Yesterday, June 7th, was the Children's Choir last performance this year. The group is new to St. Andrew's and I have had some much fun working with them. They are great little singers and we had a good time singing music from Frozen. For me, it was a sort of unofficial start to Scott and I's upcoming series on the intersections of sacred and secular (which officially starts next week, look for blog posts!). Frozen isn't directly or obviously related to Christianity, but what a fun way to bring our children's world into worship. Frozen is by far the most popular children's movie from the past couple years, so I thought it would be perfect for our Academy Awards.
Side note: Children's Choir will begin again in late September. I can't wait to work with them again. Look forward to them singing more often with us during worship.
Monday, 8 June 2015
Wednesday, 1 April 2015
The Music This Week - Holy Week: Easter Sunday
Easter
Sunday
I
don't want to say a lot about the music for Easter Sunday other than,
the choir has been working hard and sounds great, we're delighted to
be welcoming Adam Spiers, a Laurier trumpet student, and I am very
excited!
The Music This Week - Holy Week: Good Friday
Good Friday
For Good Friday we
are going to do an a capella service. I will lead all the hymns
vocally and I will sing two pieces unaccompanied. My hope is that the
lack of instruments will allow for a very somber and reflective
service. The acoustics in our sanctuary are gorgeous and it is the
perfect space for this type of approach.
The first of the
two pieces that I will be singing is O Sacred Head, one that
you are familiar with, but I will be doing it in French. The second
is a piece called Canzonetta spirituale alla sopra nanna by
Tarquinio Merula. It is one of the most heart-breaking pieces I know.
It is a very old Italian lullaby which Mary is singing to the baby
Jesus in which she is saying “it's time to sleep, let me comfort
you now, for the day is coming when horrible things will happen to
you.” The piece goes back and forth between her imploring him to
sleep and vivid descriptions of the crucifixion.
Tuesday, 31 March 2015
The Music This Week - Holy Week: Maundy Thursday
Maundy Thursday
Scott will be revisiting the"found object" wash bin and towel, so I thought I would consider the theme of water. I've chosen four romantic and early 20th century piano pieces about water to play for you. Here is a little information on each piece:
Venetian Boat Song by Felix Mendelssohn
This piece was written during the time that the piano was gaining popularity. You can hear the rich harmonies and dramatic expression that was so characteristic of the Romantic Era. It is from a collection called Songs Without Words. That title is such a lovely idea and hints at the vast expressive possibilities of the piano as an instrument. In this piece the left had provides a continual flowing accompaniment while the right hand has a soaring melody.
Sérénade sur l'eau by Jacques Ibert
This is the latest piece that I've chosen today; it was published in 1944. Jacques Ibert, a somewhat lesser known composer, was not famous for a specific genre or school. He maintained that "all systems are valid," and has often been called an "ecletic." Like the Mendelssohn piece, you can hear the rocking of the waves in the left hand. The melody is more minimalistic though. This piece makes me think of a calm canoe trip. In the latter half of the piece you can hear a repetitive descending melody which reminds me of water flowing over rocks in a stream.
On the Lake by Heinrich Hofmann
This lovely piece, from a relatively obscure composer, creates the sense of rocking on the water across both hands. Meaning that the flowing triple rhythms which sound like water and waves moves through the lower and higher notes of the piano and is part of the melody. This is unlike the other pieces where the musical depiction of water stays in the lower notes of the piano. This piece is very straight-forward and is a testament to the idea that less is more. It is very simply beautiful.
Barcarolle by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
This piece is from Tchaikovsky's work "The Seasons," a collection of twelve (each month) character pieces. Character piece is a somewhat vague term which generally means a piece based on an idea or program (narrative). A barcarolle is the song a Venetian gondoliers sing. Once again, you can hear the water in the left hand, under the melody. Although this one uses a duple pattern (two beats) as opposed to the other three pieces which all use triple patterns (three "beats").
Scott will be revisiting the"found object" wash bin and towel, so I thought I would consider the theme of water. I've chosen four romantic and early 20th century piano pieces about water to play for you. Here is a little information on each piece:
Venetian Boat Song by Felix Mendelssohn
This piece was written during the time that the piano was gaining popularity. You can hear the rich harmonies and dramatic expression that was so characteristic of the Romantic Era. It is from a collection called Songs Without Words. That title is such a lovely idea and hints at the vast expressive possibilities of the piano as an instrument. In this piece the left had provides a continual flowing accompaniment while the right hand has a soaring melody.
Sérénade sur l'eau by Jacques Ibert
This is the latest piece that I've chosen today; it was published in 1944. Jacques Ibert, a somewhat lesser known composer, was not famous for a specific genre or school. He maintained that "all systems are valid," and has often been called an "ecletic." Like the Mendelssohn piece, you can hear the rocking of the waves in the left hand. The melody is more minimalistic though. This piece makes me think of a calm canoe trip. In the latter half of the piece you can hear a repetitive descending melody which reminds me of water flowing over rocks in a stream.
On the Lake by Heinrich Hofmann
This lovely piece, from a relatively obscure composer, creates the sense of rocking on the water across both hands. Meaning that the flowing triple rhythms which sound like water and waves moves through the lower and higher notes of the piano and is part of the melody. This is unlike the other pieces where the musical depiction of water stays in the lower notes of the piano. This piece is very straight-forward and is a testament to the idea that less is more. It is very simply beautiful.
Barcarolle by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
This piece is from Tchaikovsky's work "The Seasons," a collection of twelve (each month) character pieces. Character piece is a somewhat vague term which generally means a piece based on an idea or program (narrative). A barcarolle is the song a Venetian gondoliers sing. Once again, you can hear the water in the left hand, under the melody. Although this one uses a duple pattern (two beats) as opposed to the other three pieces which all use triple patterns (three "beats").
Wednesday, 4 March 2015
Easter Choir!
Starting next week the adult choir would like to invite you to join us in our preparations for Easter. We're going to be working with a trumpeter this year and hope to have a rich, full sound to celebrate the resurrection of Christ.
We will rehearse March 12th, 19th, and 26th from 7:00 to 8:00 and April 2nd from 8:30 to 9:30.
What to Expect from This Blog in the Future!
For most of last year I has a weekly series called "The Music This Week." The idea was to let you know why a chose the music each week and what was special about it. I enjoyed that, but with a new baby that is probably a bit ambitious!
However, I still want to communicate with the people at St. Andrew's though. So look on this blog for highlights and up coming music events.
However, I still want to communicate with the people at St. Andrew's though. So look on this blog for highlights and up coming music events.
Note on Black History Month at St. Andrew's
Note on Black History Month at St. Andrew's
Through the month of February, the Adult Choir explored the music from African-American tradition. We sang a number of spirituals and gospel pieces. The music was an absolute treat and I am so glad that we got the chance to sing it for a month.
Through the month of February, the Adult Choir explored the music from African-American tradition. We sang a number of spirituals and gospel pieces. The music was an absolute treat and I am so glad that we got the chance to sing it for a month.
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