Saint Philip had a great love of music, which he thought was a powerful means of leading people to God. Both Giovanni Animuccia and Pierluigi Palestrina knew Saint Philip and both came to provide music at the Oratory. Animuccia was especially close to Philip. Beginning in 1556, he and several of his talented friends provided music on a regular basis at the afternoon talks which gave rise to the Congregation of the Oratory and on other occasions.
The nineteenth-century English Oratorians, John Henry Cardinal Newman and Father Wilfrid Faber, also appreciated the importance of sacred music. Both are known as accomplished hymn-writers. (Click on their names to find out more about these men and their compositions.)
There are three choirs at Holy Family Church and two at Saint Vincent de Paul Church which provide music for the liturgy. Each of these choirs has a separate page which can be accessed by clicking on the name of the choir.
