The organist librarian

Sat vespers and Mass with Fr Daniel and most of the servers. Callum improvised on How brightly shines and I played Buxtehude and Gave on Sunday. Peregrine sang 3 kings beautifully. Evensong Gibbons and Rose Lord's prayer. Call the midwife and Christine Ke eler excellent.

Tim Posner and Sophia Rahman played superbly at St John's coffee concert and a good audience too! Romantic Schumann Fantasiestucke and Romances and Beethoven cello sonata - such expressive playing! This has to be the best Saturday concert I have been to at St John's! Printed labels fro the exhibition. Vespers with incense and Mass for Epiphany with Fr Daniel. We sang As with gladness and Bethlehem of noblest cities.

Mosaic and then came home to take down decorations which took all afternoon! To Catenians and Tom got very cross with Philip and stormed out.Hope he does not resign. Croydon there in force so had some good chats to Richard Mills and Noel about admitting women. Liz and Dennis went to the Assumption for Ordinariate Epiphany carols. 

Fr Jerry blessed chalk so we can write above our front doors 20+C+M+B+18 the year and the Magi Casper, Melchior and Balthazar. It also stands for Christus Mansionem Benedict "May Christ bless this house". He also gave us some lovely prayers to say as we do it. My hands were so cold today I found it hard to turn pages! Peregrine sang Three Kings beautifully. I played Buxtehude and Gade on How brightly shines. Also Andrew Fletcher on Was lebet one of my favourite hymns O worship the Lord. I have enjoyed serving and playing for the Epiphany 2018. For some reason we tend to be away for it e.g. Sydney 2017, India 2015 and 2013, and York Minster 2012. Tree and decorations down and put away. Cribs and dining room tree stay up until Candlemas. Stunning playing and musicianship from Nicola Benedetti with the London Mozart Players at St John's. Beethoven violin concerto and Coriolan overture. She signed my score. The rapport with the conductor a joy to watch. Lots of children ther...

Alan arrived.Tuk tuk with Fr Renato to 7am Mass at our Lady of the Immaculate Conception. Overhead projector on screen for the Mass texts but not the hymns which came out of a book containing Christmas Polka and secular songs. Gloria and Alleluia replaced by choruses. Priest spoke well but it all seeemed rather formal. We met the parish priest. We went to Holy Redeemer Prem's church where the service was just ending in English so we saw the 3 kings from the Sunday school. I sketched them during the Tamil service and we were given a tour of the medical camp, girls fellowship, youth fellowship and met the delightful Tamil choir. Then to outreach project at Navalore where there was a tent next to the little church. Singing, dancing, gifts (nice bowls), speeches. I liked Ivor's JOY Jesus, others, you but I think he should get a translator. He tends to just do his own thing and start singing. We had sandwiches in the bus and returned for the Epiphany carol service which was really ...

I played Buxtehude and Gade on How brightly shines and we sang O worship the Lord, As with gladness, Unto us a son is born, O thou who camest and Brightest and best. Worked on Christ the Lord to Jordan came and some other pieces. Interesting programme on 17th century writers including Newton at Woolthorpe and the Puritan Josselin. Nice butternut squash curry for lunch. The St JOhn's epiphany carols had a lot of good hymns and only 4 choral items viz Howells Coll reg Nunc, Holly and the Ivy arr Walford Davies, Three kings and Gardener Tomorrow shall be with Fr John on tambourine! Home to John Smiths and Antiques roadshow and Sherlock part 2 which was very clever.

Saturday Put prices and condition on organ music list and chat to Bruce. Epiphany Fr Alexander celebrated smoke vespers and Mass. Fr Michael Durand is moving away as is Fr Augustine (Walsingham!). We went to Clapham Junction as we had a voucher for the Duck as a result of the Cambridge disaster but it was very crowded and noisy so we went to Buono Sera - excellent Italian food - a bit noisy but very convivial. On getting home watched Little Fokkers which was hilarious. It was Ed's birthday and he played very well as usual. 

While reading Karl Rahner listening to the lovely Royal Holloway college Epiphany service. A new tune "Broadwalk" for Brightest and best - I liked it but Liebster Emmanuel is still the best tune I think. Delighted to hear "From the eastern mountains" to "Cuddesdon" - a very fine tune indeed. Now we have Jonathan Dove anthem.

Having been up until 2 a.m. drinking fine whisky we were snowed in. Liz tried sledging but I was happy to watch from the house. James took Oran on the sledge too. It was really nice not having TV as we played scrabble and Taboo which is a tricky game where you have to tell your team the word they need without using certain words! Lots to eat and drink again! On the 2nd Liz and Kevin were able to drive out and took us to Jill's at Ryton. In the afternoon we went over to Flo and Tom's and enjoyed shortbread and a good chat and ginger wine. Tom is recovering from a fall when he hurt his shoulder. On the 3rd we walked to mass at Stella (in the snow) it being the Epiphany. There was a good music group and we sang "What child is this" and "We 3 kings". Strangley a said Gloria and Agnus and a hymn replaced the psalm! The priest conservative and slow and a dull homily. Jill and Levanta picked us up and we went to his lovely home - he has lovely Japanese picture and ...

The water feature yesterday shows how cold it is but today it is even more frozen although still flowing! Liz went up to Grandma's while I got up early to get the hourly train to Coulsdon so I had lots of time to practise. Choir turned up late and wandered around getting glasses so I got rather cross and said we must start singing at 9.20 a.m. Actually the anthem "Three kings" went really well and there were lots of compliments for John Linney. 2 buses home straight away and walked home from Grandma's for late lunch. A delicious ham and finished off the Fish Hoek white wine. Watched Songs of Praise about astronomy, a programme on the Star of Bethlehem, Antiques roadshow, Lark Rise to Candleford and a fascinating play about Shaun Greenhaulgh who fooled the art world.

A lie-in and carried on with the Holy Land blog - I have reached Galilee! Louise came over to get a hat for the wedding only to find the hat hire shop closed! She accompanied us to smoke vespers and mass for Epiphany (sadly transferred to Sunday). We had 7 servers and I went through the movements beforehand with cross and acolytes. Challoner choir murdered some items. I came home on the train - it was very cold. Liz took Louise and her presents home and unfortunately Louise caught Liz's head when shutting the boot so they went to A & E at Hammersmith and it was glued. Liz came home in a taxi as I could not get through to the insurance company to add Louise on to the insurance so the car is in Hammersmith at the pub. I watched Michael Palin revising India.

Adoration of the Magi by Velasquez We had solemn vespers last night with incense and a great team of young servers at Mass much appreciated by Father Mark. We even had consecration candles for the first time on Saturday evening! At the end Oliver played "Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" which he said he had played at a wedding! It worked well. Watched HDD of programme on British choreographer working at the Bolshoi for the first time and the remainder of the Pavarotti programme. His father had a great voice too! Friday evening we had Peter Owen Jones in China at Buddhist monasteries learning about kung fu and meditation. Today we sang Darke in E and Ouseley's "From the rising of the sun" and I played Buxtehude and Gade on "How brightly shines the morning star". John didn't feel up to Three Kings by Cornelius as like me he had a cold. Listened to John Humphreys on Desert Island Discs. The Bishop of Rochester is causing controversy by saying there are ...