Evensong
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Evensong is a
church service A church service (or a worship service) is a formalized period of Christian communal Christian worship, worship, often held in a Church (building), church building. Most Christian denominations hold church services on the Lord's Day (offering Su ...
traditionally held near
sunset Sunset (or sundown) is the disappearance of the Sun at the end of the Sun path, below the horizon of the Earth (or any other astronomical object in the Solar System) due to its Earth's rotation, rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth, it ...
focused on singing
psalms The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of B ...
and other biblical
canticles In the context of Christian liturgy, a canticle (from the Latin ''canticulum'', a diminutive of ''canticum'', "song") is a psalm-like song with biblical lyrics taken from elsewhere than the Book of Psalms, but included in psalters and books such ...
. It is loosely based on the
canonical hours In the practice of Christianity, canonical hours mark the divisions of the day in terms of Fixed prayer times#Christianity, fixed times of prayer at regular intervals. A book of hours, chiefly a breviary, normally contains a version of, or sel ...
of
vespers Vespers /ˈvɛspərz/ () is a Christian liturgy, liturgy of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic liturgy, Eastern Catholic liturgical rites), Eastern Orthodox, Oriental O ...
and
compline Compline ( ), also known as Complin, Night Prayer, or the Prayers at the End of the Day, is the final prayer liturgy (or office) of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours, which are prayed at fixed prayer times. The English wor ...
.
Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
speakers translated the Latin word as , which became 'evensong' in modern English. Typically used in reference to the
Anglican daily office The Daily Office is a term used primarily by members of the Episcopal Church. In Anglican churches, the traditional canonical hours of daily services include Morning Prayer (also called Matins or Mattins, especially when chanted) and Evening Pray ...
's evening
liturgy Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...
, it can also refer to the pre-Reformation form of vespers or services of evening prayer from other denominations, particularly within the
Anglican Use The Anglican Use, also known as ''Divine Worship'', is a use of the Roman Rite celebrated by the personal ordinariates, originally created for former Anglicans who converted to Catholicism while wishing to maintain "aspects of the Anglican p ...
of the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
.


Structure

From
Late Antiquity Late antiquity marks the period that comes after the end of classical antiquity and stretches into the onset of the Early Middle Ages. Late antiquity as a period was popularized by Peter Brown (historian), Peter Brown in 1971, and this periodiza ...
onwards, the office of vespers normally included psalms, the , a hymn, and other prayers. By the
Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...
, it became common for
secular clergy In Christianity, the term secular clergy refers to deacons and priests who are not monastics or otherwise members of religious life. Secular priests (sometimes known as diocesan priests) are priests who commit themselves to a certain geograph ...
to combine vespers and compline. By the sixteenth century, worshippers in western Europe conceived 'evensong' as vespers and compline performed without break. Modern
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...
services advertised as 'vespers' often similarly conclude with compline, especially as part of the
all-night vigil The All-night vigil is a service of the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic churches consisting of an aggregation of the canonical hours of Compline (in Greek usage only), Vespers (or, on a few occasions, Great Compline), Matins, and the ...
. When the
English reformation The English Reformation began in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away first from the authority of the pope and bishops Oath_of_Supremacy, over the King and then from some doctrines and practices of the Catholic Church ...
produced the ''
Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the title given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christianity, Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The Book of Common Prayer (1549), fi ...
'', it provided a version of evensong that abbreviated the secular version of vespers and compline, drawing on the
Use of Sarum The Use of Sarum (or Use of Salisbury, also known as the Sarum Rite) is the liturgical use of the Latin rites developed at Salisbury Cathedral and used from the late eleventh century until the English Reformation. It is largely identical to t ...
. Nearly all its elements are taken from medieval service books, with only minor changes to the order in which they appear.


Music

Evensong was initially sung entirely to
plainsong Plainsong or plainchant (calque from the French ; ) is a body of chants used in the liturgies of the Western Church. When referring to the term plainsong, it is those sacred pieces that are composed in Latin text. Plainsong was the exclusive for ...
. Musicians gradually created
polyphonic Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice ( monophony) or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords ...
settings of its music, especially of the . The first musical setting of the ''
Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the title given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christianity, Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The Book of Common Prayer (1549), fi ...
'', by
John Marbeck John Marbeck, Merbeck or Merbecke () was an English choral composer and theological writer whose musical setting of the early Anglican liturgy standardised the sung Anglican service until the late 20th century. He is also known today for his se ...
, provided a simplified version of traditional chant settings. It remains unclear whether plainsong remained a common feature of evensong in the Church of England after the sixteenth century.
Metrical psalms A metrical psalter is a kind of Bible translation: a book containing a verse translation of all or part of the Book of Psalms in vernacular poetry, meant to be sung as hymns in a church. Some metrical psalters include melodies or harmonisatio ...
and
Anglican Chant Anglican chant, also known as English chant, is a way to singing, sing Meter (poetry), unmetrical texts, including psalms and canticles from the Bible, by matching the natural Prosody (linguistics), speech-rhythm of the words to the notes of a s ...
were also developed as alternate methods of singing the psalms and canticles. In choral evensong, all of the service is sung or chanted by the officiating minister and a choir. In cathedrals, or on particularly important days in the church calendar, the canticles are performed in elaborate settings. In churches where a choir is not present, simpler versions of the psalms and canticles are usually sung by the congregation, sometimes with responses and collects spoken rather than sung. Said evening prayer services with the musical setting omitted are also sometimes referred to as evensong. A number of composers have contributed settings of the canticles. These range from late
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
composers such as
Thomas Tallis Thomas Tallis (; also Tallys or Talles; 23 November 1585) was an English composer of High Renaissance music. His compositions are primarily vocal, and he occupies a primary place in anthologies of English choral music. Tallis is considered one ...
,
William Byrd William Byrd (; 4 July 1623) was an English Renaissance composer. Considered among the greatest composers of the Renaissance, he had a profound influence on composers both from his native country and on the Continental Europe, Continent. He i ...
and
Orlando Gibbons Orlando Gibbons ( bapt. 25 December 1583 – 5 June 1625) was an English composer and keyboard player who was one of the last masters of the English Virginalist School and English Madrigal School. The best known member of a musical famil ...
, through Victorian composers such as
Charles Villiers Stanford Sir Charles Villiers Stanford (30 September 1852 – 29 March 1924) was an Anglo-Irish composer, music teacher, and conductor of the late Romantic music, Romantic era. Born to a well-off and highly musical family in Dublin, Stanford was ed ...
, Thomas Attwood Walmisley to later masters of the form such as
Herbert Murrill Herbert Henry John Murrill (11 May 1909 – 25 July 1952) was an English musician, composer, and organist. Education and early career Herbert Henry John (later just Herbert) Murrill was born in London, at 19, Fircroft Road in Upper Tooting, the ...
, Basil Harwood,
Herbert Howells Herbert Norman Howells (17 October 1892 – 23 February 1983) was an English composer, organist, and teacher, most famous for his large output of Anglican church music. Life Background and early education Howells was born in Lydney, Gloucest ...
,
Michael Tippett Sir Michael Kemp Tippett (2 January 1905 – 8 January 1998) was an English composer who rose to prominence during and immediately after the Second World War. In his lifetime he was sometimes ranked with his contemporary Benjamin Britten as o ...
, Giles Swayne, and
Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in p ...
(who composed a
Magnificat The Magnificat (Latin for "y soulmagnifies he Lord) is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary or Canticle of Mary, and in the Byzantine Rite as the Ode of the Theotokos (). Its Western name derives from the incipit of its Latin text. This ...
and
Nunc dimittis The Nunc dimittis (), also known as the Song of Simeon or the Canticle of Simeon, is a canticle taken from the second chapter of the Gospel of Luke, verses 29 to 32. Its Latin name comes from its incipit, the opening words, of the Vulgate transl ...
at different times). In
High Church A ''high church'' is a Christian Church whose beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, Christian liturgy, liturgy, and Christian theology, theology emphasize "ritual, priestly authority, ndsacraments," and a standard liturgy. Although ...
parishes, the service may conclude with
Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, also called Benediction with the Blessed Sacrament or the Rite of Eucharistic Exposition and Benediction, is a devotional ceremony, celebrated especially in the Roman Catholic Church, but also in some other C ...
(or a modified form of "Devotions to the Blessed Sacrament") and the carrying of the reserved sacrament under a humeral veil from the high altar to an altar of repose, to the accompaniment of music. The service may also include hymns. The first of these may be called the Office Hymn, and will usually be particularly closely tied to the
liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...
theme of the day, and may be an ancient plainchant setting. This will usually be sung just before the psalm(s) or immediately before the first canticle and may be sung by the choir alone. Otherwise any hymns normally come toward the end of the service, maybe one either side of the sermon (if there is one), or following the anthem. These hymns will generally be congregational.


Churches offering evensong


Great Britain

Most cathedrals of the Church of England, where the service originates, and a number of university college
chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...
s (e.g. in the
University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
, the
University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
, the
University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...
, the
University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charter in 1837. It was the first recognised university to ...
and
King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...
) offer this service regularly, often daily. Most of the cathedrals of the
Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...
and the
Scottish Episcopal Church The Scottish Episcopal Church (; ) is a Christian denomination in Scotland. Scotland's third largest church, the Scottish Episcopal Church has 303 local congregations. It is also an Ecclesiastical province#Anglican Communion, ecclesiastical provi ...
also offer choral evensong. Choral evensong is usually sung during term time; at other times, it is often sung by a voluntary or visiting choir, or replaced with said Evening Prayer. Aside from the cathedrals and collegiate chapels, evensong is also sung in many parish churches around England where there is a choral tradition. There may be a choral service each Sunday or less frequently, such as on a monthly basis or only on feast days in the liturgical calendar. Many churches in central London have a professional choir and have a weekly service of choral evensong, among them
All Saints, Margaret Street All Saints is an Anglo-Catholicism, Anglo-Catholic church on Margaret Street, London, Margaret Street in Westminster, Greater London, England. Founded in the late 18th century as Margaret Street Chapel, the church became one aligned with the Ox ...
, Holy Trinity Sloane Square,
St Bartholomew the Great The Priory Church of St Bartholomew the Great, sometimes abbreviated to St-Barts-the-Great, is a medieval church in the Church of England's Diocese of London located in Smithfield, London, Smithfield within the City of London. The building was ...
and
St Bride's, Fleet Street St Bride's Church is a Church of England church in Fleet Street in the City of London. Likely dedicated to Bridget of Kildare, Saint Bridget perhaps as early as the 6th century, the building's most recent incarnation was designed by Sir Christo ...
.


Ireland

Most of the larger churches and cathedrals of the Church of Ireland offer evensong. It is sung six times a week at
St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin Saint Patrick's Cathedral () in Dublin, Ireland is the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Christ Church Cathedral, also a Church of Ireland cathedral in Dublin, is designated as the local cathedral of ...
, twice at
Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin Christ Church Cathedral, more formally The Cathedral of the Holy Trinity (Irish: ''Ardeaglais Theampall Chríost''), is the cathedral of the Diocese of Dublin and Glendalough, United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough and the cathedral of the e ...
, and once at
Trinity College, Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...
. Additionally, although rarely, some parish churches hold evensong; however, this is most often replaced with Evening Prayer.


United States and Canada

Most of the larger cathedrals and large parishes of the Episcopal Church and the
Anglican Church of Canada The Anglican Church of Canada (ACC or ACoC) is the Ecclesiastical province#Anglican Communion, province of the Anglican Communion in Canada. The official French-language name is ''l'Église anglicane du Canada''. In 2016, the Anglican Church of ...
offer choral evensong. During the school year,
Washington National Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in the City and Episcopal Diocese of Washington, commonly known as Washington National Cathedral or National Cathedral, is a cathedral of the Episcopal Church. The cathedral is located in Wa ...
offers Evensong not only on Sunday afternoon, but also from Monday to Thursday, with the Girl Choristers and the Boy Choristers alternating. Saint Thomas Church on Fifth Avenue in New York City offers Evensong from Tuesday to Thursday during the school year, in addition to Sundays. Evensong is also often offered at Episcopal seminaries as part of a chapel program. For example,
General Theological Seminary The General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church (GTS) is an Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal seminary in New York City. Founded in 1817, GTS is the oldest seminary of the Episcopal Church and the longest continuously operating ...
currently offers Evensong.


Africa

Throughout the countries of Africa with a large Anglican presence, evensong is also offered, for instance in the
Cathedral Church of Christ, Lagos The Cathedral Church of Christ Marina, Lagos is an Anglican cathedral on Lagos Island, Lagos, Nigeria. History The foundation stone for the first cathedral building was laid on 29 March 1867 and the cathedral was established in 1869. The cathedr ...
, Nigeria, St George's Cathedral, Cape Town, South Africa, and every Sunday at the
St Cyprian's Cathedral, Kimberley The Cathedral Church of St Cyprian the Martyr, Kimberley, Northern Cape, Kimberley, is the seat of the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Kimberley and Kuruman, Kimberley and Kuruman, Anglican Church of Southern Africa. The building was dedicated ...
, South Africa.


Australia and New Zealand

Most of the cathedrals of the
Anglican Church of Australia The Anglican Church of Australia, originally known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania, is a Christian church in Australia and an autonomous church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. In 2016, responding to a peer-reviewed study ...
offer choral evensong at least weekly, with
St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Melbourne, Australia. It is the cathedral church of the Diocese of Melbourne and the seat of the Archbishop of Melbourne, who is also the metropolitan archbishop of the Province of Victoria. ...
offering daily evensong. Likewise in the
Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia, formerly the Church of the Province of New Zealand, is a Anglican province, province of the Anglican Communion serving New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, and the Cook Islands. Since 1992 ...
, evensong is offered at the cathedrals in
Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
,
Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
,
Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...
,
Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...
, and
Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
.


Asia

* St John's Cathedral, Hong Kong * All Saints' Cathedral, Hong Kong *
St Andrew's Cathedral, Singapore Saint Andrew's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Singapore. It is located near City Hall, Singapore, City Hall, Downtown Core, within the Central Area, Singapore, Central Area in Singapore's central business district. It is the cathedral chur ...
* St Mary's Cathedral, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia * Rikkyo All Saints' Chapel, Tokyo, Japan * Rikkyo St. Paul's Chapel, Saitama, Japan


Non-Anglican churches

The popularity of evensong has spread to other churches, particularly churches of the
Presbyterian Church (USA) The Presbyterian Church (USA), abbreviated PCUSA, is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination in the Religion in the United States, United States. It is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States too. Its th ...
and
United Methodist The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...
churches which use a formal liturgical worship style. Examples in the Presbyterian Church include
Fourth Presbyterian Church (Chicago) The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago is one of the largest congregations of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), located in the Magnificent Mile neighborhood of Chicago, directly across Michigan Avenue from the John Hancock Center. Histo ...
and
Independent Presbyterian Church (Birmingham, Alabama) Independent Presbyterian Church is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) located on the Southside in Birmingham, Alabama. Initially started by a group of 25 following controversy over doctrinal issues within a local congregation, the ...
both of which offer evensong services on a seasonal basis, as does Peachtree Road United Methodist Church in Atlanta, Georgia. There are some Roman Catholic churches and abbeys in England offering choral evensong: These include
Ampleforth Abbey Ampleforth Abbey is a monastery of Benedictine monks a mile to the east of Ampleforth, North Yorkshire, England, part of the English Benedictine Congregation. It descends from the pre-Reformation community at Westminster Abbey through the las ...
,
Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, officially known as the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King and locally nicknamed "Paddy's Wigwam", is the cathedral, seat of the Archbishop of Liverpool and the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdi ...
, the
Birmingham Oratory The Birmingham Oratory is a Catholic religious community of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri, located in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham. The community was founded in 1849 by John Henry Newman as the first house of that congregation in England. ...
,
Ealing Abbey The Abbey of Ealing is a Roman Catholic Benedictine monastery located on Castlebar Hill in Ealing, England. It is part of the English Benedictine Congregation. The shrine is dedicated to Saint Benedict of Nursia. In 2020, the Abbey had fourtee ...
, Leeds Cathedral,
Downside Abbey Downside Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in England and the senior community of the English Benedictine Congregation. Until 2019, the community had close links with Downside School, for the education of children aged 11 to 18. Both the abbey ...
, the
London Oratory The London Oratory, officially the Congregation of the Oratory of St Philip Neri in London, is a Catholic community of priests living under the rule of life established by Philip Neri (1515–1595). It is located in an Oratory House, next to th ...
, and
Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral, officially the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Most Precious Blood, is the largest Catholic Church in England and Wales, Roman Catholic church in England and Wales. The shrine is dedicated to the Blood of Jesus Ch ...
.
Loyola University Maryland Loyola University Maryland is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit university in Baltimore, Maryland. Established as Loyola College in Maryland by John Early (educator), John Early and eight other members of the Society of Je ...
, a Jesuit Catholic university in Baltimore, Maryland, celebrates a half-hour evensong on Thursday evenings, although this has been temporarily suspended. In Scotland, some larger churches (and former cathedrals belonging to the Church of Scotland) hold evensong, including
Glasgow Cathedral Glasgow Cathedral () is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in Glasgow, Scotland. It was the cathedral church of the Archbishop of Glasgow, and the mother church of the Archdiocese of Glasgow and the province of Glasgow, from the 12th ...
,
Paisley Abbey Paisley Abbey is a parish church of the Church of Scotland on the east bank of the River Cart, White Cart Water in the centre of the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire, about west of Glasgow, in Scotland. Its origins date from the 12th century, base ...
(2nd Sunday of each month), and Edinburgh Cathedral. The Basilica of St. Nicholas in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
holds choral evensong on Saturdays.


Broadcasts

The
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
has, since 1926, broadcast a weekly service of Choral Evensong. It is broadcast (usually live) on
BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...
on Wednesdays at 15:30 and is repeated the following Sunday. Between February 2007 and September 2008, the service was broadcast on Sunday only. The service comes live from an English cathedral or collegiate institution. It is occasionally, however, a recording or is replaced by a different form of service or a service from a church elsewhere in the world or of another denomination. The most recent broadcast is available on the
BBC iPlayer BBC iPlayer (stylised as iPLAYER or BBC iPLAYER) is a video on demand service from the BBC. The service is available Over-the-top media service, over-the-top on a wide range of devices, including Mobile phone, mobile phones and Tablet computer ...
for up to a week after the original broadcast. There is also an archive available.


See also

*
Morning Prayer (Anglican) The Daily Office is a term used primarily by members of the Episcopal Church. In Anglicanism, Anglican churches, the traditional canonical hours of daily services include Morning Prayer (also called Matins or Mattins, especially when chanted) and ...
*
Matins Matins (also Mattins) is a canonical hour in Christian liturgy, originally sung during the darkness of early morning (between midnight and dawn). The earliest use of the term was in reference to the canonical hour, also called the vigil, which w ...
*
Vespers Vespers /ˈvɛspərz/ () is a Christian liturgy, liturgy of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic liturgy, Eastern Catholic liturgical rites), Eastern Orthodox, Oriental O ...
*
Anglican chant Anglican chant, also known as English chant, is a way to singing, sing Meter (poetry), unmetrical texts, including psalms and canticles from the Bible, by matching the natural Prosody (linguistics), speech-rhythm of the words to the notes of a s ...
*
Anglican church music Anglican church music is music that is written for Christian worship in Anglican religious services, forming part of the liturgy. It mostly consists of pieces written to be sung by a church choir, which may sing ''a cappella'' or accompanied b ...
*
Service (music) In Anglican church music, a service is a musical setting of certain parts of the liturgy, generally for choir with or without organ accompaniment. Liturgical services Morning Prayer * Venite ( Psalm 95 — rarely set after the Restoration) * ...
* * *
Anglican devotions Anglican devotions are private prayers and practices used by Anglican Christians to promote spiritual growth and communion with God. Among members of the Anglican Communion, private devotional habits vary widely, depending on personal preference ...


Notes


Further reading

*


External links


Choral Evensong

Choral Evensong
BBC Radio 3 weekly broadcast
SingTheOffice
evensong from the ''Book of Common Prayer'' set to
plainsong Plainsong or plainchant (calque from the French ; ) is a body of chants used in the liturgies of the Western Church. When referring to the term plainsong, it is those sacred pieces that are composed in Latin text. Plainsong was the exclusive for ...

Church of England daily prayer
{{Authority control Anglo-Catholicism Book of Common Prayer Christian liturgical music Anglican liturgy Evening