We heard from the men of the Senior Choir today in what amounted to a really neat turn of events at the second service. It was All Saints Sunday, and it has been the tradition at Holy Communion for a number of years now that the service begins with the reading of the names of every member of the congregation who has passed away since the last All Saints Day – as well as significant relatives of members. . . and the choir provides a musical backdrop for it. It’s actually a piece I composed based on the epistle text for the day: “We are God’s children now. What we will be has not yet been revealed. See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called the children of God.” (based on the opening melodic phrase of “For all the Saints.”) It’s a long, slow, lyrical line sung over a throbbing bass line and it really fits the moment, if I do say so myself. And as the choir sings this piece, and the names are read off during the interludes, members of the congregation can come forward if they choose and light a candle in memory of someone they miss. The first time we did this (maybe ten or eleven years ago) only a few brave souls went forward – but now, most of the congregation comes forward for what has become for many a really cherished tradition.
Anyway, two of our sopranos (who are sisters) lost their dad earlier this year – and while I really needed them in the choir this morning (several other sopranos were gone) I also did not want to deprive them of this experience of coming forward and lighting a candle in their dad’s memory, especially if their mom was going to be there . Then on the fly, I got the idea of having the entire choir sing this entrance rite for first service – but having only the men stay to sing it for second service. Mind you, this is a piece written for SATB, and I had no idea how we could handle the harmony with male forces – or how it would sound. But I wanted to try, knowing that I had eight really fine men and if anyone could bring this off, they could.
And they did ! They sounded absolutely wonderful, splitting up the four parts amongst themselves and making it sound as though it had been intended for male voices right from the start. And as that rich, beautiful sound filled the sanctuary, I gave silent thanks that my church choir is blessed with men who sing this well and who are also as nice as can be. (Mind you, the women in my choir are not exactly slouches – but to have such accomplished male singers is quite a rarity these days.) And for good measure, once I determined that this opening piece would sound good with just the men, I went back into the files and pulled out one of the hymn arrangements I did for the men’s chorus that Henrietta Welch directed at church when I first started there just over twenty years ago. That group consisted pretty much of all men who couldn’t read music (and thus would not have managed the rigors of the senior choir very well) so these arrangements were relatively simple, although I would find ways to give them a little bit of sizzle. Henrietta has been after me for years to pull out some of those old arrangements for the senior choir men, and today was the day when I finally did it.
The best part of it, however, was that it made it possible for the two sisters in my soprano section to sit with their mom and come forward to light a candle in memory of their dad- and a couple other women from the choir actually did the same thing as well. It was almost like the choral equivalent of “Lean on Me” or “You’ve Got a Friend” – a way for us to be there for each other. It ended up being the very very best part of a very meaningful morning – and how amazing it is when the unanticipated, unscripted moments in life are that for us.
pictured: eight of the men of the Holy Communion Senior Choir, right after our quick rehearsal together at the end of Thursday night’s practice. left to right: Steve R, John, Steve S, Dave, Greg, Ken, Jamie and Gary