Darlings, PeaceBang has zero knowledge of What Choirs Wear And Why, and suspects that the great wisdom about What Choirs Wear has something to do with What Senior Ministers Want Them To Wear combined with What Music Directors Think They Should Wear, What the Other Churches in Their Denomination Wear, and a healthy dose of “We’ve Always Worn These” or, alternately, “Hell No, We Would NEVER Wear That.”
Doug wants some advice on the subject, daffodils:
My church has decided that it is time to replace the choir robes. The choir has been wearing polycrepe robes in sky blue for an alarming 32 years. I am pretty convinced that, even for non-Episcopalians, no choir robing option works as well as cassocks and cottas. My question is in the selection of the cotta/surplice. In the Almy catalog there are so many different options: lengths, sleeve lengths, pleat styles. Could you provide a basic primer in the confusing world of cotta/surplice selection? We aren’t ministers, but we could sure use your help.
Dear Doug,
As I just ‘fessed, I don’t know nothing about choir robes. Let’s see if some Ministers of Music are regular readers who might weigh in with actual knowledge vs my personal opinion.
My personal opinion is that your robes are actually a very nice color — a kind of Federalist blue that we like up here in New England. It seems to me that comfort is paramount (so, breathable fabrics, nothing that impedes your breathing, no sleeves so enormous that you can’t all fit in the loft) and washability highly desirable. As Garrison Keillor once said, “Join the church choir. It may be the only way you can get people to stand that close to you.”
Let’s see what comes in by way of advice, shall we?
Doug is a Presbyterian, y’all. He sent in this photo that isn’t of his actual choir, but that shows the color robes they currently have:
I like these robes! They’re a nice line, they actually suggest a human body and not a Marshmallow Monster underneath, and they drape attractively.
This old verger thinks that Anglicans should wear proper Anglican attire.
The truly correct attire for a parish choir is a black cassock and white cotta or surplice. If a surplice, it should be one of the shorter kind. A round sleeve is preferable to a pointed one, because the pointed sleeves get in the way when handling books and music. A thin poly/cotton blend will need little care and drapes nicely.
Surplices look better on most adults. Cottas are easier for children to manage. A special cotta/surplice is made by Almy and others for organists and choirmasters. It has a split sleeve that stays out of the way of playing and conducting.
Red cassocks are also seen in this country. In England, red is the Royal color and is reserved for use in the Queen’s chapels (the Royal Peculiars), such at St. George’s/Windsor.
Cathedral choirs properly wear violet or purple cassocks, as do cathedral clergy, echoing the color of the bishop’s own attire. An alternative is a black cassock with violet or purple piping and buttons.
Academic hoods may be correctly worn over cassock and cotta for school-related events, including Morning and Evening Prayer. They are not properly worn at celebrations of the Holy Eucharist.
What ever you recommend, remember it’s the Rector’s decision. He is your parish’s chief liturgical officer and has the absolute say in such matters. [Thank you,Verger! Doug is a Presbyterian but says that his church is pretty “liturgical.” I’m sure he will find much good advice in your response. – PB]
I’ll add my two cents in.
Cathedral choirs here in Britain do tend to wear purple cassocks under their surplices (men) or cottas (boys). The boys also wear a stiff, stand-up ruffled collar. Cathedral clergy, at least at Canterbury, don’t wear purple (or purple-trimmed black) cassocks, but black only. Clerical purple is very strictly reserved for the bishop. Black shoes only. The Archbishop wears whatever he likes, we don’t argue.
Queen’s Chaplains can wear their red cassocks whenever they like. I am friends with one, and she wears hers in her parish for really big festivals.
For all non-eucharistic services (matins, evensong), hoods are allowed, whether or not it is a school/academic service.
I’ve been in a number of Episcopal church choirs (prior to my move to England four years ago). All the ones I was in used black cassock and white surplice, as we did at my seminary. The choir at the ministry training college I worked at in Oxford wore black cassocks when they were in front, but usually they were in a section of the congregation and wore street clothes. Personally, I’ve never seen anything that looks better than the cassock and surplice, in any church.
I can’t tell you anything about cassocks, surplices, cottas, etc., but I CAN say that the best thing that happened to choir robes in my years of wearing them was pockets. Pockets. Please. For tissues and throat lozenges and the offering envelope …
Make your choir members’ lives easier, whatever you end up with.
In my parish, we wear blue cassocks under cottas (square yokes). Those chalice bearers who are in the choir just stay in their blue cassocks and cottas when chalicing; others have black cassocks and surplices (round yokes). Alas, though in the choir, I’m using a short surplice now because my cotta suffered a disaster too painful to describe here… I think the mix of red robes on acolytes and blue robes on adult choristers and servers is really nice, but it’s not for everyone. But it fits in well with the windows and colors in the church.
Pictures are at these links, intermixed with others:
http://www.saintstephenschenectady.org/Photo_Gallery_01.html
http://www.saintstephenschenectady.org/Photo_Gallery_04.html
http://www.saintstephenschenectady.org/Photo_Gallery_06.html
Unless you think lay choristers are faux clergy, it’s best to avoid the cassock/surplice/cotta route. That was a deceit of the 19th century English Cambridge Ecclesiological Movement to convince parishes to build Gothic revival churches with choirs originally intended for clergy or, at schools, students. Medieval Gothic parish churches usually up lay choirs in rear galleries where no vesture is required.
Choir robes, even for hoity-toity Episcopalians, are the best way to go. Just try to find something that breathes like a cotton/poly mix rather than pure polyester that doesn’t breath and tends to have an odor if not cleaned frequently. These can be dressed up or down with the addition of choir “stoles,” or insignia. [This is such an interesting thread!! Thanks for chiming in!- PB]
Most Episcopal churches that I have served in use a black cassock and white surplice for the choir. Not knowing some of the technical terms, I can tell you that the choirs’ surplices tend to be on the shorter side vs. the chalice-bearers or ministers at Morning/Evening prayer being on the longer side. This looks like just below hip-length for the choir vs. just below knee-length for the chalice-bearer/minister.
For what it’s worth, I once attended a multi-choir event at our (episcopal) cathedral. The bishop would not allow one of the choirs to wear “stoles” with their choir robes. They had to do without. Every other choir was in cassocks and cottas or surplices. When we sang as a joint choir at a later consecration, the “uniform” was cassocks (of whatever color) and cotta or surplice. Choirs that didn’t use cottas or surplices were told to borrow cassocks or cottas and wear them over whatever else they used. It’s a pretty entrenched tradition around here.
Whatever you wear, do avoid pure polyester. I set my robe (and cotta) on fire once. I use the cotta as an object lesson when training acolytes now….
I say nothing looks nicer than a natural/flax alb. If your tradition allows (meaning your congregations tradition), pair them all with simple stoles (not choir stoles) in the proper liturgical color. Or if the tradition says no, then pair them with a properly colored cincture. Albs are always appropriate for anyone leading a congregation in prayer, reading, proclaiming, or singing, they are the baptismal garment.
They come in tons of price ranges and fabrics and style choices. Plus albs don’t look like a heaping load of fabric was dumped on a person and then pleated.
But hey my two cents are my two cents and the choir which assists in leading the services with me is still wearing graduation gowns and outdated honor-graduate-esque stoles.
I am a lay adult woman who serves as an acolyte, eucharistic minister, lector, and occasional preacher in an Episcopal church.
My rector has decided that I should be vested in a cassock and surplice (not cotta, which is shorter). I ordered a surplice from Almy, using my actual chest measurement and pretending I am still 5 feet tall. I ordered the American style surplice.
I am appalled. There is so much fabric that if I hold my arms straight out I look like Sponge Bob, or perhaps a Christmas pageant angel in a robe that is too large. (Sponge Bob may be an exaggeration, but I am still in shock.) The arm holes are so large I’m pretty sure I could tuck my elbows in without wiggling. I am hesitant to attempt any tailoring. The deacon told me that is just how surplices are built.
I am wondering if anyone has any experience with the Roman style surplices (square collar, pleats). In particular, are they a better fit for someone whose body can charitably described not as a pear or an apple but an ice cream cone? I am hoping for less billowing fabric and perhaps a more flattering fit (cue the hysterical laughter). Also arm holes that my cat could not stroll through.
I plan to visit a local church supply company and see if they have any suggestions. But I trust the BTFM community, so I value any suggestions.
I know, I know. It is not about me. It is about serving. I get that. But I’d appreciate your input.
Update: I ordered the Roman style surplice using the quick-ship size closest to my actual measurements. I expected it to be too tight in the chest, but it seems to fit pretty well. It looks like a high-school graduation gown on me, which is a step up from the billowing yards of fabric of the American-style surplice. [Sound of angels singing – PB]