By Mark Heiskanen
On this last Sunday of the Easter season, expressions of joy, triumph, and gratitude for God’s wondrous creation in this beautiful springtide.
Organist Gary Lewis and soprano Zoë Miller lead worship this weekend as the Chancel Choir and I continue our ecumenical collaboration with the Bethel Lutheran Church Choir at Bethel this Sunday. Gary is the former Director of Music and Organist at Bethel having served over a thirty year tenure there. Zoë served First Church in recent years as a soprano section leader and member of the Quadrilateral Quartet as well. Please welcome them both this Sunday!
From the organ, “The Great” Fugue in G Minor, BWV 542 by Johann Sebastian Bach opens worship on a glorious note. An improvisation on the second hymn of the service, “This Is God’s Wondrous World”, during the Offertory allows for a time of reflection and gratitude for the beauty of nature. The service closes with the rousing “Festal Flourish” by English composer Gordon Jacob.
During the Ministry of Music moment, an appreciation for the new day and the grace of God is presented by soprano Zoë Miller in “My Lord, What a Mornin'” by Harry T. Burleigh. The work is a fine example of Mr. Burleigh’s contribution to the art song by expressing traditional spirituals through the lens of a classical composer.