St Matthew's Church, Northampton
St Matthew's Church, Northampton is a Church of England parish church in Northampton with a strong musical tradition and a long history of commissioning new works of art and musical compositions. These include the sculpture, Madonna and Child by Henry Moore, the painting Crucifixion by Graham Sutherland and the choral work Rejoice in the Lamb by Benjamin Britten. The church also has a cathedral sized Walker organ, recently restored at the cost of £320,000 and a renowned choir. It stands near the centre of the town on the Kettering Road. It was designed by local architect Matthew Holding and built by local brewer Pickering Phipps as a memorial to his father in 1893. [1]
Liturgy
St Matthew's follows an Anglican service with Catholic traits. The church celebrates two Eucharist services on a Sunday including a sung mass, as well as singing two sung evensongs a month. The church maintains a daily Eucharist service and has done since its founding in 1893.
Music
History
St Matthew's Choir originally began under the directorship of Charles King [2] as a choir of men and boys but has recently began to accept women into the choir, and now a mixed choir of all ages sings at the church. Over the years many composers have been commissioned to write pieces for the church; most notably Rejoice in the Lamb - Benjamin Britten[3].
References
- ^ Harrison, J.C., The Centenary History of St Matthew's Church and Parish, Northampton. The Pentland Press, 1993
- ^ Harrison, J.C., The Centenary History of St Matthew's Church and Parish, Northampton. The Pentland Press, 1993
- ^ St Matthew's Church, Northampton: Commissions
External links
- St Matthew's Church web site: http://www.stmatthews-northampton.org.uk/