This year’s Scary Music for Organ didn’t disappoint. Our organists performed spooky pieces of music that left our audience spellbound. We even had an appearance from Darth Vicar!
Trystan Bennett, Director of St. George’s Compline Choir and Director of Music at Aquia Episcopal Church, opened the concert. He played Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Prélude sur le Dies Irae by Dethier, and music from “Der Vampyr” by Marschner.
Brooks Kuykendall, parishioner at St. George’s and chair of the Music Department at the University of Mary Washington, performed next. His program included Sonata in D minor, Op. 42 by Guilmant, Ich steh mit einem Fuss im Grabe by Bach, and an original work – the Main Title March for Captain Vegetarian. Kuykendall wrote this piece in honor of his son’s superhero identity – Captain Vegetarian.
St. George’s Assistant Director of Music, Achim Loch, continued the concert with Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in C Minor. He then closed with his own arrangement of themes from The Lord of the Rings, with Cadence Moneyhon accompanying on flute.
John Vreelance, the Director of Music Ministries at St. George’s, closed the program with a truly bombastic piece – Max Reger’s Symphonic Fantasy, Op. 57 – The Inferno.
Today is National Unity Day, but you’d never know it by looking at the headlines and news. Everyday at The Table at St. George’s is National Unity Day – Kindness/Acceptance/Inclusion. Yesterday the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank came in to do their annual inspection of our food pantry. One of the questions concerned who we allow to shop. Our answer was anyone who walks in the door and asks for food. We invite them to come back weekly as long as they have a need. Another question was about the area we serve. We have people come from Manassas, Triangle, King George, Caroline, Orange, Stafford, Spotsylvania, as well as Fredericksburg. We even serve people passing thru Virginia who have been told to go to The Table.
Nominations are now open for St. George’s Vestry. There are four positions opening up for the class that will serve 2019-2021. The vestry is the parish council of lay persons, elected by other active members of the parish, who, with the rector, have responsibility for the care and control of church property and the transaction of the business of the congregation. At St. George’s, the vestry is also a group that helps the rector, other clergy, staff, and commissions to discern and carry out the vision of where God is calling us as a congregation. There is “business” to which we must attend, but there is also a lot of joyful sharing and growing in faith and love.