neighborhood jazz with sister church
Next weekend, our choir will join with that of Carmel Presbyterian for a jazz concert. But we are taking seriously what it means to get outside the walls, so we are performing outdoors in "Stumptown Park" in Matthews, NC, on October 30, at 3pm, . There was a great write-up in the Charlotte Observer here:
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/10/18/2702828/free-jazz-concert-unites-2-churches.html
It included some great quotes:
The concert is a combined effort of the two churches' music ministries, led by Paul Reynolds, director of music ministries at Carmel and Cathy Youngblood, director of music ministries at Good Shepherd.
Youngblood says this event is a response to a new call for churches to balance the "come-and-see" attitude with the "go-and-tell" mindset. "Rather than only presenting the message of Christ through music in the church building and expecting others to come to us, we are heeding the call to go out into the community and meet people where they are," she says.
Performances will include a combined choir from both churches, a variety of jazz favorites performed by soprano Mindy Damon and old-time classics performed by The Rick Bean Jazz Trio.
Rick Bean, founding pianist of the trio, was a long-standing friend of the late Loonis McGlohon, former director of music at Carmel Presbyterian. Bean is now the president of the Loonis McGlohon Foundation, which supports events that promote ministry through jazz.If you are in the area, come out and join us!
Youngblood says that jazz is an accessible means of expression and Stumptown Park, a fun place for families and friends to enjoy on a Sunday afternoon. She says, "We hope to give folks a relaxing evening of jazz - sacred and secular - as a bridge between community and church."