The Choir
St. John's is very proud of our choir and all that they have done
to lead our liturgies in the past year. Highlights have included the singing of
Gabriel Faurè's Requiem for All Souls' Day and selections from Handel's
Messiah for Christmas Eve. This past spring, we joined forces with First Congregational
Church in Saginaw for a performance of Ralph Vaughan Williams' Five Mystical Songs under the direction of Dr. Nina Nash Robertson. This is all in addition to
regular services of Evensong and Sunday morning duties.
The Choral Scholars
The work of the choir is supported by our 3 choral scholars. Our program operates in two directions. The church benefits from their musical skills and expertise, and we help them with better
developing their choral background. They learn many skills that
cannot be learned in school, such as working with volunteer singers,
appropriate literature for a church choir, and building community.
Children's Music Program
For the last two years, St. John's has looked for ways to include our
children into the music program in different ways. This has resulted
in three children who rehearse every
Sunday, following the 10:30 service in
preparation for joining the Choir on several occasions through the year. Rehearsals are led by Kevin Simons, with the assistance of the choral scholars. All children that are able to read
fluently are invited and encouraged to participate. The strength of this new progr
inter-generational mentorship which is provided by the adults in the choir. By singing with
their older counter-parts, our children will not only build bonds of friendship, but they will learn how to become the leaders of tomorow's church. The program has been successful and this last year our children
helped to lead worship on All Saints' Day as well as the 6:30 service on
Christmas Eve.