Choral Evensong will conclude the celebration of Trinity Sunday, June 15, at Grace Episcopal Church at 5 p.m.
Featured music will include an anthem, which will be a setting of the hymn, “Thy Strong Word” by Robert Roth, whose brother, George Roth, was the organist and choir director at the parish for four decades. The choir will sing responses recently composed by Gabriel Rhys Simerson, director of music ministries at Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church in Ivy. Canticles include a Magnificat by the English composer Sir Henry Walford Davies who, among other positions was Master of the King’s Singers from 1934 to 1941. From the Orthodox tradition, a Kievian chant will serve as the Nunc Dimittis ‒ psalms, hymns and anthems performed in concert form and as part of an evening service of worship.
Directing the choir and playing the organ will be Jonathan Clawson, who often served in those capacities while singing with the choir as a choral scholar during his time as a student at Southern Virginia University. Following his graduation from a masters’ program at East Carolina University, he has served this year as interim director of choral activities at Southern Virginia University.
Choral Evensong, in the Anglican tradition, is the sung version of the office of Evening Prayer. Derived from medieval monastic tradition, it is primarily comprised of scripture including psalms, canticles which are biblical songs, and prayers. Long considered one of the treasures of the Anglican Communion, Evensong has drawn increasing appreciation in England, where it has been a fixture of cathedrals, college chapels, and some parishes, and in the US.
Trinity Sunday will also be observed at the two morning services, at 8 and 10:30 a.m.
Grace Episcopal Church is located at 123 West Washington Street, at the corner of Lee Avenue.
