Members of the Sixth Form Choir were very excited to receive an invitation to sing Evensong at University College, Oxford on Sunday 16 May. University College is one of the most ancient colleges – according to some traditions the very oldest – of Oxford University and also one of the most beautiful, with famous alumni ranging from the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley to prime ministers Clement Attlee and Harold Wilson.
We were delighted that the college went to so much trouble to give us a feel for college life, throwing on a tour of the college for us and inviting us to dine at formal hall and to take tea with the chaplain before the service. Evensong was performed jointly with University College’s choir, with The Abbey’s singers performing Schubert’s setting of Psalm 23 on their own as the anthem but otherwise singing together the undergraduates. The service attracted a sizeable congregation of university students and staff, and of families and staff from The Abbey. The combined choirs produced a thrilling sound, filling the historic chapel, and all of the music-making was of a very high standard indeed. All in all, it was a very memorable day.