Artistic Director’s Report:
Year two in the life of Capella Regalis in King’s Chapel has been no less awesome than year one. The choir continues to be deeply enriched by the attention to liturgy, beauty, and truth with which we are blessed in the King’s College Chapel. This season we have had the usual spat of concerts here and there, including performances in the fall at a CHAMA benefit, the Halifax Market, the Lieutenant Governor’s, and our now annual To Bethlehem with King’s concert in First Baptist in December. Monthly Evensongs continued in the fall, but have now been updated to meet the needs of the chapel and the choir and reached that coveted weekly status that makes the choir feel truly a part of Chapel life.
In January of this year, Mike Blackwood decided not to return as Choir Manager. Paul Rogers has stepped in and done a fabulous job of filling those shoes (I doubt that Paul has ever had trouble filling shoes). Paul has been a great blessing to the choir and we are most grateful to have him on board. The challenge for the artistic director in this, like so many endeavors of this nature, is to find a way to solve the issues of fund-raising and structural support whose shortfalls result in the mental, emotional, and financial burnout of those who are most necessary to the organization. Mike was a great force behind the growth of Capella Regalis and we thank him for the year of self, soul, and body that he gave to the choir.
Coming up, we have the Missa Gaia with the King’s Chorus on April 19, 20, and 21. This will be a rather massive and grand affair, so we look forward to the fun. In May, Paul Rogers and I hope to be able to conjure up another Nova Scotian tour for the men and boys, wrapping up the season with a post-tour concert back here in Halifax on May 15th.
Many thanks are due to all in the Chapel community for the enormous support that Capella Regalis has received here. Thank you to Paul Halley, for making the music real to a wild bunch of young men. Thank you to Paul Rogers, who has so quickly made his mark on the choir with his tall perspective and his calm, sharp-minded and graceful stewardship. A special thanks to the postulants, who have brought us into the fold of their Tuesday Evensongs; and thanks to the wardens, the sacristan, Nick Hatt, and especially Fr Neish. Thank you to Fr Thorne for bringing us to the place where the religious life is a real possibility for the boys and men of Capella Regalis.
Nick Halley – 24 March 2012
