Some more on emerging ways of making music Nancy Quigley came across this beautiful contemporary piece of classical music, which she recommends:  Sphinx Virtuosi - Elegy: In memoriam - Stephen Lawrence.  The title of the piece of music refers to Stephen Lawrence, an 18-year-old Black Briton, who was murdered in 1993 in an unprovoked and racially motivated attack. Despite the frustration of church choirs not being able to perform together in real time, due to Covid-19, the phenomena of Zoom choirs has led to the creation of some interesting ad-hoc choirs, striking in the diversity (and in some cases ecumenism) that they display. Take a look at these examples from Ireland ,  Zimbabwe  and  Australia . And finally, this interview with composer Eric Whitacre  gives some insights into the logistical and technical aspects of creating a virtual choir. As the piece makes clear, the idea of a virtual choir has been feasible for at least 10 years but it is ...

The Post-Dispatch has produced a series of videos profiling its staff talking about stories that they have covered that are especially meaningful for them. On Friday the spotlight fell on 2nd Pres's  Leah Thorsen , who has been at the Post for 15 years and currently works as a business reporter. Also, on a related note, if you've not seen it already, be sure to catch 2nd Pres's Minster of Music Andy Peters' recent video in which he playfully gives  a tour of the church's organ .

Photo by Mike Willock

Barbara Bowyer writes:  During this week’s sermon (Sunday, June 14) Pastor Travis encouraged each of us to get involved in current events. He went on to acknowledge that, for many of us, marching in the streets during this time of pandemic is not a viable option. Frankly, I count myself among those who are hesitant to take to the streets. We realize that our age puts us at higher risk to experience serious outcomes should we contract COVID-19. For others, prevailing health issues necessitate that they refrain from large gatherings. But take heart! “Not everyone is a front-liner, and that’s OK because we need all types of people,” says Andréa Hudson, an activist based in North Carolina. “There are many ways people can help out from their homes, and we need people to do it. We need everyone to show up.” What does that look like? I’d like to offer a few suggestions (in no particular order) on how you might join the protest from home, some of which Pastor Travis spoke to on Sunday. ...

Even the sparrow has found a home,     and the swallow a nest for herself,     where she may have her young— a place near your altar,     Lord Almighty, my King and my God.  (Psalm 84:3) Well, this is a mourning dove rather than a sparrow or a swallow. The birds were spotted and photographed by both Mike Willock and Nathan Schroeder during recent visits to church, tucked up safely by the east side of the main front doors to the sanctuary!

Nancy Quigley writes:  I have loved seeing and listening to virtual choirs lately and I happened to notice this when I was visiting the PCUSA website: a choir of 38 International Peacemakers gathered by the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program to share a rendition of the hymn, "This Is My Song." Rick Nutt is one of the singers - did you know him when he was around 2PC? Tim Woodcock writes: Please send any other examples of virtual choirs to timwoodcock@speedpost.net and we can create a thread here. Something even more elaborate: NYC Virtual Choir and Orchestra - "How Can I Keep From Singing?" (link submitted by Nathan Schroeder)