Holy Week and Easter liturgies may be still fresh in our memories but choristers are back with a bang, hitting the ground running. A great day was had today getting ready for "Palestrina Choir 120" outreach trip to Cork International Choral Festival and to Mount Melleray Abbey.
Boys made great progress on a whole range of repertoire for the trip whilst Parents and volunteers, co-ordinated by the Choir's wardrobe-mistress, Mary Sugrue, sorted choir uniform, choir bags and robes. It was quite the hive of activity upstairs in the choir area at the Pro-Cathedral.
Singing engagements:
lunchtime concert in St Fin Barre's Cathedral, Cork, Friday 28th April at 1.10pm:
https://www.corkchoral.ie/festival_events/organ-recital-at-st-fin-barres-cathedral/
Choral Evensong in St Fin Barre's Cathedral, Friday 28th April at 6.15pm
St Fin Barre’s Cathedral Choir and the Palestrina Choir, St Mary’s Pro-Cathedral:
https://www.corkchoral.ie/festival_events/choral-evensong-at-st-fin-barres-cathedral/
Lunchtime concert in St Colman's Cathedral, Cobh, Saturday 29th April at 1.10pm:
https://www.corkchoral.ie/festival_events/choirs-at-st-colmans-cathedral-saturday/
Sunday morning Mass at 10.30am in Mount Melleray Abbey, Waterford:
https://mountmellerayabbey.org/

The ancient Service of Tenebrae anticipates the monastic offices for the last three days of Holy Week. Tenebrae means shadows or darkness and refers to the gradual extinguishing of candles and light as the service proceeds, until only one candle remains. Its light, too, is hidden, and a loud noise, the strepitus, is made symbolizing the death of Christ, his descent to the dead, and the earthquake at the time of the resurrection. Upon the return of the one candle, everyone leaves in silence.
The Tenebrae Hearse at the Pro-Cathedral has been dusted down, sequence of events has been rehearsed and the choristers are very excited about the strepitus and have even been given permission to bang their books increasingly loudly until the one lit candle is returned.
Here is the Hearse in the flower room being prepared for Wednesday's liturgy: