CANTERBURY CHORAL SOCIETY
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Some of you may never have seen a full birth-chart (or ‘horoscope’), only being familiar with Sun-signs. And you would rightly expect the mid-evening January Sun - long set - to be in early Aquarius. Why have I put it in 9º Capricorn?
The reason is this: there is more than one zodiac. Our western wheel of 12 ‘Tropical’ signs, beginning at the Spring Equinox, mainly describes immediate, personal drives and circumstances; but eastern astrology uses the constellations themselves (hence, your ‘stars’). |
This ‘Sidereal’ zodiac, by now nearly a whole sign out of phase with the Tropical, deals with public identity, socio-cultural and historic issues. A choir is a microcosm of society with a shared cultural discipline, and so is properly understood through its Sidereal birth-chart. In addition, a mathematically higher dimension of a chart fine-tunes it, adding a layer of very precise description; this is shown in the second diagram; it is called the 'dwad'.
The Sun in the chart of a choir represents the Musical Director, the conductor. Capricorn has all the discipline, patience, and the fine sense of timing the rôle demands; and with the higher Aries dimension added, reinforced by the energy of Mars and the charismatic power of Pluto and Uranus, we also see the phenomenal drive and creative enterprise required in its Musical Director by the Canterbury Choral.
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The higher Neptune opposite the Sun elicits a fine spiritual sensitivity, with an imaginative approach to systematic rehearsal of the choir. These patterns have their ‘flip’ side, and from time to time there may have been conductors who were simply too overbearing, uncompromising and inconsiderate; some not as consistent and professional in their approach as they liked to pretend, some wasting time, undermining discipline and thereby lowering standards through allowing too much chat. This is always a risk with this choir!
Next we bring out a new tool in the astrologer’s kit - the asteroids. Thousands of these tiny bodies have been plotted and named; in effect we now have in the heavens not only the great and ancient symbols of the spiritual language, but a burgeoning, detailed modern encyclopaedia! What do we find?...the asteroid named ‘Richard’ dominant with ‘Canterbury’ at the highest point in the sky, and lined up so tightly with the Sun that Richard Cooke's eventual appointment to the key post was inevitable. What about asteroid ‘Cook’? This lines up with Mercury, planet of the Voice in religious, sociable Sagittarius ... and so do ‘Polyhymnia’, ‘Beethoven’ and ‘Britten’! ‘Verdi’ is right on the lower Meridian, very strongly placed; this base point in a chart also represents its roots, and asteroid ‘King’ there describes the choir’s origins in the King’s School Choral Society.
An astrological chart has not only 12 signs, but 12 ‘houses’; the two Sun positions we have in the double wheel light up the 5th and the 9th, linking a joyous and disciplined creativity with the life of the Spirit. The same theme is echoed in the setting planet; this is mighty Jupiter, in the same position as it was at the Nativity of Jesus (sunset, May 7th 5BC). Where Jupiter is as strong as it is on the western horizon, relationships are built on good humour, generosity, wisdom and joy. The divine spark shines most brightly, and with such lovely geometry flowing from this planet to ‘Cook’, the higher Gemini Moon (the choir of voices) and ground-breaking Uranus, even his most adventurous choral enterprises are blessed with success. Sacred music will always be sung: asteroid ‘Amun’ is very closely aligned with the Sun, ‘Christiansen’ rises in creative Leo that puts its heart into everything it does, and ‘Yeshuhua’ (Jesus) is with beautiful Venus in the house of service. Opposite, in the 12th house, is a conjunction of Moon and Pluto, revealing how much deep and intense private feeling infuses the public singing of this choir. Another reading of the same conjunction shows what a difference the Choral can make to people stuck in hospitals or other institutions when a visiting group brings some beauty, something numinous into routinised lives.
Continuing the transcendent theme, when the higher and lower levels of the chart are brought together, another extraordinary ‘phrase’ is written across the skies: for the most crucial axes, the Horizon and Meridian (As/Ds and Mc/Ic) conjoin, collecting the following named asteroids: ‘Christa’, ‘Bach’, ‘Santa’, ‘Harmonia’ and ‘Octavia’. Harmony across the octaves, in the performance of Bach’s sacred works in honour of Christ, in Christ Church. ‘Eucharis’ too, faces ‘Richard’; over and over again, by composer after composer, Canterbury Choral Society will sing the holy Mass.
Next we bring out a new tool in the astrologer’s kit - the asteroids. Thousands of these tiny bodies have been plotted and named; in effect we now have in the heavens not only the great and ancient symbols of the spiritual language, but a burgeoning, detailed modern encyclopaedia! What do we find?...the asteroid named ‘Richard’ dominant with ‘Canterbury’ at the highest point in the sky, and lined up so tightly with the Sun that Richard Cooke's eventual appointment to the key post was inevitable. What about asteroid ‘Cook’? This lines up with Mercury, planet of the Voice in religious, sociable Sagittarius ... and so do ‘Polyhymnia’, ‘Beethoven’ and ‘Britten’! ‘Verdi’ is right on the lower Meridian, very strongly placed; this base point in a chart also represents its roots, and asteroid ‘King’ there describes the choir’s origins in the King’s School Choral Society.
An astrological chart has not only 12 signs, but 12 ‘houses’; the two Sun positions we have in the double wheel light up the 5th and the 9th, linking a joyous and disciplined creativity with the life of the Spirit. The same theme is echoed in the setting planet; this is mighty Jupiter, in the same position as it was at the Nativity of Jesus (sunset, May 7th 5BC). Where Jupiter is as strong as it is on the western horizon, relationships are built on good humour, generosity, wisdom and joy. The divine spark shines most brightly, and with such lovely geometry flowing from this planet to ‘Cook’, the higher Gemini Moon (the choir of voices) and ground-breaking Uranus, even his most adventurous choral enterprises are blessed with success. Sacred music will always be sung: asteroid ‘Amun’ is very closely aligned with the Sun, ‘Christiansen’ rises in creative Leo that puts its heart into everything it does, and ‘Yeshuhua’ (Jesus) is with beautiful Venus in the house of service. Opposite, in the 12th house, is a conjunction of Moon and Pluto, revealing how much deep and intense private feeling infuses the public singing of this choir. Another reading of the same conjunction shows what a difference the Choral can make to people stuck in hospitals or other institutions when a visiting group brings some beauty, something numinous into routinised lives.
Continuing the transcendent theme, when the higher and lower levels of the chart are brought together, another extraordinary ‘phrase’ is written across the skies: for the most crucial axes, the Horizon and Meridian (As/Ds and Mc/Ic) conjoin, collecting the following named asteroids: ‘Christa’, ‘Bach’, ‘Santa’, ‘Harmonia’ and ‘Octavia’. Harmony across the octaves, in the performance of Bach’s sacred works in honour of Christ, in Christ Church. ‘Eucharis’ too, faces ‘Richard’; over and over again, by composer after composer, Canterbury Choral Society will sing the holy Mass.
To finish this all-too-brief look at the ‘nativity’ of Canterbury Choral Society, I’ll return to its ordinary tropical zodiac, as it is worth reminding ourselves of the choir’s personality and fundamental needs!
As an Aquarian body it cannot live without group activity and a fruitful social rôle; it prefers to innovate, to illumine, to wake up sleeping minds. With the Sun in the 5th house this has to be through creative self-expression for the sheer love of it. |
Capricorn Mercury means a mind and a voice sometimes slow to respond, but which (connected with Jupiter and Uranus) given time, systematic training and patience, will suddenly delight and surprise with a mature, rich and sensitive performance. It is this spiritual sensitivity, the opening of the imagination, connection with the audience, emotional adventure, to which this choir needs always to strive if it is to give of its best. It can be too detached, at times rebellious, and with Virgo on the tropical Ascendant very willing, yet slow to find the self-confidence essential to public performance. This means it is very sensitive to criticism (Virgo is already self-critical!) and too much disparagement can totally undermine morale, to the point where the choir could be lost. Its finances are shown in the 2nd house to be erratic ... but helped by legitimately creative accounting, giving the public what it wants ... and by the dominant 12th house Leo women, people of influence, secret benefactors, the ‘powers behind the throne!’
These may be needed more than ever now, in 2013, as the pressures of cut-backs coincide with the passage of challenging planets over sensitive points in the choir's sidereal chart: tropical Pluto has been conjunct the Capricorn Sun, and tropical Saturn on the sidereal IC. However, a visit to the CBCS website tells a story of triumphant survival and re-invention; the choir goes from strength to strength, having now also a Youth Choir and imminently a new Girls' choir! And Richard is still there.
These may be needed more than ever now, in 2013, as the pressures of cut-backs coincide with the passage of challenging planets over sensitive points in the choir's sidereal chart: tropical Pluto has been conjunct the Capricorn Sun, and tropical Saturn on the sidereal IC. However, a visit to the CBCS website tells a story of triumphant survival and re-invention; the choir goes from strength to strength, having now also a Youth Choir and imminently a new Girls' choir! And Richard is still there.