Music Program
The Music Program at First Parish seeks to enrich and enhance our collective experience of spirituality and community through music. You may contact the Music Committee at music@fplincoln.org.
First Parish Choir.
The First Parish Choir is the cornerstone of the music program, providing music for most Sunday worship services. In addition, the choir sings for two services on Christmas Eve and Easter. The choir’s eclectic repertoire includes choral classics, early music, gospel, folk songs and world music. The First Parish Choir welcomes adult and high school singers who love choral singing and the unique musical community of a choir. The ability to read music is not required, though it is helpful. There are no auditions. Rehearsals are Thursday evenings from 7 to 8:30.
Spiritual Royalties Fund.
Last year, First Parish began collecting donations as a form of royalties for our use of spirituals in our worship services. The spirituals we sing and hear in church from time to time are rich in history and emotional resonance from over two hundred years of being sung in various contexts by hundreds of thousands of people. The enslaved creators of these spirituals and their descendants have never been compensated as others have for music they composed. This fund will be a form of acknowledgement of this debt and of our appreciation for having this rich heritage of spirituals in our own worship experiences. Each year we will give the proceeds from the Spiritual Royalties Fund to a different nonprofit furthering the education of Black artists and musicians.
Bell Choir.
Under the direction of Diane Burke, the church’s Handbell Choir continues the long tradition of handbell music at First Parish in Lincoln, and rings for several Sunday morning services during the church year. The group brings a rich variety of handbell repertoire to worship services and concerts here and in the wider community. Watch the calendar for dates they will participate in services.
Cherub Children’s Choir.
Does your kid love to SING? Check out our NEW Cherub Children’s Choir for ages 4-9 (grades PreK-3).
Weekly rehearsals will be held on Thursdays from 4:30-5:10pm beginning on September 18. The plan is for monthly performances in church services. Open to community members!
Questions? Want to sign up? Email Miranda Loud, Director of Music at miranda@fplincoln.org.
Instruments.
The Parish House is graced by a 1914 Mason & Hamlin grand piano as well as a 19th century Hutchings tracker organ, whose decorated pipes beautifully complement the warm colors of the room’s vintage stained glass windows. In the Sanctuary, there is a recently renovated 1970 neo-Baroque Noack Organ for accompaniment.