by Hal Parker, Minister of Music

The Music Ministry at the Greensboro United Church of Christ includes many talented people: our choir, guest singers, instrumentalists, and our Early Music Group who perform during the last worship service of the month. Sonia Dunbar, Gina Jenkins, Tom Anastasio and I are deeply committed to this monthly performance and have done so for years!

If you are somewhere in the church building on Friday mornings, you may hear strains of music coming from the library where the harpsichord is stored. Some folks even sit in and listen. Our rehearsals are highly collaborative, creative and a whole lot of fun! As we explore repertoire composed during the 1600-1700’s from England, Spain, Germany, Italy and other countries, we are fully aware that this music was the “rock music” of its’ day. Designed for the private salons in Europe and not the concert hall, most of the music has a pure, clean, and light sound. When working on a piece of music we coach and support each other continually asking a lot of questions: Which part of this piece would make a good Prelude? Postlude? What tempo is best? Which rhythm might be appropriate? How is the fingering on the recorder impacting our total sound? What is the best approach for this Sonata? Should the harpsichord do a roll at the end or drive it to the cadence? How shall we interpret this piece?

Like a potter with the clay on the wheel shaping a creation, the music evolves and is prepared for Sunday worship at the end of each month.

The Early Music Group next performs on May 26th. If you have interest, please approach us and we would be delighted to show you our instruments and how they work, the music we have performed or any other interest you may have in Early Music. We look forward to speaking with you.