Music Ministry

The musical heritage of the Episcopal Church is extensive and diverse. St. Peter’s Choir is an adult, four-part, mixed choir that incorporates plainsong, Anglican chant, Renaissance polyphony, classical choral works, contemporary anthems, and sacred songs and refrains of the 20th and 21st centuries in worship.

Choir rehearsal is held on Thursday evenings in the Parish Hall. Warm-up rehearsal is from 9:05 to 9:45 on Sunday mornings. The Choir sings at the 10:00 AM Eucharist on Sundays from mid-September through mid-June and for special liturgies including Christmas, Ash Wednesday, and the Great Vigil of Easter.

St. Peter’s Choirmaster is a member of the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM America). The RSCM is recognized worldwide as an organization of Affiliates and Friends whose objective is to achieve the highest possible musical standard in worship. RSCM affiliates seek to nurture a view of music as a God-given, creative gift, fundamental to human identity and culture, and essential to the formation of a living culture of church and faith community.

As part of the broader ministry of music, instrumentalists are encouraged to prepare solo and ensemble offerings. Music ministry is a wonderful way to develop and share God-given gifts. If you feel you are able to participate at any level, please contact the Organist-Choirmaster by e-mail or leave a message at the church office.

In the picture above, the combined choirs of St. Paul's Cathedral, Burlington (red cassocks) and St. Peter's Church (black cassocks) prepare for Evensong on the First Sunday of Lent 2005. The April 2005 edition of the Mountain Echo featured and excellent article about the choral evensong. (Page six in the PDF version)

The Children and Youth Choir rehearses on Wednesdays from 3:30 to 4:30 during the school year. The Choir sings at the 10:00 AM Liturgy on the first Sunday of each month. We always welcome new singers of elementary and middle school age. The Choir does not practice during the sumer months. Practices will resume on Wednesday, September 3. The Children and Youth Choir will sing at the 10:00 Am Liturgy on September 7, 2008.

Below is a photograph of St. Peter's Choir in the early 1930s. At that time the choir consisted of a four-part adult choir and a boy choir. The boys received a modest stipend for rehearsals and services. The boy choir did not continue in the years following World War II.

St. Peter's Contemporary Ensemble, consisting of three acoustic guitars, electronic autoharp and keyboard, provides music for the 5:00 PM Sunday celebration of the Holy Eucharist according to Enriching Our Worship. The ensemble also provides music for occasional celebrations of Evening Prayer, Rite Two and for services of prayer and meditation around the Cross in the manner of Taizé. Below is a YouTube video of the ensemble singing Song of the Body of Christ by David Haas.