The Canterbury Choir and Canterbury Apprentices of St. Philip’s In The Hills performed a concert as part of the Jubilee celebrations of St. Odilia Roman Catholic Parish on Sunday, March 8. The choir, under the direction of Woosug Kang, performed a wide variety of classic choral repertoire, under the title of “O Sacrum Convivium – Music for a Season of Contemplation,” featuring works by Bairstow, Stanford, Messiaen, and the Rheinberger “Cantus Missae” for double choir a cappella. Dr. Jeffrey Campbell performed a Bach Chorale on the church’s unique German-built pipe organ. A highlight of the concert was the Allegri “Miserere,” which featured several of our young singers in prominent solo roles, singing antiphonally from the balcony. The very full audience expressed their appreciation.
One of the initiatives for our Canterbury Choir is to take our music out to other communities of faith, to witness to the power of music to transform and inspire us. Last year, the choir was fortunate to sing at Trinity Cathedral in Phoenix and at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Tucson. This year, we were fortunate to be able to sing in the inspiring acoustical space of St. Odilia’s Parish on Tucson’s northwest side.
St. Odilia was eager to have us be a part of their jubilee celebration, and we were honored to receive a plaque from the parish commemorating the event, presented by the Rev. Fr. Miguel Mariano, Pastor. The plaque reads: The Catholic Community of St. Odilia Parish in celebrating our Jubilee year, 50 years since its canonical foundation, awards this Plaque of Appreciation to St. Philip’s In The Hills Episcopal Church, for generously rendering a concert of Lenten Sacred music.
Woosug Kang, Director of Music, commented: “The whole idea of representing high quality choral music has given a certain sense of mission to our singers. It is not just our practice at our church but it is a gift that can be shared, as we are fortunate to have resources of wonderful musicians, tradition, and a training structure that many other places may not have. The concert at St. Odilia was a great event where we shared our gifts, but more important, it helped us feel a sense of connection with those outside of our parish.”
—Photos by Scott Mason
