Most highly flavoured gravy

The title of the post says something about my irreverent sense of humour! In church this morning, we heard 'Gabriel's Message', one of my favourite advent carols. When we were in Lancaster, we sang it lots, partly because the celebration of Christmas in academic institutions tends to be a little premature for the rousing 'Yea Lord we greet thee...' type carols. So Gabriel's Message became a familiar friend; partly because it's quite easy to sing, even for a thrown-together choir. Most highly flavoured gravy' was the deliberate corruption thrown by a devious director into practices to try and raise a smile from a flagging choir. The risk was always that it might come out in the service we were rehearsing for.

The Church of England captures a range of views about the position of Mary in our religious life as Christians. I've never been persuaded beyond a 'dabble' with the rosary, and I've always been in church settings where Marian devotion is viewed with suspicion. That said, today's readings remind us of the important place of Mary in God's plan, and of her unimaginable trust in God, beautifully rendered later in the first chapter of Luke's gospel.

I don't suppose I'll ever be much more enthusiastic for Marian devotion in my own prayer life, but I'm reminded today of the richness and breadth of our tradition in the C of E.

Christmas is coming, and I have time to write a blog post

Well it's been a while since my last post here. Its been a hectic end to the term at Westcott, and there has been little time to engage with anything apart from essays, reading and trying to keep sane. As always (regular readers will note the theme), the difficulty I find is in balancing the different aspects of life which seem to compete for the same time. I won't rehearse those particular issues again.

The Christmas vacation has truly started now, and I see, on various social media sources, that many of my colleagues have been hard at work with essays. I, on the other hand, have not. I've been winding down, and doing enjoyable things like visiting friends in Newent near Gloucester - seeing their new house, and visiting Gloucester Cathedral. And now North Norfolk, though we arrived to find that my Father-in-law had been cruelly attacked by a Christmas tree (long story), and had broken his left leg in 3 places. An efficient dose of NHS emergency care, and he's home now. Next week is a work week for me. My target is 10,000 words for the vacation, and I know that most of these need to be churned out next week.

Anyway, I thought I should write a post, as there are many things I want to say to the world. Here are my headlines, in brief:

Gareth Malone has upset the X Factor apple-cart by producing a worthy song for a Christmas number one. Let's hope the military wives choir last the distance! As I have said on this blog before (and here), I really rate Gareth Malone. His work is completely inspiring, and his TV shows are uplifting without being escapist. So if you haven't already bought the single, do it now and keep the production-line dross away from the top spot this Christmas.

Rev. has just come to an end again. I wish UK comedy seasons ran for more than half a dozen episodes, but even with only a handful of slots, Hollander, Wood et al have done it again. I loved the end of season scene, and the twists and turns in the plot. I loved the fact that they examined the peculiar notion of vocation from a number of different angles. Nigel's experiences will have been hauntingly familiar to large numbers of applicants to the priesthood. The archdeacon's character-shift will have been painfully close to the bone for a number of clerics, whilst twanging a nerve for the many ordinands who know that, as it stands, they are unlikely to be in the running for senior posts in their impending careers in the church. What Rev does best is to deal respectfully with the big issues in the church. Yes, it's comedy, but it's not simple victim comedy. It's thoughtful and situational comedy at its best. Like the first series, a slow burn, but of exceptional quality.

David Camoron has been spouting some opinions about the Christian-ness of Britain, and the mission of the church. Given his self confessed status as a "committed" but only "vaguely practising" Christian, I'm not sure anyone should pay attention to him. I'm not saying the church always gets it right, but I know that politicians rarely do. ++Rowan's Radio 2 pause for thought is where the church is, and where it ought to be. Alongside ordinary people in the mess of life. Of course, Dave has a right to say what he likes about the church, but I have a right not to listen.

UPDATE - For a more thorough and thoughtful analysis, see +Nick Baines' post here.

I think that's all for now. As I'm meant to be reading and writing next week, I predict there may be a few more posts on the way before Christmas.

Gareth Malone and my telly face, part 2

Regular readers will remember my glowing praise for the Gareth Malone series about the South Oxhey Choir. Well he's back on the telly again, and this time he's trying to bring together a young people's chorus for a new opera at Glyndebourne.

As a rule, MrsLanky and I are not opera fans; I'm certainly not sure what I think about modern opera. I can say, however, that we have been very impressed by this latest BBC series. The best moments of the show are when Malone works one to one with someone who is struggling, or who thinks they can't sing. He shows how, in many cases, the issue is not ability but confidence. And Malone has the disarming ability to give people confidence in their ability to sing.

The particularly interesting aspect of this series is the fact that Malone has been asked to work with a piece that is still a work in progress. It hasn't been completed by the time he needs to start teaching it! 

I don't know if it makes me a bad person, but it's affirming to see such a capable person working at the edge of his ability. It gives me confidence from watching him; especially seeing him receive coaching on conducting! His balance of humility and confidence is an inspiration. The telly face was definitely in evidence last night.

Anyway, iPlayer has the first 2 episodes, and you can catch it on BBC2 at 9pm on Thursdays.

82 days

Pining for my piano

Since I left home at the age of 19, I have been without my piano. It was a gift to me from my Grandparents, and I learnt to play on it. Though I must admit, I didn't learn very well! I got to Grade 2 and decided that all those exams and hours of practice (not that I ever did an hour of practice) were too much effort.

Since going to university, my music-making has gone in a more choral route (despite the purchase of a lovely electro-acoustic guitar). The voice is the only truly portable instrument, and you don't struggle to fit it in a university bedroom! Through singing, and teaching songs to others, my music reading has got a lot better. I used to be ok on the pitch of notes, but I was easily confused by rhythms. This is still true to an extent, but I find that a bit of concentration soon sorts it out.

When we move to Cambridge in September, we will have enough space to accommodate the piano which now sits in my parents' dining room. I can't wait to have it! It's not that I will play it every day, but I do think that I will enjoy being able to try a bit of sightreading, and bashing out the accompaniments to Taize chants or Iona songs. The weakness of the voice is that harmony cannot easily be achieved when you're on your own (with a few exceptions). This is where the piano comes in! you can hear how the different parts relate to each other, and get prepared for any accidentals or clashes before they happen.
So there you go. I'm pining for my piano, but this will soon come to an end in September. I bet it needs tuning.

Gareth Malone, and my telly face

I really enjoyed the final episode of 'The Choir' on BBC2 last night. It was one of those occasions where MrsLanky and I break out what we call our 'telly faces'. This is where there's something on TV which is really captivating and inspiring, and it causes an inane open-mouthed smile to appear on each of our faces. We know we're doing it, but we just can't help ourselves.

Last effect night this was exaggerated further by the compelling nature of the programme. MrsLanky and I both sing, and we both believe in the value of singing in churches and communities. So you might say this was a match made in heaven even before the opening titles finished.

On last night's show, Gareth Malone showed again how a little bit of vision, and a huge amount of energy and enthusiasm, can bring together even the most hopeless (and I don't mean that in a pejorative sense) groups of people. He also showed the value of caring and compassionate leadership, and I think that's what the people of South Oxhey were really craving; the music was an excellent vehicle which was, in a sense, incidental.

In an age where the church has faded into the background for many people, it's not surprising that there are places and people in need of this type of leadership. We just need to clone Gareth Malone, or maybe get him to lead a module at theological colleges, on the subject of leadership in communities.

UPDATE - It looks like someone else agrees with me

Singing in the emerging church

Maggi Dawn has posted about the role of live singing in an emerging church setting, and I agree with her. Live singing is a wonderfully adaptive aspect of worship, and I'd add that you don't need to be restricted to the model of a choir. I've been working for ages with the music of the Iona and Taize communities, and if you want to get people engaged in part singing really quickly, then this is the way to do it. One strong and confident leader and a roomful of people who think they can't sing can do some amazing things with an african chant or a simple Taize canon.

Maggi also mentions Gareth Malone, star of the BBC series The Choir. If you haven't already seen the programme, you can catch the final episode on Tuesday next week. From watching the programme, I recognise the joyful feeling when a roomful of people really click with a piece of music.

The final thing I want to do is to encourage anyone who can hold a tune that they can actually lead people in singing. I only have an average singing voice; I'm certainly not a soloist. I do, however, have a loud voice and I can sing in tune. Along with a good knowledge of the piece you're teaching, this is all you need!

Having said all of this, I also accept that there are people for whom participating in singing doesn't 'float the boat', and I think as leaders and teachers, we need to respect that. This is why I always try to make it a relaxed affair with as little pressure as possible.