Welcome
On behalf of the entire parish, I wish to
extend a warm welcome to Jo and Ben Orr who will be serving as Interim
Choirmaster and Interim Organist, respectively, through July of this year.
Jo and Ben are no strangers to Tupelo or the All Saints’ community. Both are
long-time residents of Tupelo and for many years have been active in various
church and community organizations. Confirmed as members of the Episcopal
Church in April of 2008, they have been active in the various capacities in
the Choir, including Ben serving as Organist.
Jo received a Bachelors of Music from USM and a Master of Music in Vocal
Performance from Ole Miss. She has 35 years of experience as a director of
church choirs and over 26 years of experience in music education at the
elementary, high school and community college levels. Active in various
professional organizations and community activities, she is connected to the
local, state and regional music communities in a variety of ways.
Ben began his study of piano at age 9 and of the organ at age 15. He has
over 25 years of experience as a church organist and accompanist. Ben has
also studied with many well-known organists and worked with choirs of
children, youth and adults.
As you can tell from this brief synopsis, Jo and Ben each bring extensive
and varied experience to our music program and no doubt will insure that All
Saints’ strong tradition of excellent music will continue.
I wish to express my thanks to each and every choir member for their hard
work and dedicated service to the church and their flexibility and
adaptability these past weeks as the music program has been in transition.
My special thanks are also extended to Peg Oakes who served so ably as
substitute organist/choirmaster.
To continue this tradition of excellence, I will soon convene a small group
of parishioners to assist me in the search for a permanent
organist/choirmaster. The choirmaster reports to the Rector and is
responsible for directing the day-to-day operation of the parish music
program. The organist is under the direction of the choirmaster. Both are
members of the parish staff and together work closely with other staff
members to insure that all programming and liturgical efforts are well
planned and
supported.
In an effort to attract qualified candidates for these positions, we intend
to spread the word through contacts with professional organizations,
advertisements in selected publications and websites and by word of mouth.
If they choose, Ben and Jo will be candidates for these positions. It is my
hope that these positions will be filled by late summer. If you know persons
who may be qualified for either of these positions, please let me know.
As is the case in every facet of our life together, I welcome your input and
thoughts concerning our music program.
Peace,
Paul
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