Sing unto God

Sing unto God with songs of praise.
We are the Choristers,
The rooftops of churches we raise.

Beautiful high notes that flutter around,
sometimes notes that haven't even been found,
Songs in Spanish, Hebrew, French
For the tunes and notes that we mush clench
To impress the audience
That we've come to admire
For the wondrous sounds of this lovely choir.
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Sing unto God with songs of praise
We are the Choristers,
The rooftops of churches we raise.

(By Joshua Singleton, Age 10)

Handiwork of In the Making Graces the Children of St. John's Chorister Academy

(WATERBURY, CONN. - January 25, 2006) - In the Making employee Antonia Cotto of Waterbury created the red stoles worn by Krystal Dover (left) and Ofelia Torres (right) and the other children of the Chorister Academy of St. John's Parish on the Green, Waterbury, when they sang during the 4 p.m. Christmas Eve family worship service.

The children also wore them when they sang during a recent performance of The Nutcracker at The Taft School in Watertown.

The Chorister Academy was established three years ago to give young people in the Greater Waterbury Area, regardless of background, the opportunity to sing in a choir that is faithful to the highest standards of the choral art. The choir is open to all young people, 3rd grade through high school. In addition to vocal instruction, lessons will be offered in music theory, music history, and Christian liturgical practice.

"Using donated fabric, Antonia created 32 stoles for the children and one for chorister director Maria Coffin," according to Sr. Rosemary McKenna, D.W. of In the Making. The project took about 17 hours of labor.

A nonprofit organization in Waterbury, In the Making exists to offer personal/economic development to under-employed and unemployed women. Employees work in ways that complement and strengthen one another in the workplace and in the community. "Our efforts are in who a person is as an individual, in a group, and in the community," said Sr. Rosemary, adding, "We don't just make things but we build on the positive aspects of each person and of people."

Matthew Brown's Biography

Matthew M. Brown, a native of North Carolina, will be guest organist at the Festival of Choirs at St. John's Church in October. Matthew most recently served the parish of Grace Church in New York as Intern in Church Music for the 2006-2007 year. In addition to his duties at Grace Church, he maintained an active career as a collaborative artist within New York City, accompanying instrumentalists, choral ensembles, and the voice studio of former Metropolitan Opera soprano, Ms. Rita Shane.

Matthew holds baccalaureate and graduate degrees in organ from the North Carolina School of the Arts and the Eastman School of Music, respectively. He also holds the diploma in sacred music from the Institute of Musical Leadership at the Eastman School of Music. While at Eastman, Matthew held graduate awards in organ and accompanying and served as accompanist for the Eastman-Rochester Chorus and the Eastman Chorale, both under the direction of William Weinert. During this time, he also served Third Presbyterian Church in Rochester, New York as Assistant Organist to Peter DuBois, where his primary responsibilities included service playing and accompanying the 65-voice semi-professional choir. In 2005, Matthew had the honor of accompanying this choir on their second tour to the United Kingdom, which consisted of concerts in Ely, Edinburgh, and a residency at Saint Paul’s Cathedral, London.

In competition, he has won top-prizes in competitions sponsored by the Music Teachers National Association and the Atlanta Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.

He is professionally affiliated with the American Guild of Organists, the Royal School of Church Music, the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, the Presbyterian Association of Musicians, and the Association Maurice et Marie-Madeleine Duruflé in Paris.

Matthew currently studies with renowned concert organist, Dame Gillian Weir.