News Festival of Lessons and Carols 09.01.2025

On the penultimate day of term, we held our much-anticipated and beloved Festival of Lessons and Carols in the Bishop Centre, featuring all of our choirs and vocal ensembles – including the Year 7 Choir, the Year 8 and 9 Choir, the Senior Choir, the Junior Chamber Choir, the Senior Chamber Choir, and Sixth Form a cappella group The Octaves.

The service began, as is Godolphin tradition, with the medieval Veni, Veni Emmanuel sung (as a candlelight processional) by the Senior Chamber Choir. This was followed by a number of beautiful readings (both biblical lessons and traditional and contemporary poetry) and carols sung by our choirs. These included a number of cherished traditional carols (including Harold Darke’s In The Bleak Midwinter and John Joubert’s Torches); more contemporary carols (including John Rutter’s Candlelight Carol and David Blackwell’s A Carol for our Times); and the world premiere of Mary’s Carol, a new carol written for the Senior Chamber Choir by Director of Music Chris Langworthy.

These were interspersed, of course, with a number of treasured congregational carols including Once In Royal David’s City; Unto us is born a Son, O Come All Ye Faithful, and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, all accompanied by organ and full brass ensemble. The service concluded with Holst’s On This Day (another Godolphin tradition).

Many congratulations to all of our wonderful performers, and particularly to those in the Junior and Senior Chamber Choirs who had given a complete performance of Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols only the week before!