I am not a religious person; I respect faiths but I don’t hold any of them myself. But religious art can still move and inspire me. This week we were visiting Winchester for a few days and we decided one evening to go to the Tenebrae service in the Cathedral. Tenebrae, I learnt, is an Easter service marking the betrayals, suffering and crucifixion of Christ. As the service proceeds a series of candles are extinguished one by one until at the end the church is plunged into darkness, representing the darkness – or tenebrae – that fell upon his death.

This service featured a series of readings from the Gospels, each one followed by one of the Tenebrae Responsories by the 16th century Spanish composer Tomas Luis de la Victoria. Now to be honest I have never paid a lot of attention to Renaissance polyphony before. But listening to these ethereal, solemn, sometimes dramatic four part harmonies soaring around the stunning vaulted space that is Winchester Cathedral was an incredibly powerful and moving experience. It didn’t make me believe in God but it was a very welcome reminder in these times of stupidity and ignorance, that we are capable » Continue Reading.