The next organ recital and Evensong of the season will be Sunday, Sept. 8th at St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church in Blowing Rock. Guest organist for this recital will be Kyle Ritter, Canon Organist and Choirmaster at the Cathedral of All Souls in Asheville. This free concert begins at 3 p.m., and is immediately followed by Choral Evensong.
Ritter earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music from Indiana University, where he was a pupil of Robert Rayfield and Marilyn Keiser. Ritter is active in the Association of Anglican Musicians, has led conferences on church music throughout the Southeast, is an adjunct faculty member at Brevard College, and chairs the Liturgy and Music Commission of the Diocese of Western North Carolina, in addition to his duties at the Cathedral.
Music for this Evensong includes the Magnificat and Nunc dimittis in d minor by Walmisley, with Preces and Responses by Paul Spicer. The introit will be Batten’s aptly-named O sing joyfully, and the anthem is the prayerful Lord, for thy tender mercy’s sake, attributed variously to Farrant and John Hilton.
Evensong is sung daily at Anglican cathedrals and churches around the world and offers an opportunity for rest and reflection in the midst of our stressful lives. The choir of St. Mary’s studies abroad each triennium with one of the leading choral directors of Anglican music in Cambridge, U.K., and this past February studied with Tim Brown, professor emeritus of Clare College. The choir sings Evensong one Sunday each month during the warmer months, and everyone is welcome.
The church is located on Main Street in Blowing Rock. For more information on this service, please contact St. Mary of the Hills at (828) 295-7323, or follow us on Facebook @ MusicfromStMaryoftheHills.
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