Musical Highlights for November

All Saints Day: William Grant Still

The music for All Saints Day, celebrated on Nov. 6, includes all our favorite hymns, a special choir

anthem, and a special prelude entitled “Elegy for Organ” by the great award-winning American

composer, William Grant Still (1895-1978). Still has often been called the “Dean of Afro-American

Composers” –during his lifetime he composed nearly 200 musical works, including symphonies,

choral works, and works for individual instruments. In addition to composing, he was active as a

conductor, performer and educator. “Elegy for Organ” has elements of lament and remembrance,

and is filled with Still’s rich melodic language.

Children’s Music: All Saints and Christmas

On All Saints’ Day, we will all sing Hymn 293, “I Sing a Song of the Saints of God,” right before the

children’s sermon. Please practice verse one with your children so they can participate!

"I sing a song of the saints of God, patient and brave and true;

Who toiled and fought and lived and died for the Lord they loved and knew.

And one was a doctor and one was a queen, and one was a shepherdess on the green,

They were all of them saints of God, and I mean – God helping – to be one too."

We are currently practicing this hymn in our Children’s Choir rehearsals, and we’d love to have

more children join us to get ready for All Saints! Just come to Children’s Choir at 3:15 PM on Nov.

2 – parents are welcome too!

Once All Saints’ Day is past, the Children’s Choir will begin practicing the Christmas carols that are

sung as part of the Christmas Pageant (the 4:30 PM Christmas Eve service). We will start gradually,

introducing a couple of the less well known carols on Nov. 9 and 16. After Thanksgiving, we will

work from the Pageant script and enjoy getting to know as many of the pageant carols as we can!

Post-Thanksgiving choir rehearsal dates are Nov. 30, Dec. 7, and Dec. 14. There will not be a

Children’s Choir rehearsal on Dec. 21. Any and all children are welcome at these rehearsals - just

send me a quick email to let me know you are coming.

Karen Eshelman