MUSIC AT FIRST RELIGIOUS SOCIETY

Dr. Jay Lane, Director of Church Music, joined the FRS staff in April of 2009, after serving ten years at Church of the Good Shepherd (Episcopal) in Acton, Massachusetts. Jay holds a doctorate in Musicology from Yale University and is the President of the McClosky Institute of Voice. He has conducted a wide variety of choral and instrumental ensembles, from the Yale Bach Society to the M.I.T. Gilbert and Sullivan Players, and he has served churches of many denominations. In addition to his work here at FRS, Lane teaches voice privately and conducts the Renaissance choir Vox Lucens.

The Candlelight Chorale
The Church Choir also forms the nucleus of the Candlelight Chorale, which sings at the annual Christmas Candlelight Service. In 2002 and thereafter, the Candlelight Chorale expanded its programming to present choral concerts at other times of year. Recent performances have included Haydn's Creation, Duruflé's Requiem, and Randall Thompson's Peaceable Kingdom. Click here to hear the Candlelight Chorale sing Mendelssohn’s “Hear My Prayer,” with soprano Sudie Marcuse and organist Fred MacArthur. Sign-ups for this group occur several times a year, at the beginning of rehearsals for each program. For more information, or to be added to our email list, please contact Jay Lane through the church office.

Young Church Music Program
In 2010, Kristen Miller became our new Director of Youth Music. She has a broad range of training and experience working with students of all ages, in both choral and instrumental settings. She brings a spiritual approach to music and believes that every student is capable of using music as an artistic and spiritual vehicle, regardless of ability level. Kristen holds a Kodaly Educator Certificate, Level III, and she has developed choral programs at the Rye Country Day School and the Buker School of Hamilton and Wenham. From 2006 to 2010 she served as the instrumental director at The Governor's Academy in Byfield. Kristen is also a professional cellist and singer, and she has released three CDs. For more about Kristen's performing career, visit www.kristenmillermusic.com.

The youth music program is composed of two choirs: the Young Church Choir and the Teen Choir.

The Young Church Choir (below) is open to singers in Grades 2 - 6. This choir rehearses every Sunday from 9:40 - 10:20 in the upper parish hall. Children in this group start learning how to read music and how to sing with good tone production and diction. Music is sung in unison or in two parts. The Young Church Choir sings in church five or six times a year, including during the annual Christmas Candlelight Service.

The Teen Choir (below) rehearses every Sunday from 9:00 - 9:40 in the upper parish hall. This lively group consists of about fifteen singers who are in Grades 7 - 12 and who are at least 12 years old in September at the beginning of the church year. Music is sung in three- and four-part harmony. Continued emphasis is placed on learning to read music well and to sing with a beautiful, blended choral tone. The Teen Choir performs in church five or six times a year, including at the annual Christmas Candlelight Service.

New members are always welcome to join the Young Church Choir and the Teen Choir. The children do a great job of making newcomers feel welcome. No previous musical experience is necessary.

Jazz Vespers
Now in its fifth year, Jazz Vespers is held the first Wednesday of every month that church meets (September through June). The service, held in the Sanctuary, starts at 8:00 p.m. and lasts approximately 45 minutes.

Services consist of live improvisational music played by FRS friends and congregational members, as well as brief readings of prose and poetry and a short meditation. Guest artists from the greater Newburyport area frequently join the FRS house band.

The idea is to have a short break in the middle of the week to relax together in the Sanctuary, hear some live jazz, and listen to a few poems.

It’s intended to be casual, uplifting and relaxing. Please join us.

The Candlelight Service
A Newburyport Christmas tradition since 1925, this musical service is held yearly on the evening of the Sunday before Christmas Eve. The meetinghouse is decorated, and Christmas choral music by the Candlelight and Young Church choirs is interspersed with readings and congregational singing of familiar carols. A brass choir and other instrumentalists often accompany this service.

Chamber Music Concert Series
The Jean C. Wilson Concert Series is held early each year, usually from January through April. A wide range of professional ensembles and soloists have been presented over the years, including choral groups, early music groups, string, woodwind, and brass ensembles, and solo pianists, organists, singers, and instrumentalists.