Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols 18th Dec 4pm

 Traditional Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols

at

St. Katharine’s Church, Southbourne
on

Sunday 18th. December 4 pm 

The Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols was a really good start to the Christmas celebrations. The church looked beautiful as candles flickered in the windows and the aisles. The choir processed in to improvisations on the organ followed by the solo first verse of, 'Once in Royal David's City', sung to a packed church. The large choir processed down the aisle, filling the church with sounds of Advent and Christmas. A young treble sang Mary's verse in, 'The Angel Gabriel', three choirmen each sang a different king's verse in, 'We Three Kings', one of them also singing the introduction to, 'Past Three O'Clock' as another solo. The combined choirs of St Katharine's Church and Cantamus blended together, singing as one choir, joining together to produce a memorable carol service. 

The choirs were directed by Malcolm Wood, who also accompanied the Congregational Carols on the organ


Before the service we took a photo of the choir:

The Parish of St. Katharine with St. Nicholas, Southbourne

A FESTIVAL OF NINE LESSONS AND CAROLS

Sunday 18th. December 2011, 4 pm

Processional Hymn 1 Once in Royal David’s city 


(Choir only verses 1 and 2) Descant Willcocks


Bidding Prayer and Lord’s Prayer


Choir The Lord at first did Adam make arr. Willcocks

First Lesson Genesis 3: 8-15


God announces in the Garden of Eden that the seed of woman shall bruise the serpent’s head


Choir Adam lay ybounden Boris Ord


Hymn 2 O come O come Emmanuel


Second Lesson Genesis 22: 15-18


God promises to faithful Abraham that in his seed shall the nations of the earth be blessed


Choir Ding, dong merrily on high


Third Lesson Isaiah 9: 2, 6-7


Christ’s birth and kingdom are foretold by Isaiah


Hymn 3 O come all ye faithful (vv 1, 2, 6)


Descant Malcolm Wood


Choir In dulci jubilo arr. Pearsall

Fourth Lesson Micah 5: 2-4


The prophet Micah foretells the glory of little Bethlehem


Hymn 4 O little town of Bethlehem


Choir A virgin most pure Malcolm Wood


Fifth Lesson St. Luke 1:26-38


The Angel Gabriel salutes the Blessed Virgin Mary


Choir The Angel Gabriel


Sixth Lesson St. Matthew 1: 18-23


St. Matthew tells of the birth of Jesus


Choir Lullay my liking Gustav Holst


Hymn 5 Away in a manger (Choir verse 1)


Seventh Lesson St. Luke 2: 8-16


The shepherds go to the manger


Hymn 6 While shepherd’s watched their flocks


Choir The angels and the shepherds Bohemian arr. Trevor


Eighth Lesson St. Matthew 2: 1-11


The wise men are led by the star to Jesus


Hymn 7 We three kings


(Choir sing verses congregation sing Chorus)


Choir Past three o’clock English traditional 

Ninth Lesson ALL STAND


St. John 1: 1-14


St. John unfolds the great mystery of the incarnation


BLESSING


Recessional Hymn 8 Hark the Herald Angels sing Descant Willcocks


After the service there was a lovely atmosphere in the hall as the choir and congregation shared together in drinking  mulled wine and eating mince pies.