the choir sings pieces evocative of the season, by many famous composers including Palestrina and Bach.
St Mary's church will be used by many to celebrate their school or company carol service, or other types of celebration. Prominent amongst them will be The News carol service at 3pm on Sunday 4th December, and the Fratton Big Local "Fratton Festival of Lights" at 6pm on the 8th December. Music will feature prominently in all these services and celebrations whether it is St Mary's Choir or other choirs and singers.
Then things hot up as Christmas approaches from the clashing exuberance of the Royal Marines Christmas Concert at 7:30pm on Thursday 15th December, to the more reflective beauty of the Nine Lessons and Carols at 6.30pm on Sunday 18th December when you can sing all your favourite carols as well as listen to music that matches the readings from the Bible, evoking in us all our favourite memories and feelings of Christmas. On Christmas Eve at 5pm is the ever popular Nativity Service where the choir accompanies the children as they enact the nativity, which the children have a wonderful time doing. They rehearse in the afternoon before the service ... let the clergy know if you'd like your child to take part. And finally the climax, a time when St Mary's is so happy to welcome so many from the community to celebrate the birth of Jesus and to capture the true spirit of Christmas, Midnight Mass, which starts at 11:30pm on Christmas Eve (there is parking in the Church grounds if you prefer to drive to this service). With St Mary's Choir, visiting singers, instrumentalists and drums, as well as the organ, we never fail to make a joyful noise at Midnight Mass.
For details of venues and dates and times have a look at portseaparish.co.uk/events. We hope you will visit us and take part in some of these events. It will be great to see you.
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