Creative chaos in music this morning at CUUC! In the Gathering Music one of Beethoven’s wildly experimental Bagatelles, a piece which swings and groves like Ragtime before Ragtime, followed by Margaret Bonds’ version of the Spiritual “Wade in the Water.” In this morning’s Offertory, French composer Darius Milhaud recalls his stay in Brazil by overthrowing …
GRACE NOTESfrom Rev. Kimberley Debus FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONSThank you all for the wonderful questions offered at last week’s service. There were, of course, too many to answer in person, but the good news is that I’ve written or preached about many of them! So, as promised, here are some links that may offer some answers to …
¿Where in the world is Adam going this summer….? Read on for programming details and stay tuned for answers…. Gathering Music: Adam Kent, pianoCórdoba from Cantos de EspañaTriana from Iberia, Book II ~ Isaac Albéniz Choral Introit: CUUC ChoirTurn the World Around ~ Harry Belafonte, arr. Mark HayesKathy Williams and Janet Bear, soloistsThe CUUC Choir …
LGBTQ+ Pride Month gets off to a musical start at CUUC with works by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Francis Poulenc, and Samuel Barber, composers from historical periods where social opprobrium, professional censure, familial rejection, and religious alienation often impacted gay and lesbian people. This Sunday’s Offertory serves up a classic bossa nova tune, which invites us …
Music from Spain and South America this Sunday, for a congregation poised for its next tango. Read on for programming details. Gathering Music: Adam Kent, piano“Preludio” from Hispania, Op. 4 ~ Pedro BlancoRondeña from Iberia, Book II ~ Isaac Albéniz Meditation:Tangamerican ~ Margaret Bonds Offertory:Tango in D ~ Isaac Albéniz Postlude:“One Note Samba” ~ Carlos …
In honor of our annual Flower Ceremony ritual, this Sunday’s musical selections include floral-inspired Rags as well as a tribute by our choir to renewed life in warmer weather dating back to the Middle Ages. Jewish-themed works from Hassidic traditions, the Singing the Journey hymnal, and the Broadway classic Fiddler on the Roof are included …
This Sunday’s Gathering Music centers kids of all ages. Mozart referred to his keyboard sonata in C Major K. 545 as a work “for beginners.” For sure, many young piano students have cut their teeth on this popular work, which nevertheless has a charm and elegance to beguile every music lover. Octavio Pinto, an architect …
Johannes Brahms’s Quartet for Piano and Strings in G Minor, Op. 25 is considered one of the composer’s first mature masterpieces. The wide-ranging emotional content seems to encapsulate the human experience from wonder, mystery, and tenderness to heroism, exultation, and merrymaking. The composer seems to explore the infinite potential of the smallest musical gestures, as …
GRACE NOTESfrom Rev. Kimberley Debus This month we’ve been talking about envisioning – what is the future we seek? And more, how do we shift our thinking when things seem so terrible? As I was contemplating this question – and feeling pretty cynical, to be honest – I opened Facebook to find a post by …
This Sunday’s solo piano selections highlight March as Women’s History Month, with music by women from the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. Part of collective liberation is partaking in the rich heritage of music from a demographic which was frequently marginalized in a male-dominated profession. We marvel at the diverse range of beauty conveyed in …