Special to the Parade
Valley Voices, a Texas Chorale under the direction of Patrick Graves, will perform in a concert entitled, “The Gospel Mass” by Robert Ray at Fishers of Men Lutheran Church in Port Isabel.
The event will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 21.
Ray’s Gospel Mass was composed in 1978 while he was a liturgy team member of the National Office of Black Catholics. It was created out of a need for liturgical music rooted in gospel music. The piece has since become a standard part of the choral repertoire and is performed by churches, colleges, universities, orchestras and civic choral groups nationally and internationally.
For centuries, composers have taken the text of the Ordinary of the Mass and given it musical settings. Each movement of the Gospel Mass creates within the listener a different feeling about the worship experience. Ray said, “It is my desire to combine centuries of old traditions of Mass settings and sounds of the contemporary black church. The move from Latin to English created new opportunities for composers to express their feelings about the texts of the Ordinary of the Mass.”
Rehearsals will be held at 7 p.m. on March 19 and 20 with all musicians. Accompanist Ruben Rincon Jr. will also be performing bass and percussion and soloists will be included.
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