O God, whom saints and angels delight to worship in heaven: Be ever present with your servants who seek through art and music to perfect the praises offered by your people on earth; and grant to them even now glimpses of your beauty, and make them worthy at length to behold it unveiled for evermore; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. – BCP

Music is a vital part of worship at St. Mark’s. Our various choirs serve to lead and enrich worship week in and week out because of their dedication to perfecting the praises of God’s people on earth. Our hope is that whatever your age or skill level, you will find meaning in the music offered here, whether through participation in a choir or in the congregation at services and the various concerts offered.

Soli Deo Gloria – To the Glory of God Alone

The Choirs Need You! All our choirs are currently looking for new members. We need everyone from true beginners to paid professionals, so check out our choirs via the links at the top to see what we offer and then contact James Holyer at the church office to sign up for one.

Adult Choir

Choristers

Contemporary Choir

Handbell Choir

Concert Series

Joyful, joyful, we adore thee

    The tune Hymn to Joy used for this beloved hymn is, of course, the famous Ode to Joy from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, Op. 125. The use of famous themes from great European composers as hymn tunes was fairly common in the development of hymnody in nineteenth-century America, and it was Edward Hodges of Trinity Church, New York, who adapted Beethoven's great work as a hymn and published it in 1864. Although dropped in many hymnal versions, our Episcopal hymnal uses the anticipatory note in the last line that Beethoven uses in his symphony.

    The words were written for the tune by Henry Van Dyke, a well-known preacher and writer and chairman of the committee that prepared the Presbyterian Book of Common Worship. He wrote them on a preaching visit to Williams College in 1907 and presented them to the college president at breakfast, saying, "Here is a hymn for you. Your mountains [the Berkshires] were my inspiration. It must be sung to the tune of Beethoven's Hymn to Joy." Van Dyke's text also adapts the original Schiller poem that Beethoven used for Ode to Joy to a Christian message.

Click here for a video from Central Presbyterian in Summit, NJ

(the words they use for verse 3 are different from ours)