page_title: Church of St. Mary Magdalene (Toronto)
section_title: Music
hierarchical_section_title: Church of St. Mary Magdalene (Toronto) / Music
caption_attribution_description: English: The Church of St. Mary Magdalene (Toronto) set up for Tenebrae during Holy Week
context_page_description: The Church of St. Mary Magdalene is a parish of the Anglican Church of Canada located in Toronto. It is famous for its association with composer Healey Willan, who was organist and choir-master for well over four decades. The current rector is Father David Harrison. In 2013, SMM celebrated its 125th anniversary.
context_section_description: St. Mary Magdalene's is particularly well known for excellence in sacred music. In 1940, Robertson Davies reported in the magazine Saturday Night that there were only two things worth doing in Toronto: seeing the Chinese Collection at the Royal Ontario Museum and listening to St. Mary Magdalene's choirs. This owed much to the work of Healey Willan, who came to the parish in 1921 and remained as the organist and choirmaster until shortly before his death in 1968. Willan composed music for St. Mary Magdalene's liturgies and performance elsewhere that have lasting use and influence. He was at one time best known internationally as the only composer outside England who was asked for and provided music for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. He was also an accomplished organist famous for his improvisational skill. He once remarked, "You have a sense of home, absolute completion... doing the work you want to do and the work you feel you can do."  Composer Stephanie Martin, who served as music director and organist from 2007 to 2012, commented "The choir there did not simply rehearse Thursday and sing Sunday. They were a highly skilled and extremely dedicated team."
  This legacy of excellence in sacred music is demonstrated by the fact that the musical services of Tenebrae celebrated in Holy Week are the best attended services of the year.  One distinctive characteristic of the music tradition at SMM is the division of the choir into a "Gallery Choir" which sings polyphonic music from a balcony in the west end of the church and a "Ritual Choir" that specializes in performing Gregorian Chant from choir stalls in the chancel.
caption: The church of St Mary Magdalene (Toronto) set up for Tenebrae during Holy Week
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