Students and visitors to the University, past and present, share their experiences of the Chapel |
|
 C Duncan Rice MA '69 Principal and Vice-Chancellor |
Since my undergraduate years at King's coincided with a spell when I thought of myself as an evangelic atheist, most of my student experiences were external. But King's was a kind of sheet anchor of all my memories of the sixties. It was a symbol of our pride in the ancientness that made the University distinctive. It was the flank of the Courtyard through which we progressed back to the library after St Machar lunches. It was the lamplit renaissance stage set through which we revolved in all our working and non-working evenings at King's. It is very different now, when all these resonances blur into my pride at sitting in the stall where all the line of Principals who have tried to serve the University over the centuries have sat. |
 Lord Wilson of Tillyorn LLD '90 Chancellor |
King's College Chapel has atmosphere. The aesthetics are pleasing. Above all it has a sense of history. It has a rare capacity also for being able to combine the secular and the spiritual, without diminishing either. All these characteristics came together at the end of November last year. On St Andrew's Day the University awarded the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, an honorary doctorate. What rich symbolism. The ancient Chapel, which has been a centre of worship over the generations for Catholics, Episcopalians and Presbyterians, often in bitter dispute with each other. The end of the Millennium. A President of Ireland who radiated both dignity and warmth. A time of trying to build bridges in Ireland across religious, cultural and social divides. A time within the University for pushing forward our own efforts to build up academic and cultural links between Scotland and Ireland. A great building for great events - public and personal. |
 Henry Catto LLD '90 Former Ambassador to UK |
Awestruck. That is the word that best describes my feeling when I first entered the Chapel. I had, during my tenure as American Ambassador to United Kingdom, been in beautiful churches. But few could match the Chapel's serenity; so old, so welcoming and so intimate. The magic of the moment was no doubt enhanced by the fact that I was there to receive an honorary degree, not so much because of my job as because my grandfather Catto sprang from Aberdeenshire. The ceremony itself lived up in every way to the ambience in which it took place: dignified and moving and one of the finest moments of my life. In all of my memorable experiences in the UK, that wonderful day in Aberdeen stands very near the top. |
 Kenneth McKellar BSc (Forestry) '47 Singer |
When I joined the University's Chapel Choir in the session 1945-46, I was not to know that this action would change my life. The Director of Music, Dr Willan Swainson, encouraged me to think of music as a career. He taught me in the Chapel and at his home. After my performances of oratorios by Bach, Mozart and Handel at the University and various solos each Sunday morning in the Chapel, I gained, with Mr Swainson's guidance, a Caird Travelling Scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London. Since then I have enjoyed fifty-five years of music-making throughout the world. But the warm memories of my eager climb up the Chapel's spiral staircase to the choir stalls each Sunday morning will never leave me. |
 Michael Mappin MA '86 BMus '91 Presenter, Classic FM |
Practically my first act as a student in Aberdeen, was to visit the Chapel. I remember the sense of peace, of safety and of sanctity in times of stress and worry, which seem to be the staple fare of student life. Later, as Organ Scholar, the Chapel was also my place of business. It's not everyone who can work in such a beautiful and inspiring location. However, I recall one occasion when my playing met with less than enthusiastic response. I was learning a new piece, when an irate lecturer stormed up the aisle, accusing me of ruining his class: I had forgotten the Chapel sound system was relayed to one of the Quad lecture theatres and the Sacrist (I blame him) had omitted to switch it off after the Sunday Service. |
 Rachel Salmon 3rd year Medical student |
I've been singing in Chapel Choir for seven years - I did my first degree here too - and I love to just sit and admire the place. One summer I worked as a Chapel guide and it was great fun showing people around the building. I remember one couple had travelled all the way from Australia just to see the Chapel. My favourite bit is the ceiling - it's beautiful. I suppose the most memorable occasion, next to being presented to the Queen when she visited Aberdeen in 1995, was being bridesmaid in Chapel to my best friend two years ago. That was just the best day ever. |
 Bob Black Sacrist, King's College |
Many of the Sunday morning services have been memorable some for the singing of the Chapel Choir and some for the preaching. Every Armistice Sunday is special for the pomp ceremony and solemnity of the occasion plus the Chapel being well filled with the Military. Weddings add their own particular blend of tension, expectancy, happiness and glamour to the ancient building. The Chapel is an excellent venue for lunchtime concerts, and on a nice summer day with the sun streaming through the stained glass windows you'll find no better oasis. |
| Irene Thompson Secretary, Chaplaincy Centre |
I've worked in the Chaplaincy Centre on the High Street for 28 years and, among other things, I'm the first point of contact with couples who want to get married in the Chapel. I suppose I've looked after several thousand over the years - and quite a few chaplains too! Some of them say they met outside the Chapel and want to get married there, others feel because they are graduates or staff that it's the only place to get married! Quite a few have come back with their children to show them the Chapel, and that's always nice. When I come in to work in the morning the crown tower is the first thing I see and I think, 'what a wonderful place to work' - even after all these years. |