Over the Easter Break, chorister Rupert Glover-Darke (U4) recorded a diary to illustrate the exciting, and very busy, life of a chorister in Norwich Cathedral Boys’ Choir. Below is his ‘week in the life.’

“Palm Sunday

Today was Palm Sunday. The night before we had the Passion Concert, so I was very tired having to get up in the morning due to the fact the Concert went on until 10 o’clock at night. I had to get up at 8am to get to choir.

On time, the choir walked over to the Forum to perform with the Peter Mancroft choir and then processed to the Cathedral to sing in the Eucharist service. We had an evensong service in the afternoon too!

Maundy Thursday

Today we had a service for the last supper, the day before Jesus was crucified and died, it was a very sad, but special, service due to the pretty music and setting of the Cathedral. We sang a very emotionally significant piece called “The Lamentations” whilst priests cleaned the altar in a dimly lit Cathedral.

Good Friday

Good Friday is an incredibly sad but also happy service, because whilst Jesus died, he did so to take away all the sins of the world. During the service there were several powerful silences to symbolise the silences that there would have been when Jesus died on the first Good Friday.

The Easter Vigil (Saturday)

Today was the most special service of my life, as it was my baptism and confirmation. During the service I had a reading, which I was quite nervous for, but I prepared well by reading it several times at home, and in the end many people complimented me on how well I had emphasised specific elements of the content. During the reading, at certain times, the fire in front of the lectern burnt brighter when light was mentioned and when taken away, the fire dimmed. This was a very special day in my life, and I shall never forget it!

Easter Sunday

Today we had evensong and a morning service! But it was all for a good cause as this is one of the busiest days of the year! We had piece after piece in each service, but we sung one of my favourite pieces, Mozart Mass in D (I also got to sing the solo during it). Overall, this holy week must have been the most exhausting of all the ones I have ever done, but also the most enjoyable!”