
The Episcopal Review of Winchester Cathedral was completed recently and a summary published on-line. The presenting crisis was the departure last year of Andy Lumsden, the Director of Music, after more than 20 years in post. The Review tells us very little about the events, disagreements and failures in communication that led up to the event, but clearly there has been, and, no doubt, still is, a great deal of unhappiness among staff and stakeholders in the management and running of Winchester Cathedral. The Bishop, Philip Mountstephen, identifies ‘declining performance, unsatisfactory relationships and failings in leadership and management’ at the Cathedral, justifying both the current Review and the recommendations that flow out of it.
The published summary of the Episcopal Review is only ten pages long and the reader is given little detail which would account, for example, for the Dean bringing forward her announced retirement from May 2025 to this month. It is not profitable to speculate on these matters, and I have no access to any source of inside information. What is hinted at in the Review, as the central concern, is the issue of music and the part that it plays in 21st century cathedral worship. While there are bound to be precise details about the management failings as well as the behaviour of individuals within the Cathedral community, the summary Review does not name names or apportion blame to anyone. We are left to speculate on what might be the broad issues prompting the Review. My own assumption is, from the evidence of the summary, that the context of the Review is a number of serious disagreements about the place of music among those involved in its provision. A telling sentence appears on page 7, suggesting serious non-communication and diverging understandings of the role of music in the life of the Cathedral. ‘It was felt that Chapter simply did not understand the musical side of the Cathedral’. Such non-communication and misunderstanding are probably found in other centres of musical excellence in Britain today. How do these centres best fit in with the rapidly changing face (and decline) of church life in this country? The cathedral music tradition is for many still a compelling reason for attaching themselves to churches which maintain an active choral tradition, but which is so radically different from what is commonly termed ‘Christian music’.
Seventy years ago, I was a member of the cathedral choir in Canterbury. The experience opened me up to appreciate a particular style of church music which has since become familiar to quite large numbers of people. At that time, the 50s, cathedral-type music was known only to those who attended cathedrals or one of a limited number of Oxford/Cambridge chapels and other foundations where choral traditions had been maintained. Little of this genre of music was filtering through to the general public in Britain. The BBC radio programme with a reputation for the high brow, the Third Programme, seemed to show little interest in this rich vein of sacred choral music, whether in 16th /17th century polyphonic manifestations or later styles. Two further reasons for the non-circulation of cathedral music were current. The first was that LP records were extremely expensive. If there were recordings of church music, they would have been priced at 35 shillings each, a sum equivalent to over £30 today. The second fact was that there was simply no exposure to this style of music except among the vanishingly small number of active church musicians. The only church music familiar to the general public were hymns and the yearly broadcast of the King’s Cambridge carols. One piece of church music did penetrate into popular consciousness when the boy chorister, Ernest Lough, sung Mendelsohn’s ‘O for the wings of a dove’ in the mid-30s and the record was widely acclaimed. The arrival of Radio 3 in around 1964 had the welcome effect that more music of every kind, including church music, was aired, no doubt creating a new ‘fan-base’ for what had been an extremely niche cultural taste.
Today we can note two major changes in the church music scene. One is that the music found formerly only in cathedrals and a cluster of Oxbridge chapels has spread out widely from this narrow base. Both in terms of the number of musicians performing such music and those hearing it, there has been enormous growth and appreciation of this particular style. Secondly there has been growth in the music available to be sung. Some of this is as the result of new compositions by young composers who are fascinated by the ancient tradition that binds music and worship together. There has also been a large amount of serious academic scholarship, bringing to light forgotten or neglected masterpieces of the past, particularly from the age of Elizabeth I when English music of all kinds excelled.
The rise in popularity in church music which I have witnessed in my lifetime has not been without its problems. Winchester is one of the top cathedral choirs in the country. Such a description comes with its own challenges. What makes a choir good? Is it that the style and quality of music inspires a quality of worship that is special and could act as an incentive to other churches aspiring to high standards, but lacking the endowments to meet the costs involved? Having a ‘good’ choir could be a judgement based purely on technical and aesthetic factors. It need have nothing to do with God or the reality of worship. Finding out where is the meaning of excellence in terms of the choir achievements, is likely to be a constant cause of tension between clergy and the musicians who work for the institution.
A second point of tension, that will apply to every choral foundation in the country, is the rise of ‘popular’ Christian music. For the majority of Christians, Christian music is found in what is known as worship songs. Without expressing a value judgement on this style of Christian music, one has to say that such music emerges from a very different culture from the one in which cathedral musicians operate. Church leaders working in cathedrals are acutely aware of the incompatible demands of the aficionados of choral mattins and those who prefer Graham Kendrick and Hillsong. In a small way, I faced this tension in my parish and resolved it by allowing, as far as possible, both styles or cultures to co-exist. The church choir and the music group appeared at different services and a kind of peace prevailed. Whether the current tensions at Winchester have anything to do with these divergent styles or cultures of church music I have no inside knowledge, but the existence of such contrasting styles remains a very large elephant in the room called Christian worship. It cannot be expelled easily. In a centre like Winchester Cathedral where traditional cathedral music has reigned for literally centuries, it is hard to imagine that worship songs ever get an easy welcome, if at all. But, if this is the only genre of Christian music known by a segment of the congregation, then it will be hard for the leaders to ignore it without causing upset and unhappiness.
In this piece I am suggesting that church music of all kinds is likely to draw into itself many of the other divisions and unspoken conflicts that already exist in the church. Deep irreconcilable differences exist over the LGBT issue, climate change as well as theological attitudes to Scripture. It is possible to distinguish a ‘liberal’ approach from a ‘conservative’ one, and, maybe, the two sides can have a discussion with a measure of civility. When it comes to divisions over what church music is the preferred option, there are sometimes even deeper underlying issues, matters of taste, culture and social class. These are difficult to address without sounding elitist. I am well aware that my wanting to listen to Tallis’ Lamentations as part of my observance of Holy Week will not be understood by many sincere Christian people. A greater number might fill a cathedral nave to listen to the Matthew Passion in Holy Week, but we are still facing the fact of widely divergent tastes in music among Christian people. Somewhere in the unhappiness that has arisen in Winchester are, I believe, these cultural and aesthetic issues that arise when two incompatible musical styles are brought in close juxtaposition and found to be totally alien to each other. Resolution of such cultural divergences will require a wisdom far greater than anything I see on offer in the Church today.
In writing this piece I am prepared to accept that the issues addressed by the Review and the resignation of the musical Director may have absolutely nothing to do with the clash of discordant musical cultures that we see in the wider church. If I am wrong, this does not render all my comments of no value. The tension between popular and classical church music is a live issue in many places and, sometimes, it can be said to exist as open warfare. It is one of the ironies of today that one area of growth in church life at present is in an appreciation for the meditative, even contemplative style of BCP choral evensong. It is for others to explain the appeal of the Psalms sung to Anglican chant, which also allows a renewed appreciation of the English language as spoken five centuries ago. In a century’s time, it will become obvious which style has stood the test of time. I suspect we all have our preferred guess.
I’m afraid that the very good “old fashioned” style of music has the. side effect of people’s just turning up for the Sunday morning concert. And then they stay away in droves when the choir is on holiday. At least the battle to persuade some people that God does not find women’s and girls’ voices offensive is more or less won. Although many traditional music fans don’t care for “formed” women’s voices. So women have to sing like boys! Does the term “the Chapter” mean the clergy team, I wonder? Or the legal entity, which includes the laity, who would outnumber the clergy.
Q: What’s the difference between a choir leader and a terrorist?
A: you can negotiate with a terrorist.
I was involved in church music all my life, having grown up in a musical family and then sung in choirs at school and church. Whichever genre you rest on, you will probably encounter elitism and snobbery. If lucky, you will meet gifted and humble musicians too, people who bring us much joy in what they do, and the way in which they conduct themselves.
I have the dubious honour of having been steeped initially in ancient and complex worship, in then in more recent decades sung mainly backing vocals in contemporary church bands, using a gift of harmony.
Music affects us. Very few people are ambivalent about it, and the divide which Stephen alludes too, is often put into place to keep the poles apart. Rarely are these divisions at all Christian in nature.
Even within a distinct genre, be it Worship Central or Baroque, there is frequent discord. Technical ability is directly correlated with such discomfort. The most able frequently experience the most pain when the notes are not quite right, for example. It’s the price of gifting.
Age and gender are additional stressors, as EA points out. Usually it’s youth obsessed, particularly if you’re good looking, but not always.
Are we able to play nicely together? That would perhaps depend on how redeemed we are.
I’m going to be rude! I don’t have perfect pitch. People who do can be a bit of a pain! We all have to be grown up about learning to get along. Perfect pitch is far from being a necessity.
Perfect pitch is a.rare gift. I wonder whether you really mean ‘singing in tune’? Not too below the belt, I hope, but I noticed the present Precentor of Winchester using a tuning fork when intoning the versicles (“Lord open Thou our lips” etc.) and he did so for all of them.
There are mixed adult Cathedral choirs in the C of E, but I accept that they are the exception rather than the rule. I know of several cathedrals where a woman has joined ‘the back row’ men, doubtless singing alto. I don’t know the present situation in these places, but they were Chester, Norwich, York and Lincoln. There are very accomplished girls’ choirs at Salisbury (where they were pioneered), Lincoln and, indeed, Winchester.
No, I didn’t. Our precentor uses a tuning fork, too. People who have perfect pitch can be very rude about those who don’t, and it’s not necessary in order to be able to sing in tune. And the women in a mixed choir may be very good, but they may sing like boys nevertheless. I love a good Cathedral choir, but you do have to watch out for any prejudice that comes with it. And the tendency for it to.attract music fans who aren’t there to worship. That’s good too in a way, but it can tilt the balance of what a congregation wants. And that affects the pressure put on the clergy. The problem with worship songs is, imho, that the theology may be suitably earnest, but the quality of the music and song writing is rubbish! If they were good, people wouldn’t object to them!
“Girls choirs” Rowland? Do they have to be quarantined? Do they get sub-titled “the not as good” choir? Or the ” not really the proper” choir? If the girls are not allowed to sing in the proper choir, what does that say?
“Steve’s Test” is: “is it pleasant?”
One person’s soaring aria can be another’s pneumatic drill of course, and our certainty over our own musical appreciation, must have consideration for others who hear differently.
Never mind perfect pitch, one lad busking on Guildford’s High Street, appeared to have no pitch at all. The only feedback he would get would be the lack of income from his efforts. Although I noted that some would approach and encourage him, if not in a pecuniary way.
Others are far more successful, and on a Saturday you can take your pick from a pretty electric violin (dangerous in the wrong hands) playing pop classics, or the mellifluous tones of an aging rocker, or from one of the many Academy of Contemporary Music debutants.
Buskers come and go, but the popular and recurring ones, some of which have gone contactless, play music or sing songs, or both, which are generally popular, not necessarily what they would like to perform. This is always a compromise for the musically gifted.
To lead worship is to think of the other. If no one is following, you’re not leading.
‘It was felt that Chapter simply did not understand the musical side of the Cathedral’.
Surely the Precentor represents, at least in part, the musical side of the Cathedral?
The summary of the review tends to put the role of the Precentor in at least a neutral light. From what I know of the situation, the Precentor was a significant part of the problem. Managerial and domineering, and seeming to lack respect for the music or musical traditions of the Cathedral. The review says that the plan for the Cathedral music, led by the Precentor, was good, but was not consulted upon or communicated well, i.e. he tried to impose it without negotiation.
The Precentor has seemed to avoid the limelight in this situation, although apparently his spouse has a senior CofE role, so that may be why he is well-protected. However I understand he is currently on gardening leave. Perhaps, given the CofE’s previous behaviour in similar matters, he will be shipped of to some unfortunate diocese as their suffragen or diocesan. Or perhaps he will get training in how to relate to others with empathy.
“Follow the Master, not the pastor” might help us avoid endless Cathedral or Church arguments. I have tried BCP traditionalism and charismatic-evangelicalism. With the former, I questioned if the ritual was often dreary and dead. The latter could degenerate into ‘boiled over milk’, with pursuit of very odd stuff. Some leaders leant close to gay conversion therapy, and had special “gay meetings”, which sounded like ghetto exclusion really. Others were young earth creationists and literalists. There was what now feels like a fake tolerance, where anyone not holding to their literalism was excluded. There were cliques, who fixed up things for friends or family, and there was an incestuous aura, so that the whole “Church family” were to contribute money, but a different family or family friends group seemed to reap the benefit. I also became wary about claims of healing, possibly where only trivial or psychosomatic illness was present. I have largely given up on BCP and charismatic-evangelical religion. A midweek prayer lunch, with a very small group of connected believers, is much better than pockets getting emptied for a Sunday pantomime.