Music News - February 2012 [here]

2011-12 Music and Concert Flyer online [here]

Videos: Bells Angels Christmas concert 2010 [here]

Music videos featuring bells and vocal choirs [here]

Photo album of the 2011 New Creation Choir Musical, "Tale of the Three Trees" [here]

Video of the 2011 New Creation Choir Musical [here]

 

 

Video: Chester, the Church Dog
As many know, John Paradowski's dog, Chester, passed away this Summer. Chester was a big part of St. Matt's life. He even appeared in the New Creation musical, "Noah's Flood" in 2010. Chester was a familiar sight during choir practices, on Sunday mornings, and many times in John's office or when he was practicing. Sometimes it seemed as if Chester really enjoyed being at St. Matt's. He truly will be missed.

John has created a video honoring Chester. It can be found on YouTube (www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqwG2iVo0y8) and is available below here.

The video controls allow for fullscreen viewing. You may have to adjust the volume on your computer.

 

 

 

John Paradowski "music blog" online
This "blog", "Making Music", features a series of writings on music. As he describes it, the blog is made up of all pondering, musings, and the articles of the Minister of Music at St. Matt's. Find the blog here: http://jrpmuzik.blogspot.com/. You can also "subscribe" to the blog; information is on the blog page. Consider reading it and joining as a "follower".

 

 

Music Offers Us the Opportunity to Find Balance
Recently, I saw a cirque-du-soleil show in Las Vegas. While being totally amazed how these performers contort their bodies, put their lives in the trust of invisible wires and co-performers, I did notice they have balance. I was amazed how a group could work together to make sure no one was off balance at anytime. In their performance, an off-balance could result in injury or worse. But then I’m not so surprised at a group working to achieve balance.
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As the Pharisees were regrouping, Jesus caught them off BALANCE with his own test question: “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said, “David’s son.” – Matthew 22:41

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We all know what it means to have or be in balance. Sports, the Arts, Spiritual and Physical well-being all have their definitions of balance. In music, BALANCE means that the ensemble is playing or singing together in such a way that each part maintains its relative importance within the context of that piece or song. Typically, it is most important for the melody to stand out above any supporting parts. For example, if the flutes suddenly have the melody, all other parts would need to play softer to allow for the piece to have the appropriate balance. Also, if you had more tenors than basses and all are singing a supporting harmony part, it would be important for the tenors to sing a little quieter to balance the basses or for the basses to sing a little louder to balance the tenors. This would help to achieve the appropriate musical balance.

You can probably guess where this is going: We all need balance in our lives. Music has that quality to help balance the body and mind. Above all, music can promote our perception of the greater harmony among all things, where we can find balance.

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Casting the whole of your care all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. Be well BALANCED (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times… -1 Peter 5:7-9

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Sound has an invincible power. Nothing is an exception to its laws of natural harmony. In the ancient temples of India, masters developed a musical system which has a natural balancing effect on the human body and mind by arranging natural sounds taken from nature. These seers of the past explored the varied possibilities for the alignment of body and mind with the Whole. Musical sounds have a natural harmony between them. When combined in a specific manner, they have a dynamic and astounding effect in balancing the energies of the body and spirit.

As we all work on balancing our lives in so many ways, remember to use music [and choir time] to help you achieve a sense of peace and well-being — a sense of balance — as you go about your day.  As we find a more balanced way of being, our interactions with others become more easeful. We become more aware of how our actions affect our relationships and we gain the space and clarity to choose how we process life. The more we balance, and the more we learn about ourselves, the more confidence we develop in being able to deal with the challenges that living sometimes presents. Let music help you along this path.
--John Paradowski - Minister of Music

 

Musical Joy
“Transcended Oneness”
I have often thought about what music touches me the most and what keeps coming into my mind is the feeling I have—both as a performer and as a listener—when things “click” and when I experience a type of joy which transcends nearly every other earthly sensation. The best way to describe this feeling is as a feeling of oneness; one with the music; one with the erformers, one with the congregation; and especially one with my whole self.

I’ve been slowly working my way through a book by Robert Jourdain; Music, the Brain, and Ecstasy. One of the main points is that musical perception consists of a string of expectations on the part of the listener that our brains want to hear or come to expect. The listener hears a sound and, because of a number of factors, anticipates that the sound will proceed or resolve in a certain way. If the music becomes either too predictable or too unpredictable, the listener becomes either bored or frustrated.

“Music sets up anticipations and then satis­fies them. It can withhold its resolutions, and heighten anticipation by doing so, then satisfy the anticipation in a great [rush] of resolu­tion. Musicians breathe ‘feeling’ into a piece by introducing minute deviations in timing and loudness. And composers build expression into their compositions by purposely violating antic­ipations they have established ... For composer and performer alike, music-making is always a tug-of-war between the maintenance of under­lying musical structure and the indulgence of musical deviations. With too much deviation, music becomes incoherent. With too little, music becomes cold and mechanical.”

As I ponder this interesting book I also listen to music that I find this oneness in. Last Spring I discovered a piece of music by English composer Howard Goodall. In his “Eternal Light” for Choir, Orchestra and Ballet, I found the transcended oneness that inspires me.
Well enough about my Summer...

Seriously, how can you not want the feeling of one­ness and joy... and then not want to share that feeling? Think of a child who just wants to share with you their most important story. We have a story to share as well.

I find it interesting that many anthropologists believe that music first evolved as a way to “strengthen com­munity bonds and resolve conflicts.” There can be no doubt that it continues to serve those functions. When we come together to learn, to make, to share our music we create a bond of community with one another. And then when we take that community bond of music and share it with the congregation we expand the circle to encompass the whole church and reach toward a great harmony with each other. We become and are a congregation of “one.” We gather and feel the sense of whole­ness and oneness with ourselves and each other. I call those moments of Transcended Oneness. How can you not want to experience that?

“At that elusive moment when we transcend our ordinary performance and feel in harmony with something else—whether it’s a glorious sunset, inspiring music or another human being—what we are really coming in sync with is ourselves; we feel more relaxed and at peace.”

--John Paradowski, Minister of Music

 

Music Ministry - now’s a great time to share your talents
St. Matthew's shares an active Music Ministry not only with its members but also with the greater community through special services and a concert series. The goal of this ministry is to praise and give thanks to the Lord through God's gift of music.

Believing, as Martin Luther did, that music is a fair and glorious gift from God, we at St. Matthew's rejoice that we have a variety of vocal and instrumental choirs ranging from children to adult so that people of all ages may participate in bringing music to the congregation as well as the community.

Kids - Use your musical talents to give of yourself for your church - and have fun while you’re doing it!
Moms and Dads - Encourage your kids and set an example by sharing your talents as well

St. Matthew’s has four outstanding opportunities for our Children & Youth to be part of the music ministry and share their gifts with our church family.

For grades 3-6, Jeff Reeves and John Paradowski will co-direct the New Creation Choir singing God’s praises. Having children lead us in worship is very important and we always welcome this group helping us praise our Lord. They will be working on their April musical Noah and the Flood so now is the time to join the fun. They rehearse Wednesday evenings, 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.

For grades 7-12, the New Generation Choir is a great opportunity to sing the praises of our Lord with each other. A variety of musical styles are sung and we help in worship once a month. Rehearsals are Wednesdays at 6:00 p.m.

Adults can get in on the act as well with the Senior Choir which meets every Thursday at 7:30 p.m., or our adult handbell Choirs, The EmBELLishments [Tuesdays at 9:30 a.m.] or Bell Angels [Thursdays at 6:15 p.m.]

Contact John Paradowski or Dave Mohr for more information. We look forward to seeing many of you join in all the activity of serving our Lord and giving thanks through God’s gift of music.

Choir schedules and more information is below.

 

Consider a bell choir!

Come join us to RING!
You’ve seen them in action and are you thinking, “I want to try that.” We have the chance for you to give it a ring.

The Tuesday morning handbell choir, The EmBELLishments, is always looking for new ringers to join the handbell fun. Have you ever wanted to give it a try? This is your chance. This handbell choir meets every Tuesday at 9:30-10:30 a.m., starting September 22. No experience needed! We have fun as we learn new music and the tech­niques of handbell ringing.

If you have any questions please talk with John Paradowski at the church. 414-774-0441 or JRPmuzik@sbcglobal.net

Have you ever wanted to give it a try? This is your chance. See what this handbell stuff isall about!

The Thursday evening handbell choir, Bells Angels, meets every Thursday, 6:15-7:30 p.m. [more]

The Tuesday morning handbell choir, The EmBELLishments, meets Tuesday, 9:30-10:30 a.m., resumes Jan. 19. No experience needed! [more]

 

Handbell concert videos online
In June 2007, our handbell choirs presented a concert at St. Matt's. Videos of the several handbell groups are online [here].

 

Choirs for all ages
(Click any link for more information)

Rehearsals resume in the fall. Watch for the schedule to be posted here.

Senior Choir (adults): Thursdays, 7:30 to 9:00 p.m.
New Generation Choir (youth in grades 7-12): Wednesdays, 6:00- 6:45 p.m.
New Creation Choir (children in grades 3-6): Wednesdays, 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Praise Kids! Choir (spilt choirs for 4-5 year-olds and 1st-2nd grade): Thursdays, 4:00-5:00 p.m.

 

Bells and instrumental music

[Click any of the following blue group names for more information about that group.]

Godsbells (chidlren's chime choir for grades 4-6): Tuesdays, 6:00-6:45 p.m.
Righteous Ringers (youth handbell choir grades 7-12): Tuesdays, 7:00-7:45 p.m.
EmBELLishments (beginnning adult handbell choir): Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30 a.m.
Bells Angels (advanced adult handbell choir): Thursdays, 6:15 to 7:30 p.m.
A CaBELLa Ringers (ensemble ringers), Wednesdays, 9:30-11:00 a.m.
Instrumental music is offered throughout the year.

For more information, contact the church office or John R. Paradowski, Minister of Music (john@stmattslutheran.org).

 

 

For more information, contact the church office or John R. Paradowski, Minister of Music (john@stmattslutheran.org).

 

"Come let us sing for joy to the Lord.
Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving
and extol Him with music and song." (Psalm 95:1-3)

© 2012 St. Matthew's Ev. Lutheran Church 1615 Wauwatosa Ave., Wauwatosa, WI 53213 Phone: (414) 774-0441     Fax: (414) 774-0989 Email: office@stmattslutheran.org	Designed by St. Matthew's Communications Committee based on a design by Andreas Viklund JavaScript slideshow by BarelyFitz Designs DHTML scripts by Dynamic Drive