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This month, Saint Philip’s is honored to contribute a choral Compline service to the daily program of the Royal School of Church Music in America’s virtual summer course, The Spirit’s Tether. Along with churches like St. Mark’s Cathedral in Seattle and the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., our Schola Cantorum and Saint Nicholas Choir will be offering one of several evening Compline services during the course.
The Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) was founded in 1927 as a “training college for church musicians and an association of affiliated churches committed to attaining high standards of musical performance.” Our Saint Nicholas choristers have traditionally worked with the RSCM curriculum through each choir season, and they receive ribbons to show the level of instruction they currently master. Also, through the support of the Friends of Music, our choristers attend RSCM regional summer courses in Houston and Portland.
This year’s summer course will be held entirely online with the direction of staff at the National Cathedral. We are tremendously excited to be a part of this august assembly, and we warmly encourage you to tune into the Saint Philip’s Compline which will air on Friday, July 16. A link will be provided in next weeks Bell & Tower.
Did you know that our Saint Nicholas choristers have been asked to sing services at Wells Cathedral in July of 2022? We are gearing up to go on the third triennial UK Choral Residency in Saint Philip’s history! These working trips are extremely valuable formation opportunities for our youth choristers. They work hard and learn a great deal about serving in a musical lay ministry. It costs approximately $3,200.00 to cover a chorister’s travel, room, and partial board.
If you are interested in supporting the youths in our church, I hope you will consider making a donation to the UK Residency Fund. You can donate directly through the church’s online giving portal. (https://stphilipstucson.breezechms.com/give/online) Be sure to select “Give to UK Residence” in the drop-down menu.
Dr Justin Appel, Director of Music