Holy Trinity places great value on an integrated and active music program. Signal signs of this are our Sunday Morning Music during Holy Eucharist and our Sunday Evening Bach Vespers series.
It is clear when attending services, that music plays an integral role in every worship event. Chorales and hymns live in the Lutheran tradition of proclaiming the Word, praising God, and containing the prayers of the gathered. The principal musical resource of the congregation is the newly published Evangleical Lutheran Worship. Hymn singing here may be described as passionate and involved.
Sunday morning music is in large part presented by the Parish Choir a professional and volunteer ensemble. The choir was featured in the critically acclaimed film 13 Conversations About One Thing. Membership in the Parish Choir is by audition with the Cantor; please contact the office for more info.
The Bach Choir of Holy Trinity is, one of the very few professional choirs in residence at a Lutheran Church in the United States. A choir of long and distinguished history, this professional ensemble sings the Bach Vespers services and other festival events at Holy Trinity. The Bach Players are also a professional ensemble made up of some of the best early music players in the country. Their main role is to offer the orchestration for our Bach Cantatas and other early music at Bach Vespers. Their concertmaster is Peter Kupfer.
Our gallery organ (click here for specs) is housed in the original 1904 casework, and is a stunning work of art set against the rear rose window in the balcony. Currently, a committee has been formed to examine what the future of this instrument will be at Holy Trinity. The organ needs extensive work, even as it continues to serve the congregation’s needs well.
Additionally, a small portative organ supports the singing of Bach cantatas and other works in the front of the church. A new instrument has been commissioned from a builder in the Czech Republic and will arrive this summer. (2007)
Holy Trinity also welcomes performing groups in residence, and currently is pleased to serve as home to the Extension Ensemble, an outstanding brass quintet with focus on new and newly commissioned music. The ensemble performs in concert or services at Holy Trinity a number of times throughout the year, and is made up of recent graduates of the Juilliard School. More information on this ensemble may be found at their web site: http://www.extensionensemble.com/
From time to time, other ensembles and other artists perform at Holy Trinity. In whatever setting, this church serves as a welcoming and warm home for music and the arts.
