History of the Music Program
First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, Arlington, Massachusetts

Current Music Rehearsal & Planning Schedule
2003-04 / 2002-03 / 2001-02
1991-92 / 1978-79 / 1966-67 / 1964-65
Early History of Music at First Parish 1733-1964

First Parish UUC Arlington Homepage
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2004-2005
Director of Music: Laura Prichard
Organist & Children's Choir Director: Wendy Covell

Sunday, Sept. 12
Ingathering and Water Communion
with Barbara Whittaker-Johns and Carlton E. Smith

  • Prelude: Rigaudon by Andre Campra
  • Offertory: Pastorale by Louis Vierne
  • Chalice Singers Anthem: Mayim, mayim, Jewish folk song
    Translation - Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.
  • Anthem: Down in the River to Pray from the Coen Brothers' film Oh Brother, Where art Thou?
  • Choral Benediction: Love is Little, a Shaker song from Enfield, Connecticut, arranged by Kevin Siegfried
  • Postlude: De Colores, Mexican folksong arranged for organ by Wendy Covell
  • Hymns & Readings: 92, 305, 729

Sunday, September 19
"Thou Art with Me" Barbara Whittaker-Johns

  • Prelude: Berceuse Populaire Française/Montagnarde d'Auvergne by Paul Bazelaire
    Deborah Thompson, guest cellist
  • Introduction & Candle Music: Kol nidre by Max Bruch for cello and piano
  • Offertory: Prayer by Ernest Bloch
  • Musical Interlude: Song of the Birds by Pablo Casals
  • Postlude: Chanson de Bresse by Paul Bazelaire
  • Hymns & Readings: 215, 217, 453, 634

Sunday, September 26
"Failures of Imagination" Carlton E. Smith

  • Prelude: Passacaglia by Dietrich Buxtehude
  • Candle Music: The Road not Taken by Randall Thompson
  • Offertory: Veni Creator by Maurice Duruflé for organ
  • Anthem: Imagine by John Lennon, performed by Meg Candilore, voice and piano
  • Choral Benediction: Love is Little, Shaker Humility Song, arranged by Kevin Siegfried
    Click
    here to listen to this selection
  • Postlude: Oh, the Beatiful Treasures (Shaker song) arranged for organ by Wilbur Held
  • Hymns & Readings: 298, 413, 434, 658

Sunday, October 3
Carlton E. Smith "The Wisdom of Listening as a Pathway to Peace" with readings from the philosopher Raimon Panikkar

  • Prelude: Andante quasi adagio by Eduardo Torres
  • Chalice Flames Call to Worship: Be Ye Lamps Unto Yourselves (sung from the Tovey Lounge)
  • Candle Music: The Lord is My Shepherd, Psalm 23 from the Requiem of John Rutter
    with Wendy Covell, organ, and Carl Schlaijker, oboe
    Click
    here to listen to this selection
  • Offertory: Adonai roi, Psalm 23 by Leonard Berstein from Chichester Psalms
    Jennifer Kobayashi, soprano solo
    Click
    here to listen to this selection
  • Choral Benediction: Dona nobis pacem #388
  • Postlude: Rorate coeli by Jeanne Demessieux
  • Hymns & Readings: 136, 335, 413, 470, 540

Sunday, October 10
Carlton E. Smith "Wal-Mart and Other Persons: the 2nd UU Principle: justice, equity, and compassion"

  • Second Sunday Meditational Music (9:45-9:55am in the Sanctuary)
    First movement from Francis Poulenc's Sonata for Oboe by Carl Schlaikjer with Laura Prichard, piano
  • Prelude: Andante con moto by Eduardo Torres
  • Offertory: Vocalise by Sergei Rachmaninoff
    played by the First Parish Chamber Winds: Mies Boet-Whitaker, flute; Carl Schlaikjer, oboe;
    Wendy Page, clarinet; Andrew Kobayashi, clarinet; Jean Renard Ward, bassoon
  • Anthem: Ubi Caritas by Maurice Duruflé
  • Choral Benediction: Siyahamba (South African freedom song)
  • Postlude: Built on a Rock by Christina Harmon
  • Hymns & Readings: 125, 209, 413, 457, 464

Sunday, October 17 Ferry Beach Weekend
Rev. Carlton E. Smith "Take Back Your Time"

  • Prelude: Adagio in A minor by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Offering: Morgengesang by Arthur Foote
    Phyllis Spence, violin
  • Postlude: Minuet by Luigi Boccherini
  • Hymns & Readings: 16, 331, 413, 466

Sunday, October 24
Rev. Robin L. Zucker "Two Copper Coins"

  • Prelude: Andante K. 616 by Wolfgang A. Mozart
  • Offertory: Prelude in B-flat by Clara Schumann
  • Anthem: My eyes for beauty pine by Herbert Howells
  • Choral Benediction: Love is Little, Shaker Humility Song, arranged by Kevin Siegfried
    Click
    here to listen to this selection
  • Postlude: Allegretto by D. Zipoli
  • Hymns & Readings: 21, 288, 413, 656, 714, "Who Is a Rich Man?" by Rabbi L. Kushner, Luke 21: 1-4

Sunday, October 31 Intergenerational Hallowe'en Service
Barbara Whittaker-Johns and Carlton E. Smith "Anything Possible"

  • Prelude: Quick March by Lefebure Wely
  • Processional: Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky played by First Parish Symphonic Band
  • Parade of Costumes: Rosin Eating Zombies from Outer Space played by the First Parish Strings
  • Call to Worship: It's Impossible by Rodgers and Hammerstein
    Chalice Flames, Meg Candilore, piano; Drew Pereli, electric bass
  • Song: Laughing, Singing Come to Goblins by C. Bresgan
    Chalice Sparks
  • Offertory: Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 by J. S. Bach played by the First Parish Strings and Chamber Winds
  • Anthem: Anything Possible by Fred Small (First Parish Littleton, MA) sung by Diane Shriver, guitarist
  • Recessional: Walk in the Light
  • Readings: The Old Howling Wind adapted from Bill Martin Jr.; The Paperbag Princess

Sunday, November 7
Rev. Barbara Whittaker-Johns "Reflection: The Sacred Meaning of True Friendship"
Alex Mercedes "An Improvisation on Friendship"

  • Organ Prelude: Lobe den Herrn by Timothy Albrecht
  • Offering: Over the Rainbow by Harold Arlen, played by Luberta Elliott Smith, piano
  • Anthem: Rejoice in God, all ye lands from Benjamin Britten's Rejoice in the Lamb
  • Musical Interlude: Cherry Blossom Pink and Apple White, played by Luberta Elliott Smith, piano
  • Choral Benediction: Alleluia from Benjamin Britten's Rejoice in the Lamb
  • Organ Postlude: Trompette Jubilante by Craig Penfield
  • Hymns & Readings: 390, 413, 645, 685

Sunday, November 7 at 3pm
Installation
of the Rev. Carlton Elliott Smith as our permanent Assistant Minister

  • Organ Prelude: Toccata in F by J. S. Bach
  • Processional: Rank by Rank Again We Stand by H. Walford Davies
  • Opening Hymn: Gather the Spirit by J. Scott
  • Speakers: Rev. Caitlyn O'Brien (Project Place, Boston), Annette Sawyer, John L. Worden III (Arlington Town Moderator), Rev. Linda Privitera (Church of Our Saviour, Arlington), Rev. James Ismael Ford (President, Mass Bay Chapter UU Minister's Association), Rev. David Pettee ((Director of Ministerial Credentialing, UUA), Rev. John Weston (Settlement Director, UUA), Deborah Botos, John Laurenson, Rev. Barbara Whittaker-Johns, Rev. Ellen Rowse Spero (First Parish Chelmsford), and Millie Seaborn (President, Mass Bay District UUA)
  • Offertory: For the Instruments Are by their Rhymes and Alleluia from Benjamin Britten's Rejoice in the Lamb
  • Special Music: The Lord's Prayer by A. H. Malotte, played by Luberta Elliott Smith, piano
  • Recessional: Siyahamba (African freedom song)
  • Postlude: Joyful, Joyful by Ludwig van Beethoven with English text by Henry van Dyke, arr. in gospel style for the film Sister Act II

Sunday, November 14
Carlton E. Smith "Beyond Convenience"

  • Second Sunday Meditational Music (9:45-9:55am in the Sanctuary)
    David Whitford, violin and Ann Goodwin , guitar
  • Prelude: Variation sur un theme by Jehan Alain
  • Candle Music: Sicut cervus by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
  • Anthem: Osanna from the Missa Papae Marcelli by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
    Click
    here to practice this selection
  • Offertory: Chant de paix by Jean Langlais
  • Postlude: Cantabile by Robin Milford
  • Hymns & Readings: 163, 404, 413, 594

Sunday, November 21
Barbara Whittaker-Johns "Doggedly Blundering Toward Heaven"

  • Prelude: In Paradisum by Theodore Dubois
  • Offertory: Prince of Denmark March by Jeremiah Clarke
    Isaac Toppa, trumpet
  • Musical Interlude: Bist du bei mir by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Postlude: Trumpet Tune by Henry Purcell
    Isaac Toppa, trumpet
  • Hymns & Readings: 21, 67, 95, 413, 490, 512

Sunday, November 28
"Blessings Gathered from Having Cancer" Susan Morse, with Barbara Whittaker-Johns, worship leader

  • Prelude: Adagio by Wolfgang A. Mozart
  • Intergenerational Sharing: This Pretty Planet by Tom Chapin and John Forster
    Led by Frank Toppa
  • Anthem: An die Musik, op. 88, no. 4, D. 547 (1817) by Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828)
    Cheri Minton, alto
    Du holde Kunst, in wieviel grauen Stunden, Oh sacred art, how oft in hours blighted,
    Wo mich des Lebens wilder Kreis umstrickt, While into life's untamed cycle hurled,
    Hast du mein Herz zu warmer Lieb entzunden, Hast thou my heart to warm love reignited
    Hast mich in eine beßre Welt entrückt! To transport me into a better world!

    Oft hat ein Seufzer, deiner Harf' entflossen, So often has a sigh from thy harp drifted,
    Ein süßer, heiliger Akkord von dir, A chord from thee, holy and full of bliss,
    Den Himmel beßrer Zeiten mir erschlossen, A glimpse of better times from heaven lifted.
    Du holde Kunst, ich danke dir dafür! Thou sacred art, my thanks to thee for this.
    by Franz von Schober (1798-1882)

  • Hymns & Readings: 123, 360, 413, 435

Thursday, December 2 - 7:30pm CONCERT in the Sanctuary

  • Guest artists: University of Pretoria TUKS Camerata, Pretoria, South Africa
  • Hosting Chorus: Sharing a New Song Chorus (preparing for their 2005 South African Tour)
  • Concert Hosts: First Parish Choir, Arlington
    Finale from Benjamin Britten's Rejoice in the Lamb
    Joyful, Joyful
    by Ludwig van Beethoven with English text by Henry van Dyke, arr. in gospel style for the film Sister Act II

Sunday, December 5
Rev. Barbara Whittaker-Johns "What Gift Will You Bring?"

  • Prelude: Trumpet Tune in E Major by David N. Johnson
  • Candles Music: Itinerunt hodie by Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)
    Melody later published in Pie Cantiones, 1582 and adapted in the UU Hymnal
    Links relating to Hildegard von Bingen
  • Offertory: Noel by Theodore Dubois
  • Anthem: O magnum mysterium by Tomas Luis da Victoria
  • Postlude: Sortie by Cesar Franck
  • Hymns & Readings: 221, 225, 413, 493, 629

Monday, December 6 Alliance Christmas Program

Chalice Singers and Chalice Flames

  • I Saw Three Ships
  • Here in My House by A. Shader
  • Solstice Song by A. Iselin - Kate Potter and Betty Jean Rueters-Ward, soloists

First Parish Flute Ensemble, Mies Boet-Whitaker, Director
Deana Furman, Erica Fingerle, Talia Kazarian, Jean Hodges, Gabriella Hakim

  • Hatikva

Group Song - Turkeys United
Song Leaders: Annie Whitford, Anna Marquis
Andrew Friedman, George Pereli, Drew Pereli
Clara Friedman, and Alana Thurston

First Parish Klezmer Band
Deana Furman, Alyson Schultz, Stephonia Franzosa, Mies Boet-Whitaker, flutes
Timothy Rovinelli, oboe; Wendy Page, clarinet; Laura Prichard, tenor saxophone
Chris Botos, trombone; Meg Candilore, piano; Eric Candilore, drums

  • Hava Nagila
  • Eight Candles (Ocho Kandelikas) arranged by M. Reynolds

Chalice Singers and Chalice Flames

  • Medieval Gloria arranged by V. Singh
  • Jingle Bell Rock by Beal & Boothe

Sunday, December 12 Choir Sunday
"The Worship of Ages" Barbara Whittaker-Johns
"Life Larger Than Ourselves" Carlton E. Smith
"Music in Time of War" Laura Prichard

  • Prelude: Veni Emmanuel by Richard Purvis
  • Affirmation: Solstice Litany by John Hodges
  • Choral selections from the Gloria of Antonio Vivaldi
    Gloria in excelsis, Et in terra pax, Domine Fili unigenite, Quoniam tu solus, Cum sancto spiritu, Amen
    Click
    here for program notes on Vivaldi's Gloria
  • Solo/duet selections from the Gloria of Antonio Vivaldi
    Domine Deus (Jennifer Kobayashi, soprano)
    Laudamus Te (Carolyn Hodges and Alisa Conner, sopranos)
  • Offertory: Pastoraleby Domenico Zipoli
  • Hymns & Readings: 36, 159, 226, 413, 562, 583, 654, Solstice Litany by John Hodges
  • 3pm Concert Arlington Philharmonic

Sunday, December 19 Intergenerational Holiday Pageant
"Old Befana and the Holy Child" produced and directed by Anne Goodwin and Tom Hogan

  • Prelude: Gloria by G. Pergolesi
  • Offertory: Largo from Lute Sonata by Antonio Vivaldi
  • Traditional Italian Christmas Carol: Dormi, dormi, O bel bambin
  • African/Euro-American Singing Game: Punchinello
  • Traditional Italian Dance: Tarantella played by Wendy Covell
  • Choral Song: Gaudete - Medieval song published in Piae Cantiones, 1582
  • Choral Song: We Are by Ysaye Barnwell
  • Postlude: Allegro from Lute Sonata by Antonio Vivaldi
  • Hymns & Readings: 236, 616

Friday, December 24 Christmas Eve Service, 5pm

  • Classical Trio Music 4:30-5pm
    Mies Boet-Whitaker, flute, Carl Schlaikjer, oboe, Wendy Covell, organ
  • Prelude: Go, Tell It on the Mountain for organ by D. Lasky and Emma Lou Diemer
  • Opening Carol: #253, O Come, All Ye Fatihful
  • Anthem: O magnum mysterium by Tomas Luis da Victoria
  • Vocal Solo: Merry Christmas with Love by Billy Smiley and Greg Davis
    Krista Ernewein, soprano
  • Hymn: #47, Now On Land and Sea Descending
  • First Reading: Luke 2: 1-7
  • Carol: #246, O Little Town of Bethlehem
  • Second Reading: Luke 2: 8-16
  • Carol: #237, The First Nowell
  • Carol: #231, Angels We Have Heard on High
  • Offertory: Trio of the Ismaelites from Hector Berlioz's L'Enfance du Christ
    Mies Boet-Whitaker, flute, Carl Schlaikjer, oboe, Wendy Covell, organ
  • Third Reading: Matthew 2: 1-12
  • Carol: #244, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
  • Fourth Reading: Matthew 2: 13-23
  • Anthem: Sure on this Shining Night by Samuel Barber
    Click
    here to listen to this selection
  • Carol: #245, Joy to the World
    Jennifer Kobayashi, shawm, Matthew Kobayashi, trumpet
  • Carol: #251, Silent Night
  • Recessional: #251, Here We Come A-Wassailing
  • Postlude: On Christmas Night by R. Milford
    Wendy Covell, organ

Sunday, December 26
"Good Will Toward All" Rev. Dr. Dorothy May Emerson, guest speaker from Medford, MA and founder of the UU Women's Heritage Society and edited of the anthology Standing Before Us: UU Women and Social Reform, 1776-1936

  • Prelude: Larghetto and Allegro from Sonata in F Major by G. F. Handel
    Barbara Tilson, piano, and Mies Boet-Whitaker, flute
  • Offertory: Second and fourth movements from Fourteen Pieces for Flute and Piano by Charles H. Koechlin
  • Musical Interlude: Nocturne by Kenneth Seitz
  • Postlude: Allegro from Sonata in F Major by G. F. Handel
  • Hymns & Readings: 121, 240, 413, 436, The Work of Christmas by Howard Thurman, selections from the United Nations Earth Charter

Sunday, January 2
Rev. Carlton E. Smith with Ron Hersom [Tolling of the Bells based on the Oakland, CA UU Church's service]

  • Prelude: I. Allegro from Partita for English Horn and Organ by Jan Koetsier
    Carl Schlaikjer, English horn; Wendy Covell, organ
  • Offertory: How Brightly Shines the Morning Star from Partita for English Horn and Organ by Jan Koetsier
  • Anthem: Indian Prayer by Roger Emerson
  • Candles Music: We Remember Them by Ben Steinberg
  • Postlude: V. Allegro from Partita for English Horn and Organ by Jan Koetsier
  • Hymns & Readings: 18, 96, 271, 413

Sunday, January 9
Rev. Carlton E. Smith with Ron Hersom: "The Search for Truth and Meaning" [sermon topic on 9th UU Principle]

  • Prelude: Fantasy in A Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Candles Music: Velvet Shoes by Randall Thompson (women only)
    Click
    here to practice this selection
  • Offertory: In the Isles of the Sea by Daniel Pinkham
  • Anthem: The Road Not Taken by Randall Thompson
    Click
    here to practice this selection
  • Hymns & Readings: 6, 300, 403, 413, 645, Fatima the Spinner and the Tent

Sunday, January 16
Rev. Carlton E. Smith with Donna Sharff, Nassir Ghaemi, and Marie Raduazzo "Credo Service I: Dr. King and I"

  • Prelude: Let Us Break Bread Together arranged by Charles Callahan
  • Offertory: The Chrysanthemum by Scott Joplin, played by Wendy Covell, organ
  • Credo I: A Passion to Teach by Marie Raduazzo
  • Musical Interlude: Oh, Freedom from Lift Every Voice and Sing II: An African American Hymnal
  • Credo II: Appalachia: 1969 by Heather Hewitt
  • Credo III: My First Prison Visit by Donna Scharff
  • Anthem: We Shall Overcome from Lift Every Voice and Sing II: An African American Hymnal
  • Credo IV: Reflection on Racism by Nassir Ghaemi
  • Postlude: Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel arranged by Carleton Inniss
  • Hymns & Readings: 95, 153, 413, 577, 584

Sunday, January 23
SERVICE CANCELED DUE TO BLIZZARD (19 inches of snow in Arlington)
Rev. Carlton E. Smith with Martha Comfort, Charlotte Sanford, and Beth Miller
"Credo Service II: Creating Meaning in Our Lives"

Sunday, January 30
Rev. Barbara Whittaker-Johns with speakers from the Institute on Religion in an Age of Science (IRAS)
"The Varieties of Spiritual Transformation: Scientific and Religious Perspectives"

  • Prelude: Toccata in d minor by J. J. Frohberger
  • Offertory: Bagpipe by Bela Bartok
  • Reflection: Dr. Ursula Goodenough, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri
  • Anthem: In a Garden Shady (first movement) from Benjamin Britten's Hymn to St. Cecilia
    Click
    here for notes on this work
    Click
    here to practice
  • Reflection: Dr. Karl Peters, Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida
  • Postlude: Allegretto by L. N. Clerambault
  • Hymns & Readings: 10, 55, 126, 413, 505, 530

Saturday, February 5 Biennial First Parish Auction - Mardi Gras Theme

Sunday, February 6
Barbara Whittaker-Johns "The Treasure of Consciousness"

  • Prelude: March for organ by Gabriel Pierne
  • Ingenerational Anthem (Chalice Singers and Flames): A Quiet Place (I Was Standing in a Garden)
    by Leonard Bernstein, Wendy Covell, conductor; Barbara Tilson, piano
  • Offertory: Priere for organ by Denis Bedard
  • Anthem: The Gifts of Life by Kenneth Seitz

    Poem by the Rev. Dr. Barbara Whittaker-Johns
    The gifts of life are in need of someone:
    Did we think that autumn turns its colors,
    that winter abres its branches
    All alone?
    A season unappreciated is a season missed.

    The gifts of life are in need of someone:
    Did we think that love is earned?
    Love not graciously received does not survive.

    The gifts of life are in need of someone:
    Did we think our daily blessings
    befall by chance?
    Abundance waits only for an open heart in order to be born.

    The gifts of life are in need of you and me:
    to appreciate creation,
    to accept that we are loved,
    to know that we are blessed.

    The gifts of life are in need of someone
    to give thanks.
  • Postlude: Presto from Concerto in F for organ by George F. Handel
  • Hymns & Readings: 57, 205, 413, 657, adaptation of Robinson Jeffers' The Treasure

Monday, February 7 First Parish Alliance Music Program

  • 7pm Dessert and Social Hour
  • 7:30pm Olav Chris Henriksen gave a lecture-recital entitled "The Lute in the Age of Humanism"
    describing the story of the lute's rise in popularity throughout the Renaissance,
    and its consequent development into the Baroque lute and theorbo.
    Musical works by Francesco da Milano, Galilei, Dowland, and Kapsperger.
    Click
    here for a biography of Mr. Henriksen

Sunday, February 13
Barbara Whittaker-Johns "Falling in Love as Spiritual and Social Transformation"
Jazz for Valentine's Day throughout the service

  • Prelude: Stranger in Paradise from Kismet
    Music based on a melody of Aleksandr Borodin from Prince Igor
    Click
    here for notes on the history of the song
    Chris Botos, trombone; Wendy Covell, organ
  • Candle Music: My Funny Valentine by Richard Rodgers
    First Parish Jazz Orchestra - Alex Zimmer, Barbara Tilson, rhythm
    Chris Cirker, Mies Boet-Whitaker, Carl Schlaikjer, Andy Kobayashi, Jean Renard Ward, reeds
    Chris Botos, Jennifer Kobayashi, Mark Seibring, brass
  • Anthem: Sing, Sing, Sing by Louis Prima (FPA Choir)
    Click
    here to read about Louis Prima
    Click
    here to see the words for and hear a MIDI version the Benny Goodman arrangement of Sing, Sing, Sing
  • Offertory: Apres un Reve by Gabriel Fauré
  • Postlude: Andantino by Charles M. Widor
  • Hymns & Readings: 89, 199, 368, 413, 431, 610, 638, text of My Funny Valentine by Lorenz Hart

Sunday, February 20
Barbara Whittaker-Johns with Anti-Racism and Partakers "Journey Toward Wholeness"
"Facing the Music" - sermon by Summer Finnell

  • Prelude: Wer nur den lieben Gottt lässt walten by J. S. Bach
  • Offertory: Andante cantabile by Charles M. Widor
  • Anthem: Call to Remembrance by Richard Farrant (c1525-1580)
  • Postlude: If You but Trust in God to Guide You by Georg Boehm
  • Hymns & Readings: 123, 151, 413, 584, and On Crime and Punishment by Kahlil Gibran

Sunday, February 27
Rev. Carlton E. Smith "Bringing Consciousness to Life"
with Chris Jones "Giving the Most of Your Consciuosness"

  • Prelude: Andantino from Concerto in G Major by Antonio Soler
  • Offertory: Veni Crator by Jeanne Demessieux
  • Postlude: Allegretto by Maurice Duruflé
  • Hymns & Readings: 15, 22, 300, 413, 566, and excerpts from A Return to Love

Sunday, March 6
Rev. Carlton E. Smith "Thirty Years After the Fire: Remembering the Church That Was"
A Service of Remembrance incorporating many elements from the Order of Service on March 7, 1975

  • Prelude: A Mighty Fortress by Michael Preatorius
  • Anthem: Steal Away spiritual arranged by Hall Johnson 1935) conducted by Chris Jones
    One of the great African-American musicians of the twentieth century, Johnson achieved national renown through his adaptation of spirituals for the play (later a movie) Green Pastures, many of them included in this anthology, and the tours he conducted with the renowned ensemble he founded, the Hall Johnson Choir.
  • Stewardship Theme: Keep On Moving Forward by Pat Humphries, led by Diane Taraz
  • Offertory: A Mighty Fortress by Peter Pindar Stearns
  • Postlude: A Mighty Fortress by Christina Harmon
  • Art Opening of displays and visuals commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Great Fire that destroyed the Fourth Meetinghouse of First Parish on March 7, 1975.
  • Hymns & Readings: 114, 358, 413, 569, Doxology from the Order of Service on March 7, 1975

Sunday, March 6 First Parish Musicale, 3pm
Chris Jones, Producer

Margaret Braxton, piano

  • Aufschwung (Soaring) by Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
  • Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by Johann S. Bach (1685-1750), arr. by Harold Bauer

Nancy McDowell, soprano; Carl Schlaikjer, oboe; Ken Seitz, piano

  • Der Hirt auf dem Felsen (The Shepherd on the Rock), op. 129 by Franz Schubert (1797-1828)

First Parish Flute Loops - Mies Boet-Whitaker, Director
Stephanie Franzosa, Deana Furman, Gabriella Hakim, Laura Prichard, Erica Fingerle, Jean Hodges, flutes

  • Canon in D by Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706), arranged by Ricky Lombardo

Alex Zimmer, drums; Jim Ptacek, piano

  • Never Again by Jim Ptacek

Lynn Rosenbaum, piano and voice

  • Where Is My Faith Today? by Lynn Rosenbaum

Lydia Thayer and Carolyn Hodges, voice

  • Little Red Riding Hood

Ken Seitz, piano

  • Feelin' by Ken Seitz

First Parish Jazz Orchestra - Laura Prichard, Director
Chris Cirker, alto saxophone; Carl Schlaikjer, English horn; Wendy Page, clarinet
Andrew Kobayashi, tenor saxophone; Jean Renard Ward, bassoon
Jennifer Kobayashi, recorder; Chris Botos, trombone; Mark Seibring, tuba
Seth Botos, djembe; Alex Zimmer, drums; Barbara Tilson, piano

  • My Funny Valentine (1937) by Richard Rodgers

Frist Parish Glee Club - Chirs Jones, Director
Michael Prichard, Jennifer Kobayashi, Chris Jones, Carl Schlaikjer, tenors
Alan Schweitzer, Jean Renard Ward, Andy Kobayashi, John Hodges, basses

  • Steal Away by traditional spiritual arranged by Hall Johnson (1888-1970)

Jacques Duranceau, guitar and voice

  • The River by Bruce Springsteen

Diane Taraz, guitar and voice

  • A Chat with your Mother by Lou and Peter Berryman
  • Fan by Daine Taraz
  • Your State's Name Here by Lou and Peter Berryman, with Andy Kobayashi, voice

Alyse Wheelock, violin; Kate Roberts, cello; Barbara Tilson, piano

  • Saltarello by Frank Bridge

Cynthia Mork, soprano; Barabra Tilson, piano

  • Songs to the Moon, Part One by Jake Heggie and Vachel Lindsay

First Parish Jazz Band
Chris Cirker, alto saxophone; Rachel stark, vocals; Chris Botos, trombone
Jim Austin, piano; Scott Samenfeld, bass; Seth Botos, drums, piano

  • All of Me by Simone and Marks
  • Softly As A Morning Sunshine by Hammerstein and Romberg

Sunday, March 13
Rev. Barbara Whitaker-Johns "You Are the Salt of the Earth"

  • Prelude: Reverie by Louis Vierne
  • Intergenerational Anthem (Chalice Singers) : The Books - New Testament Rap
  • Candle Music: If Ye Love Me by Thomas Tallis
  • Offertory: Mi Shebeirach by Debbie Friedman
  • Anthem: Blest Are They (based on the Beatitudes) by David Haas
    Kate McNeill-Harman, Andrew Leonard, Laura Prichard, and Michael Prichard, vocal quartet
  • Postlued: Londonderry Air for organ, Wendy Covell
  • Hymns & Readings: 40, 115, 413, 498, 640, Keep on Moving Forward by Pat Humphries

Sunday, March 20
Spring Music Service with the Rev. Barbara Whittaker-Johns
"Gratitude for Our Choir Over the Years" by Cheri Minton

  • Organ Prelude: Fanfares by Jean-Joseph Mouret - Wendy Covell
  • Bicentennial Commemoration of First Parish Choir
    On March 20, 1805,
    the new church building [the second meeting house] was dedicated, and William Cutter was chosen to lead parish singing. Two seats in the front gallery were set apart for singers.

    During the 1804-05 church year,
    the Northwest Parish in Cambridge Singing Society was established to correct, as its preamble stated, "the spirit of music in public devotion [which] has become somewhat languid and its genius seems about to withdraw." New rules included: Every choir member should sit in singing seats when at meeting. During singing of hymn, the congregation turned to face the choir, who followed the baton of the leader by beating out time with their hands or fingers. The leader read a line of the hymn, then led the singing of the choir in that line (usually accompanied by the congregation).
  • Opening Anthem: I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry
    Carolyn Hodges, Meg Candilore, Chris Jones, Jean Reanrd Ward - solo quartet
    Composed for the coronation of Edward VII in 1902, and it has been sung at every subsequent British coronation.
  • Candle Music: Veris leta facies (The merry face of spring) from Carl Orff's Carmina burana for choir and piano
  • Offertory: Pastorale by Lefébure-Wély - Wendy Covell, organ
  • Two Anthems: Opening sections from Carl Orff's Carmina burana for choir, strings, and symphonic band
    O Fortuna, velut luna (Fortune, empress of the world)
    Fortune plango vulnere (I am vulnerable to Fortune)
  • Two Anthems: Spring sections from Carl Orff's Carmina burana for choir, strings, and symphonic band
    Omnia sol temperat (The sun warms everything)
    Soloists - Andrew Leonard, John Hodges, Michael Prichard, Alan Schweitzer, and Jean Renard Ward
    Ecce gratum (Behold, the pleasant spring) Tenor solo - Chris Jones

    Click
    here to practice this selection
    Click
    here for a webpage with the texts and translations
    Click
    here for a webpage with historical details about the text and music
  • Postlude: Agincourt Hymn by John Dunstable - Wendy Covell, organ
  • Hymns & Readings: 36, 203, 413, 416, 532

Sunday, March 27 Intergenerational Easter Service featuring the children's choirs
Reflections by the Rev. Dr. Barbara Whittaker-Johns

  • Prelude: Easter Morning in Holland by Roberta Bitgood - Wendy Covell, organ
  • Offertory: Allegro ma non troppo from Sonata in G major by W. F. Bach
    Duo Atlantice: Mies Boet-Whitaker and Willhemien Insinger, flutes
  • Chalice Sparks Anthem: Now the Green Blade Riseth
  • Chalice Singers & Chalice Flames Anthem: Cantata #68, My Heart Ever Faithful by J. S. Bach
    William Henriksen, violin; Carl Schlaikjer, oboe; Jean Renard Ward, bassoon
    Chris Henriksen, theorbo; Meg Candilore, keyboard
  • Anthem: Alleluia from Ben Hur by Miklos Rozsa
  • Postlude: An Easter Alleluia by M. Enrico Bossi - Wendy Covell, organ
  • Hymns & Readings: 61, 220, 270, 534, 726, 727

Sunday, April 3
Rev. Barbara Whittaker-Johns "Say I Am You" [sermon topic on Islam, Sufism, and the writings of Rumi]

  • Special Chamber Music Today: Wendy Covell with Debbie Thompson and Rebecca Thornblad, cellos
  • Prelude: Allegro from Concerto in G Minor by Antonio Vivaldi
  • Candles Music: Adagio from Concerto in G Minor by Anotnio Vivaldi
  • Offertory: Lento, rubato from Suite for Two Cellos and Piano by Gian Carlo Menotti
  • Vocal Anthem: To Allah (1887) by George Chadwick
    Wendy Page, Jennifer Kobayashi, and Laurie Francis-Wright, soloists
    Notes:
    This poem, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, is based on a German text by Siegfried August Mahlmann. The composer, Geroge Chadwick, was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, in 1854 and died in Boston in 1931. He was a prolific composer of operas, oratorios, chamber music and song, and was a pillar of the 'Boston Classicists' composers at the turn of the century. Chadwick's 1887 setting of Longfellow's poem offers the soul an alternative to Khayyám's oblivion &endash; the hope of joining Allah's light.

    Text for the song:
    Allah gives light in darkness,
      Allah gives rest in pain,
    Cheeks that are white with weeping
      Allah paints red again.

    The flowers and the blossoms wither,
       Years vanish with flying fleet;
    But my heart will live on forever,
      That here in sadness beat.

    Gladly to Allah's dwelling
      Yonder would I take flight;
    There will the darkness vanish,
      There will my eyes have sight.

  • Choral Anthem: El Allah Hu (Sufi song in Arabic from The Dances of Universal Peace) arranged by Lynne White
  • Postlude: Allegro from Trio Sonata No. 16 by George F. Handel
  • Hymns & Readings: 3, 159, 188, 413, 607, 610, "Birdsong from Inside the Egg" by the 13th-century poet Rumi

Sunday, April 10
Rev. Caitlyn O'Brien "When We Choose Change" [a sermon on her work as a community minister at "project Place" in Boston which provides paid employment and training to homeless individuals who are ready to choose change]

  • Prelude: Awake, Thou Wintry Earth by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Candles Music: Finches from Hymnody of Earth by Malcolm Dalglish
    Click
    here to practice this selection
    Text by Kentucky Poet Wendell Berry:
    The ears stung with cold
    sun and frost of dawn
    in early April, comes

    the song of winter finches,
    their crimson bright, then
    dark as they move into

    and then against the light.
    May the year warm them
    soon. May they soon go

    north with their singing
    and the seasons follow.
    May the bare sticks soon

    live, and our minds go free
    of the ground
    into the shining of trees.
  • Offertory: Amazing Grace by Jean Langlais
  • Anthem: Thrush Song from Hymnody of Earth by Malcolm Dalglish
    Click
    here to hear this selection
    Carolyn Hodges, soprano solo
    Carolyn Hodges, Diane Shriver, Jennifer Kobayashi, Meg Candilore, quartet
  • Postlude: Allegro vivace by Marcel Dupre
  • Hymns & Readings: 61, 413, 510, Since I Laid My Burdens Down

Sunday, April 17
Speaker: Dr. Sondra Crosby, a UU physician who works at Boston University Medical Center/Boston Center for Refugee Health and Human Rights. Her essay on the suffering of farm animals, "Lessons from My Pig Winnie," was published in the March 19 Boston Globe.
Worship Leaders: Ellen Duranceau and Helene Martel
Song Leader & Guitarist: Diane Taraz

  • Prelude: Siciliana by M. E. Bossi
  • Intergenerational Sharing: All God's Critters Got a Place in the Choir
    Diane Taraz, voice and guitar
  • Offertory: Bless the Beasts and the Children by DeVorzon and Botkin
  • Anthem: Shoes That Fit Like Sand by Diane Taraz
  • Postlude: For the Beauty of the Earth by G. Krapf
  • Hymns & Readings: 175, 203, 413, 550, 554, 595

Sunday, April 24
The Alliance with the Rev. Barbara Whittaker-Johns
"Change and Growth in a Lay-Led U. U. Society" - Ann Nozawa, long-time member of First Parish, and now active with the Treasure Coast U. U. Fellowship in Stuart, FL, will reflect on her experiences with her new congregation.

  • Prelude: Adagio in A Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Offertory: Andante semplice by Frederick Jacobi
  • Anthem: Peace by Gudrun Howe
    Cheri Minton, Laurie Francis-Wright, and Jean Renard Ward, vocal trio
  • Postlude: Adagio by Franz Liszt
  • Hymns & Readings: 145, 359, 413, 441, 720

Sunday, May 1
Barbara Whittaker-Johns "The Questions Faith Asks"

  • Prelude: God Bless the Child by Arthur Herzog, Jr. and Billie Holiday, arranged by Allen Horney
    First Parish Jazz Orchestra, featuring Chris Botos, trombone
  • Intergenerational Anthem: The Younger Generation by Aaron Copland
    First Parish Choir & Younger Singers
  • Candle Music: Mood Indigo by Duke Ellington
    First Parish Jazz Orchestra, featuring Andy Kobayashi, tenor saxophone
  • Offertory: In a Sentimental Mood by Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, and Manny Kurtz
    Chris Cirker, alto saxophone solo
  • Postlude: Episode by Aaron Copland
  • Hymns & Readings: 12, 123, 162, 413, 545

Sunday, May 8
"Beyond the 11th": Shinn Conference with guest speakers Susan Retik and Patti Quigley
Topic: Two women who are widows as a result of the September 11, 2001 attacks have started an organization in support of widowed women and their children in Afghanistan. Click
here for a link to their website.
Click
here for a link to the history of Mother's Day

  • Prelude: When in the Hour of Utmost Need by Johann S. Bach
  • Candle Music: If Ye Love Me by Thomas Tallis
    500th Anniversay of the birth of the composer (1505-1585)
  • Anthem: You Are the New Day by John David, arr. by Peter Knight for The King's Singers
  • Offertory: Berceuse by Jeanne Demessieux
  • Postlude: Andante con tenerezza by F. Jacobi
  • Hymns & Readings: 127, 159, 413, 573

Sunday, May 15

  • Prelude: The Awakening by Francois Couperin
  • Candle Music Anthem: God is Seen by Alice Parker and Robert Shaw
  • Recognition of graduating seniors with special music: Spirit of Life led by Krista Ernewein
  • Student Duet: I Know Exactly What Love Is
    Maggie and Ruth Orme-Johnson
  • Hymns & Readings: 38, 188, 413, 419, 649, and The Desiderate by Max Ehrmann
  • Memorial Service and Art Display in memory of Gudrun Howe at 2pm

Sunday, May 22
Barbara Whittaker-Johns "On Being Carried" & Annual Report (those experiences where we find a sense of meaning in our lives/grace found/receiving more than you expect)

  • Prelude: Werde munter by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Chalice Sparks Anthem: I Love You A Bushel and a Peck from Guys and Dolls
    Meg Candilore, piano; Wendy Covell, conductor
  • Chalice Singers & Flames Anthem: I Come Like a Beggar by Sydney Carter
    Drew Pereli, cello
  • Offertory: Allegretto by Theodore Dubois
  • Anthem: De lustelijcke Mey by Jacobus Clemens non Papa
    First published in the Antwerp Songbook (1544) in old Flemish poem

    1. Den lustelijcken Mey is nu inden tijt
    Met sinen groenen bladen.
    Int lievelijc aenscouwen, ghi die Venus' dienaers zijt,
    Men mach u niet versaden.
    Want bi des meys virtuyt
    So menich cleyn voghelken ruyt,
    Sijnen sanck is soet om hooren.
    Dies willen wi vruecht orbooren.

    2. Bedrijft solaes, genoechte ende vruecht,
    Die blomkens staen ontploken.
    Coemt met u lieveken buiten
    in des veldekens juecht,
    Die cruyden staen seer soet van roken.
    Si staen net ende reyn
    In dat soete lustelijcke pleyn.
    Daer siet mense juechdelijck bloeyen
    Door den soeten meyschen dau bespoeyen.

    3. Die nachtegael singhet nacht ende dach
    Met menich dierken cleyne.
    Want ghi, die Venus doet gewach,
    Wendt u ten veldekens reyne
    ende wilt ons comen bi
    Met u weerste lieveken, ic ende ghi.
    en acht geen nijders bespringen
    ende helpt ons den mey in bringhen.

    We perform verse one only.

  • Postlude: Hymn by Gudrun Howe
  • Hymns & Readings: 162, 347, 413, 420, 587

Sunday, May 29 Memorial Day weekend
Carlton E. Smith"In the Footprints of History:" a reflection on the inherent worth and dignity of every person, encouraging the power of memory in the young, and a reflection his recent trip to Europe with AHS students studying Literature of the Holocaust.

  • Prelude: String Quartet in a minor, op. 13 by Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
    Adagio - Allegro vivace
    The Mitchell Quartet
  • Candles Music: Adagio non lento from String Quartet in a minor, op. 13 by Mendelssohn
  • Anthem: We Are by Ysaye Barnwell
  • Offertory: Intermezzo: Allegretto con moto from String Quartet in a minor, op. 13 by Mendelssohn
  • Postlude: Presto from String Quartet in a minor, op. 13 by Mendelssohn
  • Hymns & Readings: 202, 413, 626, We Shall Overcome, and a excerpt from the 1993 Nobel Lecture by Toni Morrison

Sunday, May 29 Chamber Music CONCERT, 4pm
The Mitchell Quartet (New York, NY)
Aaron Packard and Sarah Kim, violins; Adam Meyer viola; Katie Schlaikjer, cello

  • Suite IV in E-flat for unaccompanied cello, BWV 1010 by J.S. Bach (1685-1750)
    Prelude, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Bouree I-II, Gigue
  • Fantasias for Strings 5 and 6 by Henry Purcell (1659-1695)
  • Scherzo: "Holding Your Own" by Charles Ives (1874-1954)
  • String Quartet in a minor, op. 13 by Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
    Adagio - Allegro vivace, Adagio non lento, Intermezzo: Allegretto con moto, Presto

Sunday, June 5 Founder's Day
Barbara Whittaker-Johns & Carlton E. Smith "Questions for the Ministers "

  • Prelude: Interlude in F by Jaques Ibert
    Mies Boet-Whitaker, flute, Carl Schlaikjer, oboe
  • Children Parade: Larghetto from Trio Sonata in C by Johann Quantz
  • Offertory: Ich folge dir gleich falls by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Postlude: Interlude in E by Jaques Ibert
  • Hymns & Readings: 12, 124, 591

Sunday, June 12 Coming of Age Ceremony & Flower Communion

  • Prelude: Fugue in E Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach
  • Offertory: Allegro Cantabile by Charles Maris Widor
  • Flower Communion Procession: The Succession of the Four Sweet Months (from Five Flower Songs) by Benjamin Britten
  • Duet: May It Be from The Lord of the Rings
    Becky Rowe and Nell Scribner, vocalists, Wendy Covell, piano
  • Anthem: Daffodils by Kenneth Seitz
    Kenneth Seitz, piano
  • Ministers' Blessing & Vocal Solo: For the Flowers Are Great Blessings (from Rejoice in the Lamb) by Benjamin Britten
    Chris Jones, tenor and Wendy Covell, piano
  • Postlude: The King of the Golden Hall by Howard Shore
  • Hymns & Readings: 301, 724, Congregational Prayer (We give thanks for this spiritual community)
  • AHS Graduationat at 1pm - congratulations to choir member Matthew K. and good luck at UT Dallas!

Sunday, June 29
"Webcast of the Service of the Living Tradition" led by Jack Duranceau
Live webcast from General Assembly at the Fleet Cneter, Boston, this annual service brings together thousands of Unitarian Universalists in celebration of the music sung in our congregations and the fellowship of our ministers.

Sunday, July 6
"Sing New Songs!" led by Lynn Rosenbaum and Sue Streeter, with members of the Mystic Chorale
In this interactive service, we diversify our UU musical repertoire to include African-American, Jewish, Pagan, and Arabic songs.

Sunday, July 20
"Singing the Living Tradition" led by Cheri Minton with Barbara Tilson, piano
A musical exploration of our hymnal, celebrating its fine tunes, poetry, and the diversity of its offerings. Jacqui James, ex officio member of the Hymnbook Resources Commission, joins us in music making and conversation.

Sunday, August 3
"Meditations on the Night" led by Diane Shriver
Poetry, music, and musings about the nature of the night, sleep, darkness, and dreams. Sleep is often a metaphor for death, and darkness can represent a failure of faith, but evening's gentle fall may also bring peace to body and spirit.

Sunday, August 24
"Music for Worship and Play" led by Krista Ernewein
Interactively exploring old and new hymns, creating new music, and encouraging inner development through impormptu compositions.

Current Music Rehearsal & Planning Schedule
2003-04 / 2002-03 / 2001-02
1991-92 / 1978-79 / 1966-67 / 1964-65
Early History of Music at First Parish 1733-1964

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Last update 10/24/05. Maintained by LDSP