Henry Croswell et al. in Christ Church, Spitalfields, East End of London - 9 May, 1880, 11:00 AM
from Transcript of the diaries of Henry Croswell, page 205:
We arrived in capital time. There was Litany but no Communion Service.
[…]
O[rgan]. – Fine and large, reaching to the top of the Church.
H[ymns]. – Bickers, a Church selection.
C[hoir]. – Men and boys, unsurpliced, well behaved, a good choral service.
[The congregation numbered] 600 – There were many poor and most from quite lower middle class. There were many boys from the Industrial School and many working girls.
Henry Croswell, Transcript of the diaries of Henry Croswell. In British Library, number 000826807, C.194.c.113 , p. 205. https://led.kmi.open.ac.uk/entity/lexp/1551011909044 accessed: 16 April, 2024 (By permission of the British Library.)
Listeners
Listening to
hide composers| Anglican church music | performed by the choir and organist of Christ Church Spitalfields |
| hymns selected from the 'Hymnal Companion' | performed by the choir and organist of Christ Church Spitalfields |
Experience Information
| Date/Time | 9 May, 1880, 11:00 AM |
| Duration | 1 hours 45 minutes |
| Medium | live |
| Listening Environment | in the company of others, indoors, in public |
Notes
Henry Croswell (1840–93) kept a record of his visits to churches in London over a period of more than twelve years (1872–85). He made methodical notes about the number of clergy, the churchmanship, the congregation, the sermon and the church architecture, as well as commenting on the music that he heard (the organ, the hymns and the choir). The above listening experience has been extracted from one of these records. ‘Bickers’ refers to ‘The Hymnal Companion to the Book of Common Prayer’ (1870, rev. 1877; and in a revised edition with tunes, 1890) compiled by Edward Henry Bickersteth (1825–1906).