A beloved Seattle institution, every Sunday at 9:30 p.m. since 1956. All are welcome.
In the Christian monastic tradition, the community gathers at regular intervals throughout the day to pray together. Compline is the final prayer service of the day, prayed just before bedtime.
Since 1956, the Compline Choir has been a beloved Seattle institution as they chant this service every Sunday at 9:30 p.m. Hundreds pack the nave each week for this meditative service, while thousands more listen to the live radio broadcast on Classical KING (98.1 FM, or king.org). For over six decades, Classical KING has broadcast the service live from the cathedral nave—by some accounts, the longest-running weekly radio broadcast in Seattle. For more information, please visit the Compline Choir's website.
The Compline Choir's 70th Anniversary
Seventy years ago, Peter Hallock invited twelve men from the University of Washington to study and sing plainchant together; this study group became known by the office it regularly sang—Compline. Seven years ago, Jason Anderson invited Rebekah Gilmore to form a women’s expression of the Compline Choir to sing the office while the men were on pilgrimage to England. Together, we are one choir with two distinct expressions, and a shared love of the office we pray and chant—Compline—and an affection for the splendid acoustic and supportive, loving community at Saint Mark’s Cathedral. We invite our friends and supporters to join us for the celebration of the Compline Choir’s 70th and 7th anniversaries this summer on August 15 and 16.
About the Office of Compline
The Order of Service for the office of Compline as it is sung at Saint Mark's—the so-called "Seattle Rite"—may be seen here.
The texts of the hymns and anthems to be sung at Compline are posted each week on The Compline Underground blog.
Land Acknowledgment
The Office of Compline, like other liturgies at Saint Mark's Cathedral, begins with a Land Acknowledgment.
Listen & read more:
- Listen to Compline live on Classical KING (98.1 FM, or king.org).
- Compline from Saint Mark's is also available each week as a podcast. Search for "The Compline Choir" wherever you get your podcasts.
- Browse CD and digital recordings featuring the Compline Choir
- Compline FAQs
The video below, titled Every Sunday Night, is part of the YouTube series Hope You Like It. It was mostly filmed in 2023 and completed in 2025, and it features Ken Peterson, reflecting on his life and service to the choir, while also providing an introduction to the service itself.
Other videos offering views and insight into Compline at Saint Mark's include Compline: A Seattle Rite, a brief video about the Compline service and the Compline Choir at Saint Mark's Cathedral made by Richard Gilbert & Michael Seewer in 2021. An older video about compline, produced in 2013 by Austin Rickel & George Carman, can be seen here. Another video, by Markdavin Obenza, can be seen here.
