In the past month Brentwood Cathedral Music has begun livestreaming and recording Vespers on its Facebook page. The performances take place in St Joseph the Worker, Hutton on Wednesdays and Fridays at 5.30pm for around half an hour and can be found at:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/Brentwoodcathmusic
The audio recordings are also available on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMdSh2bZm7p7KtJZCJih_mQ
Art Wangcharoensab, Assistant Music Director, says: “We wanted to share music during this difficult time, especially as congregations are not allowed to sing at Masses. People can listen at home to wonderful music – and join in hymns that they know from the comfort of their own sofa.”
Small groups of choristers from Brentwood Cathedral Choir perform in a socially distanced way, as they have begun to do at Masses in the Cathedral. “We have a rota in place so that people can keep singing and in practice. It keeps them on their toes, basically. Otherwise they would find it harder to sing more difficult pieces later on. We can have a maximum of eight singers.”
The church at Hutton is used for practice and performances because it is big enough to accommodate the guidelines and allows the Cathedral to be free for private prayer.
Art, who runs the Girls’ Choir at the Cathedral, is to restart rehearsals soon using the Cathedral Conference Hall, which provides ample space for distancing. He is also beginning to teach again in schools and has been providing support and music for BCYS at Youth Masses. Over the summer, Art wrote a song of hope with Molly Conrad for the Brentwood Catholic Youth Service to inspire and encourage everyone during the COVID-19 pandemic. Called Love is the Way, it was recorded by young musicians and singers from the BCYS. You can listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlIVl4ubV5A
A piano recital by David Silkoff is also available on Brentwood Cathedral Music’s Youtube audio library and Art says more recitals are in the pipeline.
