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plistic, or unimaginative” (p. 156). This of course, is no medic, teacher, or Ph.D. student might catch a
mere elitism but a long view to make sure new works live brief glimpse of holiness after a long and stress-
up to the standard of what has come before, especially ful day at work. And sure, the congregation
as an educator. might only consist of four chorister parents who
arrived early to collect their children—but they
A fusty and dogmatic view would dictate that might need it too (p. 291).
choristers should learn the tradition for its own
inherent merit. By contrast, a more forward- Naturally there is a chapter dedicated to the pandem-
looking teacher understands that they need to ic, and her stories of this time are a record of what we
know the tradition in order that additions to it endured, a comfort to us after the fact, and come as a
are placed in context (p. 161). relief (fingers crossed) to know we’re through the worst
of it.
Chapter 7 is “a selection of essays dedicated to ex-
panding the canon, in particular with reference to the
inclusion of music by female composers, both historical
and contemporary” (p. 177). Of these, her multi-part
essay “Silent in the churches” chronicles the history
of exclusion of female composers (especially in sacred
circles), which have long deserved to be part of the es-
tablished tradition. Chapter 8 concerns the history and
still-ongoing inclusion of girls and women in cathedral
choirs in the UK (and elsewhere).
The next section looks at the working conditions,
salaries, and continuing professional development new
students of choral music might expect. Her essay on
“Keyboard Skills” (besides being an illuminating auto-
biography) discusses her zeal to become a choral con-
ductor. She mentions how the occupational hazards of
this life—even in the rarefied air of the halls of Cam-
bridge—take their toll on one’s mental health in a relat-
able way: “The fact that liturgical musicians are usually
vocational workers makes things even more precarious,
since the relationship between who we are and what we
do is usually interdependent” (p. 260).
Chapter 10 (“In Memoriam”) includes lovely tributes
to musician-friends, such as that of the inestimable Sir
David Willcocks (an essay which features the best [the
only?] analysis of a hymn descant I’ve ever read) (p.
275). The next chapter (“Politics and Religion”) includes
advocacy for the UK choral evensong tradition in the
US—a short service in which:

not only will your chorister’s confidence im-
prove by “performing” more frequently, but
perhaps an exhausted lawyer, secretary, para-

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