FEATURE
A group photo of the Southwell Consort with Fr Jean-Baptiste Cazelle
Peace, joy and music Gregorian chant meets the English choral tradition at Fontgombault Abbey, as William Edwards explains
I
n the two years since the Southwell Consort was founded the group has come together on alternate Mondays to provide choral music for the Latin Mass at Corpus Christi Maiden Lane, in London. But it was earlier this year that our founder, Dominic Bevan, suggested something more ambitious: an overseas tour. And in the Abbey of Fontgombault, near Poitiers, he found the perfect destination. Its monks kindly offered us not only lodging and a warm welcome, but also some tuition on the finer points of Gregorian Chant, a form in which we as a choir aspire to specialise. In return, we would perform for them some of the finest works of the English choral tradition from around the time of the Reformation. The popularity of the trip among the volunteer singers was certainly not hurt by the fact that the abbey is set in beautiful French countryside and, of course, we felt obliged to make the most of the local cuisine. In all, 26 of us made our way to Poitiers airport, whence we decanted into three minibuses and drove straight to the nearest hypermarché, arriving 15 minutes before closing time to stock up on supplies
26
for the weekend. Rarely has so much cheese been purchased in so short a time! Arriving at Fontgombault late at night, we found the Abbey looming out of the darkness and most of the monks had turned in for the night, but we were shown to our simple yet homely accommodation, and before long cheese, wine and charcuterie were being laid out on trestle tables for a very convivial late-night supper.
The next morning, the most dedicated among us made it to 7am Matins, though I must confess it wasn’t until 10am that I made my way to the Abbey Church for Terce, immediately followed by Mass. Hearing the monastic choir for the first time, their depth of experience was evident - clearly men who devote many hours a day to their craft, from the small hours of the morning to late at night. As the grey clouds of dawn burned away, we were
The choir enjoy dinner on their arrival at Fontgombault
WINTER 2023
