There may be friendly rivalry between the Qs and the Cs, but fundamentally, they are all schoolboys who love singing, and it is great to see them united. There are various opportunities throughout the year, but this will be the first outing for many of the new Cs and Q probationers together with the beginning of the final year for some of the boys who have spent the last 4 or 5 years dedicated to multiple services each week.

The Founder's Obit Festal Evensong takes place annually at the beginning of each academic year to commemorate the death in 1404 of William of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester. This man looms large in Winchester history, and it is he who was responsible for building, inter alia, the Nave of Winchester Cathedral and for founding Winchester College. The congregation is always largely made up of the new cohort of JP boys who have just started their Winchester career and will leave as fully fledged Wykehamists in just under 5 years’ time. As a seasoned C or Q parent, it is easy to become de-sensitised to the awe-inspiring architecture of the Cathedral and heavenly vocal sounds, but these 13-year-old boys must take some inspiration from being part of an institution with such a long and illustrious history.

With the departure of both Andy Lumsden and Howard Ionascu at the end of the summer term, this was also an early outing for Dónal McCann (Head of Chapel Music and Choral Partnerships at Winchester College) and Josh Stephens (one of the sub organists at Winchester Cathedral). Although the combined choir was notably smaller than on previous occasions, this meant that every voice mattered that little bit more and they all certainly rose to the occasion.

There were lots of opportunities to show off their vocal skills during the service with the rousing hymns, the Clucas responses, and Psalm 84 with a setting by Edward Bairstow. The Stanford Mag and Nunc in B flat is a firm favourite of the Qs and that confidence shone through. It is also good for the Qs to continue to be exposed to previously unsung pieces such as Charles Wood’s beautiful anthem ‘O thou the central orb of righteous love’. During this anthem, the Deans of Winchester Cathedral and Winchester College went together to the chantry chapel of William of Wykeham to lay flowers and give thanks to God for the life and deeds of William of Wykeham. One of the very few benefits of the pandemic has meant that we, the congregation, are able to take part in this very private ceremony albeit at a distance due to the cameras in the chantry.

The order of service stated that William of Wykeham was the ‘Builder and Founder’ – it was under his watch that the stunning Winchester College campus was created and the concept of a Winchester College education began. It is sobering to think how many times he may have been remembered in this service over the centuries. Some things may not have changed but progress is ever present. I suspect that he never thought that it would be possible for the congregation to get a birds-eye view of the sub organist Oliver Morrell’s feet via the gift of large screens as he played the glorious Sumsion’s Ceremonial March. All very impressive and I am left wondering what kind of progress the next 620 years might bring…

Lucy Higgs
Quirister parent