Spring and Lent Music at Presbyterian Church in Morristown

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises. Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody. With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord. Psalms 98:4-6

Next to the Word of God, music deserves the highest praise. The gift of language combined with the gift of song was given to man that he should proclaim the Word of God through Music.
― Martin Luther

The Presbyterian Church in Morristown is welcoming Spring and the Lent season with a plethora of musical offerings and opportunities. All are welcome to join us and participate as frequently as you want. Here is just a sampling of what the Church will be offering from now through the end of March:

Our worship service on February 19th is A Celtic Mass for Peace: Songs for the Earth, led by Pastor Cindy Alloway and Director of Music, Charity Wicks. The service will feature Cantate Omnes and members of The Chancel Choir as they join together with many instrumentalists and soloists for a presentation of A Celtic Mass for Peace: Songs for the Earth, composed by guitarist Sam Guarnaccia, with lyrics by Philip Newell. This special Communion service takes place at both 9:15 and 11 a.m. We are fortunate to have the composer himself joining us for a service you will not want to miss! The words of the lyricist best describe this special service:

As never before in the history of humanity we are becoming aware of the essential one-ness of the earth. Increasingly we know that what we do to a part we do to the whole. And we are realizing that we will be well only to the extent that we live in relationship with one another and with all things. At the same time, we are experiencing the most horrific brokenness as an earth community. The violence that is being perpetrated by nation against nation, by religion against religion, by rich against poor, and by humanity against earth’s species is unparalleled. A Celtic Mass for Peace: Songs for the Earth gives voice and sound to earth’s deepest yearnings for peace. These are not just religious longings or Christian longings. These are sacred longings from the heights and depths of humanity’s song. They are as vast as the universe and as intimate as the human heart. — J.Philip Newell

If you are inspired by the service, or simply looking for ways to explore your own musical talents (or aspirations), whether they be vocal or instrumental, and are looking for a new, fun activity, our annual Music Open House will be held in the Sanctuary on Sunday, February 19 from 3-5 p.m. We are looking for anyone from young adults in 6th grade through the young at heart of all ages!

Our Ash Wednesday service on February 22 at 8 a.m. will feature The Chancel Choir and anthems that prepare our hearts and minds for the next 40 days that is Lent. For more information about our Lenten programs and services, please visit our website and Pastor Dave Smazik’s blog.

On February 26, the 9:15 a.m. service welcomes the middle school youth as the Tower Choir will perform along with Cantate Omnes, our choir featuring singers of all ages. The 11 a.m. service features The Chancel Ringers and The Chancel Choir, with a service focusing on freedom and community on the final Sunday of Black History Month, including a bell choir and choir piece by John Ferguson entitled A Song of Community, as well as the rousing African Freedom song Siyahamba performed by The Chancel Ringers. One of the anthems the Choirs will be singing is “Arise and Come to Jesus” arranged by Patti Drennan. Ms. Drennan takes two 19th century hymn tunes, “Beach Spring” and “Arise”, and combines them with an 18th century text. The tunes are based on folk hymns, and you can feel that steady rhythmic pulse throughout the piece.

In March, our ever popular Fridays-on-the-Green concert series will return. Fridays-on-the-Green is a concert series sponsored by The Presbyterian Church in Morristown during lunch on Fridays in March, May and October in Morristown. This free concert series features a wide variety of musicians from the Morristown community, the New York metro area and around the world. Each performance is held in the Sanctuary of The Presbyterian Church in Morristown (57 Park Place, On the Green) from 12:00 to 12:35 p.m. Reasonably priced lunches prepared by popular local deli, C'est Cheese, are for sale in the church hall after each concert.

Concerts in March 2012:

March 2 - Four members of FLUTATIOUS! perform a program of music with a Celtic flavor.

March 9 - Tenor Jayson Greenberg and pianist Charity Wicks perform Dichterliebe by Robert Schumann.

March 16 - Bassoonist Christopher Wickham and pianist Charity Wicks

March 23 - The cello studio of Marnie Kaller presents CELLObrate! Cello X 6 = a cello choir that performs music from Bach to the Beatles.

March 30 - Classical guitarist Carlos Cuestas. Carlos precviously performed a concert at the Presbyterian Church in Morristown on November 20, 2011.  Click here to listen to that performance.

There is always something happening at the Presbyterian Church in Morristown for musicians and music lovers of all ages.  We hope you will join us for any one of these events or just stop by on a Sunday to participate in our services and educational programming.  Visitor information is always available on our website and regular updates on our myriad activities can be found on our Facebook page and on Twitter.