Music at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church

Music has always played an important role in the worship life of St. Michael's Church.  With two RSCM based children’s choral ensembles, a high school choir, and an adult choir that features some of New York’s elite professional singers, the music program explores literature that spans the past millennia and multiple cultures during the Sunday morning 10am Eucharist, and at Choral Compline on Wednesday evenings at 8:30pm.   

Acoustically and aesthetically, St. Michael’s is one truly of New York’s premier performance spaces.  The church houses two fine tracker-action pipe organs built in 1967 by the Rudolph von Beckerath Organ Company (Hamburg, Germany), and a newly restored 1938 Steinway model B grand.  Together with the superb acoustics of the church building and the great stain-glass & mosaic masterworks by Louis C. Tiffany, St. Michael’s is an extraordinary space for worship and music.

St. Michael’s has two adult choirs and three children choirs:

• The Angel Choir.  Held every Wednesday from 5:15 - 6:00 pm on the second floor of the parish house.  This choir is for children in Kindergarten through Second grade.  This choir sings once a month at the 10am service.  They each wear a red robe and white cotta.  Their practice on Wednesday consists of pitch matching, learning the rudiments and rehearsing a song together to prepare for service.  They also enjoy playing with instruments, singing solos and being a community.  This group is the initial training choir for membership in the St. Cecilia Choir.
   
• St. Cecilia Choristers.  This audition only choir, held every Wednesday on the second floor of the parish house in the great hall from 3:45 - 5:00 pm, is for children in Third grade through Middle School.  The children sing several times a month at the 10am service.  They are expected to be able to sing treble, match pitch, know rudimentary elements of music and follow the director.  They have their own robes which are cinchered at the waist and are flax in color.  The children form strong bonds in this group and by the end of the year (May) they are ready for a small, weekend choir tour trip.  Please contact Jonathan De Vries (212) 222-2700 for an audition.
   
• High School Choir. This Audition only choir is held every Sunday from 11:30 - 12:45 pm on the second floor of the parish house in the great hall.  The young adults sing once a month at the 10am service and are robed in black cassocks and white surplices.  They are expected to be able to match pitch, hold their own part (music that is sung usually combines some four part harmony), sing successfully in a section, know some music theory and follow the director.  Strong friendships and a willingness to work hard and learn lots are formed in this group.  Each young adult is greatly valued for their contribution to the sound of the choir. The choir is planning a weekend choir tour trip in May. Please contact Jonathan De Vries (212) 222-2700 for an audition.
   
• The St. Michael’s Choir is a mixed ensemble of volunteers and paid professional soloist.  They sing every Sunday at the 10am service, and the soloist offer choral Compline each Wednesday evening at 8:30pm.   Throughout the year, this group offers a wide range of music for major festivals and choral concerts.  This is an audition-based choir.  Members are expected to match pitch, read musical notation, and have a minimal understanding of music theory.  To set up an audition, please contact the choirmaster, John Cantrell, at 212.222.2700.
   
• The St. Michael’s Celtic Band is an auditioned-based instrumental group of children and adult musicians that explore the traditional music of Ireland, England, Scotland, and early America.  This ensemble performs several times a year for special services and events.