The Scottish Plainsong Choir is Cappella Nova’s very own ‘community’ choir: its participants come from all over Scotland and further afield in the UK to sing in religious services, concerts and open days at interesting historic venues around Scotland and occasionally beyond. These have included Brinkburn Priory, Glamis Castle Chapel, Glasgow Cathedral, Iona Abbey, Lindisfarne, St Giles’ Cathedral Edinburgh and Rosslyn Chapel.
Participants sign up on a project-to-project basis, and these take place every couple of months, generally comprising a workshop-rehearsal afternoon in advance of the day of the performance. Under the direction of Alan Tavener, Conductor of Cappella Nova, The Scottish Plainsong Choir sings sacred medieval repertoire including Gregorian and Celtic chant, the works of St Hildegard of Bingen, Cantigas de Santa Maria and Italian medieval Laude.
New participants are always made welcome, so if you would like to be added to the circulation list or to try out a project, please use the Cappella Nova Contact Form – in the spirit of community choirs, there are no auditions! For more insights into the style of The Scottish Plainsong Choir’s projects, here are a couple of clips from the Choir’s performance at Kinnoull Monastery (Doors Open Day 2018): Ave maris Stella and Polorum Regina.
We meet to perform every few months, and our most recent projects reflect the variety of opportunities which come our way: a short Seasonal Programme at one of the Choir’s favourite locations, Rosslyn Chapel; participation in the Dunkeld Living History Weekend; and a weekend in Orkney, where we sang Compline in the Italian Chapel, and Plainchant Evensong in St Magnus Cathedral (Orkney) .
Our next projects comprise:-
a return invitation to sing at the Medieval Fayre at Traquair House on Saturday 27 May. We shall sing Medieval Pilgrim and other songs in the medieval Courtyard and the Chapel. We will prepare for this at a workshop-rehearsal in Glasgow on Friday 26 May, 1200-1600hrs. To book a place to participate, register here;
a day by the Ayrshire Coast, rehearsing, relaxing and singing Compline at St Ninian’s Scottish Episcopal Church, Troon – Saturday 24 June. To book a place to participate, register here. The day includes an ideal Taster Session in the form of an afternoon Workshop open to all.
Other past Scottish Plainsong Choir projects have included…
promenade performances Rosslyn Chapel (December 2021) and at the Chapel Royal Stirling Castle (March 2020 video)…
…and Vespers liturgies for St Columba at Inchcolm Abbey (June 2017), and
for Sts Anna & Joachim at Ushaw College Chapel (July 2018)