FROM THE LOFT JONATHAN RYAN, Director of Music & Organist
W
or music?
hat if I told you that our chorister program is first and foremost about discipleship? And only secondarily about singing
It’s true. As our chorister program for young people begins its third year this fall, we have enough experience right here at Saint Michael to back this up. We’ve seen how our program brings its young people from a variety of areas and schools together to form deep and lasting friendships. We’ve witnessed how the program’s mentorship, which is foundational to what we do, has grown leaders, more deeply engaged the new and younger children, and opened eyes to see those beyond the normal, everyday radar of peers.
make every child count: no one slips through the cracks. That’s an experience of how every person matters. Choristers realize that unfocused or poor conduct affects many others besides them, and is one of many ways teamwork is absorbed and learned. The list can go on… Oh yes, they also sing, too. And the choristers are important leaders each week in the most highly attended Sunday service (at least outside of a pandemic!). But, the thing that is so special and exceptional for a church choir of young people is the discipleship. What I wrote above is the primary reason we chose the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) training method and structure for our choris-
for most of our choristers, it was the only activity they had this past spring outside of school. Many parents further shared that our weekly chorister Zoom social was a highlight of their child’s week! The non-singing, non-musical things are also why we aren’t settling for our chorister program to end at 8th Grade (as many do around the country). This fall, we have our final expansion of our chorister program to go through high school. Again, it’s all about discipleship. Puberty isn’t easy for anyone. As our choristers experience so much change, we want their church’s presence in their lives to remain unchanged. Their church’s presence includes friends, some of which are the closest friends they have, older role models, adults who believe in them and enable their achievement, appropriate pride in their accomplishments, the consistency of the weekly routine to which they’ve committed, a visible role of leadership within our entire parish, and, of course, a lot of fun along the way.
Some of our choristers have worked longer to achieve their status in the choir than anything else they’ve ever done, whether that’s earning The experience of this contheir admission as full chostant in their lives as they risters by receiving the white grow up is a formational surplice to wear or one of experience of how to live the colored ribbons indicatlife: simply growing older or ing their accomplishment. entering a new chapter of life ZOOM LESSONS & REHEARSALS ARE A NORMAL PART OF LIFE NOW Sometimes, the process has doesn’t absolve us of disciplelasted 9 to 12 months or more. They ter program. It has not so much to ship. Importantly, our responsibility as have experienced just how much can do with singing or making music, but a church in discipling is demonstrated: be accomplished with a firm commiteverything to do with everything else. we won’t give our young people such a ment, and learned how to not give comprehensive formation and opporup. Their training includes learning All of these non-singing, non-musical tunity only to turn them away once how to focus for considerable periods things are why we are so excited about they finish 8th grade. of time, giving 100% effort, and not this still relatively new program. And allowing distractions to compromise why we’ve made sure we continue it continued page 29 their effort. Our rehearsal methods during our pandemic time. In fact,
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