From the Organist & Choirmaster
Please mark your calendars for a few upcoming events that the music program of Saint Andrew’s will lead or present.
March 4 | Shrove Tuesday: On the Tuesday preceding Ash Wednesday, March 4, at 6:30 pm the parish choir will be flipping pancakes, preparing bacon, hash brown casserole and other indulgent dishes before we enter the season of Lent. A suggested donation of $10 will go to benefit their ministry.
March 9 | Choral Evensong: On Sunday, March 9, the parish choir will offer Choral Evensong in the Nave with guest organist Dr. John Lowe. Dr. Lowe will offer an organ prelude with Mendelssohn’s sixth organ sonata before Evensong beginning at 5:15 pm. Evensong begins at 5:30 pm and will include Francis Jackson’s Evening Service in G, Edgar Bainton’s And I saw a new heaven, Parry’s My soul, there is a country, prayers, readings, and a hymn. A reception will follow Evensong in Trinity Commons.
April 7 | Organ Demonstration: On Monday, April 7, at 7:00 pm the Birmingham Chapter of the American Guild of Organists in collaboration with The Center for Anglican Music will welcome back Dr. John Schwandt for a demonstration/rectial of the Nave’s Norris & Associates organ which was rebuilt from 2016-2022. Dr. Schwandt lead the initiative of tonal quality and stop-work on the organ and was the organist who dedicated the Organ in 2022. We are glad to welcome him back to Saint Andrew’s.
May 18 | Schubert’s Mass in G: On Sunday, May 18, a 2:30 pm in the Nave the parish choir in collaboration with the Red Door Arts Guild will present Schubert’s Mass in G. This is the second of six Masses composed by Franz Schubert (1797-1828), also referred to frequently as the "Mass in G," and it remains the best known of the three shorter settings titled "Mass." Composed in 1815, it was originally scored for choir, string orchestra, organ, and the soloists and remained one of the composer's less-noted works, not even being printed until 1845. But the Mass's later popularity also led Franz' brother Ferdinand to add winds and timpani after Franz' death. And a 1980s discovery of a set of parts that include trumpets and brass, in addition to some minor changes, suggests that Schubert intended something grander than the original scoring. We will present it in its original form with Samford’s string quartet and professional soloists.