Music
Now thank we all our God
For more than a century, the people of St. James have shown the love of Christ to the people of Birmingham and surrounding communities through its ministries of music, supporting a strong choral program and actively participating in the singing of hymns and service music. Today we continue to lift up our voices with saints from “all times and all places” in music of many times, places, and styles.
With heart
Music helps the heart to thrive. Worship services of serene beauty and traditional yet innovative programs have included Advent Lessons and Carols, community Messiah Sing, the Boar's Head Festival, a jubilant audio-visual presentation of the Alfred Burt family carols, and special Christmas pageants which have been staged and enjoyed by young and old alike.
The warm glow with aural and visual wonders of the Candlelight Christmas Eve services have made St. James known in Birmingham as “The Christmas Church.” Be part of the experience this year!
Please contact Dr. Richard Newman at music@stjamesbirmingham.org for more information about our choirs and programs.
And hands
Our handbell choir, the St. James Ringers, performs for many services during the year and for occasional outside concerts, ringing a five-octave set of Whitechapel bells, and a three-octave set of Schulmerich hand chimes. The group rehearses on Monday evenings, 6:30-7:30 p.m.
St. James and the city of Birmingham are also blessed with the sounds of a 35-bell cast bronze Petit and Fritsen carillon.
And voices
Our Senior Choir, comprised of church members, volunteers and professional staff singers, provides music for weekly services, occasional evensongs, and special liturgies during Advent, Christmas and Holy Week. The choir is supported by a 58-rank Austin pipe organ and a Steinway B grand piano. The Senior Choir rehearses on Wednesdays, 7:30-9:30 p.m.
Special programs for the larger community have included hymn festivals, choral concerts, and major works such as Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna, Handel’s Israel in Egypt, Elijah and St. Paul by Mendelssohn, The Crucifixion by Stainer, Bach cantatas, Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, and several beloved Requiem settings.
The Youth Choir includes singers from reading age to high school. We are currently rebuilding this choir! This choir follows the Voice for Life curriculum affiliated with the Royal School of Church Music in America — a tiered training program that provides instruction in vocal production and technique, music theory and the discipline required to sing in a musical group.
Rehearsal is on Sundays after the church services, 11:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. its study of choral singing and music reading, sings in church, and offers occasional dramatic presentations and musicals. Rehearsal is on Sundays after church services, approximately 11:30 a.m. - 12:15 pm. in the Choir Room.