Sacred Music, a Governess and a Rare Book

Vogue France recommends period films to watch right now:

Emily (2022)

Emma Mackey nous emmène dans la campagne anglaise de l’ère victorienne, dans les pas de l’une des auteures les plus renommées de la littérature britannique : Emily Brontë. Célèbre pour son classique Les Hauts de Hurlevent, l'écrivaine est l’héroïne d’un film biographique écrit et réalisé par l'Australienne Frances O’Connor. Déterminée à faire revivre l'histoire d’Emily Brontë, qui fut pour beaucoup à la fois une légende et un mystère encore des siècles après sa disparition en 1848, la cinéaste a imaginé à quoi ressemblait la vie d’une femme dont les aspirations dépassaient les codes de la société de l’époque. Son enfance dans un presbytère du Yorkshire, la compagnie de ses sœurs (notamment celle de Charlotte Brontë dont elle était si proche), ses premiers poèmes et pièces de théâtre… Le tout, dans cette Angleterre idéalisée que l’on aime tant représenter au cinéma. (Marthe Mabille) (Translation)

Edinburgh Guide reviews an event celebrated as part of the Edinburgh Festival of the Sacred Arts:

Composing Sacred Music: The Next Generation

Thursday 15th August, 1.15 - 2.15pm

​Canongate Kirk, 153 Canongate, EH8 8BN

​with Dame Judith Weir, Master of the King’s Music and the Sacred Arts Festival Singers, directed by Calum Robertson 

The Edinburgh Sacred Arts Foundation Sacred Music Composition Competition recital. Scottish based composers under the age of 21 were invited to set religious texts to music. At this event, the winning submissions will be given their first performance by a professional choir under the direction of Calum Robertson, Director of Edinburgh University Singers.  The Master of the King's Music, Dame Judith Weir, has been principal adjudicator, and will present the prizes.

Zoe Watkin’s rendering of Anne Brontë’s Poem ‘The Doubter’s Prayer’ was splendid – so dramatic, but imbued with such intensity – expressing something of the pain and anguish that can so often come as we engage with spiritual questions and angst. (David Charles)

Alison Larkin writes in The Sunday Times a heartfelt article which begins like this: 

It was when my two kids had both left for university and I approached 50 that it hit me: Elizabeth had Darcy, Jane Eyre had Rochester — what about me?

Through the Eyes of the Brontës posts about a visit to Cambridge University Library to view Charlotte Brontë's Book of Common Prayer, which was gifted to her by Arthur Bell Nicholls in 1849 after the publication of her novel "Shirley." The author details their journey to the library, the process of accessing the rare book, and their emotional experience of handling the historical artifact, noting Charlotte's handwritten inscription acknowledging the gift from Mr. Nicholls. 

The Brontë Sisters YouTube channel explores the challenging and often undervalued role of 19th-century governesses, who served as educators and moral guides in wealthy households, drawing on the personal experiences of the Brontë sisters that inspired their novels Jane Eyre and Agnes Grey.

Fall quotes to celebrate the best the season has to offer, including one by Emily in Today and  thankful ones to express your gratitude for all of life's blessings, including one by Charlotte, also in Today. TVGuide informs that Wuthering Heights 1998 airs on Talking Pictures TV at 9:05 PM, Saturday 17 August.