Archdiocese of Southwark releases recordings by cathedral choirs to boost musical passion in Catholic schools

A series of much-loved hymns performed by the various choirs of St George’s Cathedral in Southwark have been released as part of an effort to encourage interest in music among children in local Catholic schools.

The video recordings of the performances released are also accompanied by two organ pieces. The St George’s Cathedral choirs involved in the releases include the Southwark Singing Programme. This choir is made up of children from primary schools across south London and Kent, and aims to develop a passion for music in Catholic schools, as part of the National Schools Singing Programme.

“The Church’s musical tradition is a treasure of inestimable value, and musicians have a duty to preserve this great tradition,” says Jonathan Schranz, Director of Music at the cathedral since 2019. “In our own way, in Southwark, we are privileged to be able to use our voices to direct hearts and minds upwards on a weekly basis through liturgical singing.

“We are delighted to release these recordings and hope people enjoy listening to them as much as we enjoyed performing. While we’ve included many beloved hymns, we’ve also added some which may be less known but are wonderful pieces of divine worship.

“It was a particular joy to work with children from our archdiocesan schools on these recordings. The passion the children have for singing and music is one we should not only embrace, but fervently encourage.”

Hymns sung by children from the Southwark Singing Programme include The Power of the Cross and In Christ Alone.

The main Cathedral Choir is made up of boys and girl choristers aged 7 to 12 years old, along with nine professional singers known as Lay Clerks. The choir performed hymns such as Ave Verum Corpus, Tantum Ergo and Forty Days and Forty Nights.

The Cathedral Lay Clerks also recorded Gregorian chants including Veni Creator Spiritus and In Splendoribus Sanctorum, as well as Allegri’s famous Miserere mei, Deus.

The full set of recordings are available on the Archdiocese of Southwark’s YouTube channel. The performances will be shared with schools and parishes, as well as promoted on social media, to encourage the use of music as a form of worship and prayer, says the archdiocese.

A list of the schools who took part in the recordings, along with further details for any schools interested to join the archdiocese’s Schools Programme, are available on the Archdiocese of Southwark website. 

Photo: Interior of St George’s Cathedral in Southwark; image from Archdiocese of Southwark website.

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