THE first thought that arises in reviewing this fascinating book is that it is rare for a detailed personal appreciation of a musician’s professional experience and activity to appear while they are at the peak of achievement and in mid-career. Detailed reflections more often appear when there is time to look back.
Sarah Macdonald has contributed a regular column to the magazine The American Organist in which she has described a wide range of facets of her life as a highly successful and gifted church musician in the UK. A native of Canada, she is supremely well qualified to express views on all sorts of pertinent areas of what has often been called the “British choral tradition”.
Many of those articles, from 2009 to just a few months ago, are grouped in coherent chapters discussing areas of interest: from views on attracting and training young choristers through the encouragement and inspiration of university undergraduate singers to the wider areas of composition for the liturgy, choir recordings, tours, and the practical provisions made in our church buildings.
The fact that these articles are intended to unwrap the methods and “mysteries” of British church music for a North American readership brings a clarity and perspicacity that are fresh to UK eyes. Macdonald’s expertise as a teacher and her analytical approach allow fresh and concise insight into many things that we might take for granted. The importance of training in theory, aural perception, and instrumental ability for singers is rightly highlighted, as is the importance of teaching to sight-read, even for those who might doubt themselves.
Since Macdonald’s current experience is mostly with a choir of teenage girls and with a gifted undergraduate choir, there is little description of attracting and inspiring seven-year-old boys or girls, with their families, but her potential approach is easily discernible from that which she describes in other areas.
Many times, she identifies herself as “fortunate”, as indeed she is: so are all those who follow a similar fine vocation to bring the very best to the musical expression of the Church and to inspire so many young people to achieve at their very best. There is convincing description of singers’ expression of delight in their achievement, and also from observing ongoing exciting development beyond the choir.
Particularly notable are confident assertions such as “never treat children as if they were children,” and “life is too short to sing rubbish music.” The author’s reflections, in her epilogue, on expressing faith through music put into words feelings of a kind that many may find difficult to enunciate.
The problems and challenges of the pandemic force attention in different directions, but ignite positive elements for the future, including wider audience involvement through live streaming. Given that life for a church musician is always an adventure, developing in surprising ways, I hope that we may be fortunate to see a second volume with continued insight in years to come.
David Flood was Organist and Master of the Choristers of Canterbury Cathedral 1988-2020, and President of the Cathedral Organists’ Association 2016-19.
Cathedrals, Chapels, Organs, Choirs
Sarah Macdonald
August Press £26.99
(979-8-2180421-4-1)
Church Times Bookshop £24.29