The choir of St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church will present “Music in Time of Madness: A Respite from Chaos” on Saturday, August 13th at 5:30 p.m. in the nave of the church.
Patterned on the familiar Lessons and Carols of the Advent season, this concert will feature readings and music to serve as a reprieve from the pain and insanity surrounding us in the world at this time.
It is presented in memory of Dr. Ken McKinney, an internationally-known professor of Geology at ASU, who was a founder and long-time member of the choir at St. Mary’s, and a passionate advocate for Reason and Justice.
The concert includes the chant Karitas by the medieval mystic Hildegard Von Bingen, Barber’s Sure on this shining night, and the remarkable 20th Century Son of God Mass for choir and saxophone by James Whitbourn.
Soloists for the evening will be Anna Eschbach and Amanda Horton, sopranos, and Jeremiah Miller, Tenor. Instrumentalists for the weekend are both acclaimed across the region with Dr. Drew Hays on saxophone and Dr. Joby Bell, organist.
Dr. Hays received his doctorate in Saxophone at UNC-Greensboro; he teaches at Guilford College, and is a sought-after performer in both classical and jazz venues.
Dr. Bell is on the faculty at Appalachian State University where he teaches organ and church music and maintains a lively discussion of these topics on his blog; he is noted for both his technical excellence and the sensitivity of his musical interpretation.
The concert is part of a weekend of music in honor of Dr. McKinney (informally called “KenFest” by the choir), and concludes with a sung Mass on Sunday morning, August 14th, at 10:10 am in the church.
For more information on these events, please contact St. Mary of the Hills at 828.295.7323, or follow us on the “Music from St. Mary of the Hills” page on Facebook.