Choir at the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp

Compared to the other cathedrals I have visited in Europe, the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp isn’t as jaw-dropping. One thing I noticed was that it doesn’t have smaller chapels which are usually around the periphery of cathedrals. These would usually be gated but still visible from the inside of the church. I guess in that respect the Cathedral of Our Lady isn’t as complete as the others. What it does have is a choir. Back then, the choir would have a place in front of the altar. It usually consists of two parallel rows of seats facing each other. In this case, there are two rows each side.

I always thought that this was a stressful way of singing in church. Modern day choirs would usually have a dedicated area in the church itself somewhere near the altar perhaps or at the balcony which faces the altar. The choir seats here are wooden chairs and they don’t look very comfortable. I can just feel the stress just being in this area. Perhaps the acoustics are very good here and that by facing each other, they would be able to hear the other groups. I wasn’t aware if the choir here in the cathedral actually uses this area, perhaps it is actually used for major performances, or maybe a large concelebration of the Mass.

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