Join us for the Summer of Song!

I am excited that St. Paul’s will kick off our Summer of Song with the World Premiere of Doug Starr’s Wilderness Cantata this weekend!

Each summer, St. Paul’s has a theme for the summer to help focus our energies and activities during this special season in the life of our parish. This summer our theme is Summer of Song. As a child, I was told not to sing–that I was not good enough. Those external voices for years denied me knowing the joy of joining all of our voices in song. Over time, I pushed past these negative messages and discovered I could sing. I have come to believe that every person is able to sing. Joining in song is not necessarily about matching some sense of abstract aesthetic ideal; instead, it is about offering ourselves to full-throated participation in a communal activity. It is my hope this summer that we will be able to produce “judgment-free zones” for us to experiment with music and song and the self-offering and joy of joining in communal music. This summer is for everyone equally, expert musicians and those who are earlier on their musical journeys. I hope that the experiences we share this summer will help us all to increase our engagement in the creative musical life of our parish.

From Memorial Day to Labor Day each year, St. Paul’s brings together our 8:45AM and 10:45AM services into one combined service at 9:45AM to help the different parts of our parish connect with one another and deepen a sense of ourselves as a community. This year, led by our Worship Commission, and in a spirit of discernment and experimentation, we will try music in different styles and forms this summer. We will do some of this in workshops and special events as well as in our regular worship services. Click here to find out more. Let this be a summer of singing and song for us all!