St Mungo Singers in Dunfermline

The St. Mungo Singers were founded as a liturgical choir to support and promote the liturgy in the Archdiocese of Glasgow. They work hard at this and do it very well, from providing the musical support for major diocesan and national liturgies and ecumenical services to answering the call, often at short notice, to help out at funerals or parish celebrations, civic services and the like.

They balance this hard work with a great social side. Their latest outing was an end-of-session visit to Dunfermline and Alloa on 17th June. The visit coincided with Dunfermline’s Gala Day, so the town was buzzing, and the weather was lovely.

The Minister, Rev. MaryAnn Rennie, and community at Dunfermline Abbey Church made the choir very welcome and gave them the opportunity to hold a short service in a side chapel of the Abbey church. In a lovely touch they were invited to write their names on small pebbles which were then added to the square glass holders of two candles placed in the chapel. A member of the parish then gave them a brief explanation of the story of King Robert the Bruce as they stood around his tomb.

Then there was time for a wander round the town, to see St. Margaret’s Cave (unromantically accessed via a tunnel beneath the civic carpark), the remains of St. Margaret’s shrine in the grounds of the Abbey, Pittencrieff Park etc. or do a bit of therapeutic shopping or just people-watch in the sun while enjoying an icecream, before heading off to St. Mungo’s in Alloa to join their choir and community for evening Mass.

The link between St. Mungo’s Alloa and the St. Mungo Singers is long standing, and St. Mungo’s choir regularly take part in the Celtic Roots Mass in Glasgow. After a beautiful service, the parish welcomed the visitors to their church hall where they had laid on a splendid buffet. They also treated the choir to entertainment from the parish music group “The Dolly Mixtures” – or rather, half of them as two had gone on holiday. They soon had everyone singing along and dancing.

Next stop is Tuscany in September – it’s a hard life being a St. Mungo Singer!