St. Paul's Choir
t. Paul’s Choir is a group of dedicated volunteer singers who come together to share our love of music. Yes, we all love to sing (we even have a motto! “Pitch, Rhythm, Color, Artistry in Ministry! - #ArtistryinMinistry), but, more importantly, we come together to create a welcoming space, bringing together members of St. Paul’s, music students at the local college (Ventura College), and neighbors who call Ventura County, CA home. While we are dedicated to musical excellence and creating music as a pathway for spiritual growth, we support each other not just musically, but by celebrating in each other's joys and holding in each other’s sorrows.
"The music ministry at St. Paul's has given me a family I didn't know I needed, and a musical home. I can express my faith through my favorite medium, music, and share that joy with people I love. I am so blessed to be able to worship through song, and to share that joy with the wonderful people of St. Paul's. You can truly feel God's presence here." - Jordan Daniels, choir member
Our repertoire is as diverse as those in our choir. If there is a (church appropriate!) style, we will sing it, from Renaissance and classical gems to Gospel or Contemporary Christian songs. We are also blessed to have composers and arrangers in our choir creating original works for St. Paul’s! One of our favorite things to do is sing an a cappella service of "Compline" for those in our community. Check out our Recordings and Pics!.
We currently offer two primary ways to participate in the music ministry: the Communion Choir and the by-audition Anthem Choir.
The Communion Choir is open to anyone wanting to worship through music! It meets Sunday mornings at 9:30am for warm-ups and rehearsal, and sings all hymns and the communion song during our 10:15am Sunday service. The Communion Choir is a wonderful opportunity to be part of a musical community, for those who either have no or limited musical skills they would like to develop or can’t take on additional weekly commitments at the moment (weekly attendance is not required for the Communion Choir).
The Anthem Choir is by audition only. In addition to meeting with the Communion Choir on Sundays at 9:30am and singing at the Sunday service, the Anthem Choir also rehearses Thursdays from 7:00-9:00pm. In addition to singing the hymns and communion song, the Anthem Choir prepares the offertory anthem and participates in additional musical projects (such as Compline). Prior music experience and weekly participation is necessary to participate in the Anthem Choir.
Both choirs sing at Sunday services and major feast days (e.g. Christmas, Easter, Holy Week) throughout the year. During summer, Sunday participation is optional and we feature more solos and instrumental selections. This allows choir members to have more flexibility for travel plans with family. Thursday rehearsal times for the Anthem Choir continue; instead of preparing anthems for Sunday services, we use that time to prepare music for the upcoming year. And our always fun choir retreat is typically in late August (popcorn machine, anyone?!?).
We enjoy bringing music to those at our church and out in the world, spreading the love of God through voice and song. Music binds us together, but love spreads our mission beyond.
Interested in joining our choir?
Questions?
Other Music Ministry Opportunities?
Contact our Music Minister, Felix Eisenhauer!
