Henry Chadwick

The 20th June edition of the Church Times carries the obituary of Henry Chadwick, one of the 20th Century's leading historians of early Christianity. Many undergraduate students of theology or church history will be familiar with his book 'The Early Church'. Less known to the wider public was that Chadwick was an influential figure in church music: a member of the editorial committee of Hymns Ancient and Modern and chair of the committee that produced Common Praise. The Church Times obituary includes a nice tribute from Lionel Dakers who recalls, amongst other things, how Henry Chadwick, an accomplished pianist, once had Zoltan Kodaly turn the pages for him!

[Peter adds]
See also other obituaries: Rowan Williams in the Guardian, and another in the Telegraph. The Telegraph author makes the following waspish but apposite observation:
"After religion, the great passion of Chadwick's life was music. Unlike those Anglicans who persist in confusing aesthetic sensation with religious experience, however, Chadwick never raised his musical interests to the level of dogma. It was a civilised entertainment shared, happily, by his wife Peggy, whom he married in 1945. "

The visual arts in the Church of England, 1935-56

I'm bound to draw attention to a new article of mine in the new Studies in Church History (volume 44, 2008). It examines the attempts made by an informal but determined coalition of clergy, artists and critics to revive the connection between church patronage and the contemporary arts. The two most prominent clergy were George Bell (Bishop of Chichester), and Walter Hussey,(St Matthew Northampton and Dean of Chichester.)

Sunday theatre

Yesterday's Guardian carried a short note about the National Theatre's decision to begin performances on Sundays. It's interesting that the theatres have been the last of the artistic institutions to bow to the pressure of Sunday opening.
See also Michael Billington in the Guardian, who welcomes the change, and his interview with Nicholas Hytner two years ago, who saw the main barrier as the theatre unions, rather than any lingering Sabbatarianism.

See also the report in the Telegraph.

James Macmillan

Rather belated, but I note various things related to Macmillan's recent setting of the Passion, premiered at the Barbican at the end of April. The piece is interesting since it is one of the very few attempts to write an English language passion setting for a hundred years or more.
It was reviewed in the Times and Telegraph. Macmillan himself published a set of programme notes on the LSO site, and elsewhere, a diary of its composition, beginning in 2005.