From its earliest days, St. Paul's has had a tradition of fine church music. Today, choirs for children, youth and adults provide musical leadership for our Sunday services. Musical highlights of the church year include the Sunday after All Saints Day, Advent Lessons and Carols, Christmas Eve, Holy Week, Easter, and the Day of Pentecost. Instrumentalists are used to enhance the service music numerous times during the year. New members are welcome in all choirs; please contact acoulter@randolphcollege.edu for additional information.

 

The St. Paul's Choir

Adults (and interested youth by audition)

Rehearsals: Thursday 7:30-9:00 p.m. September-May

Sunday warm-up: 10:00-10:20 a.m. (September-May)

The St. Paul's Choir, a group of approximately twenty-eight, sings at the second service of Holy Eucharist year-round. A repertoire of challenging choral music from the middle ages to the 21st century keeps this group busy, but they also enjoy fine fellowship. At times, the St. Paul's Choir collaborates with other area churches; most recently, the Choir joined the adult choirs of First Presbyterian Church, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, and St. John's Episcopal Church in a Festival of English Choral Music under the direction of Michael McCarthy, director of music at Washington National Cathedral.

The St. Paul's Hand Bell Choir - Adults

Rehearsal: Monday 4:30 - 5:15 p.m. (September-May)

The St. Paul's Hand Bell Choir rings a three-octave set of Schulmerich hand bells. Numerous services are enhanced by bell preludes and bell accompaniments for selected anthems and hymns. A great sense of fun characterizes the hard work of this group.

The St. Paul's Choristers -

First Grade and above

Rehearsal: Wednesday 4:30 - 5:15 p.m. October-December, February-April

Through the use of the curriculum of the Royal School of Church Music, the St. Paul's Choristers learn musical skills (music reading, proper use of the singing voice, etc.), and they also learn about choir membership in the context of the church community: service to God, and the role of music in self expression, faith development, and corporate worship. The friendships formed in this choir stem from the concept of the choir as a team (commitment, cooperation, regular attendance, good behavior). The choir is divided into two groups by age for part of the weekly rehearsal so that material may be presented in age-appropriate ways. The Choristers sing in church at least six times a year.

The St. Hildegard Choir - Youth 6th - 12th Grades

The St. Hildegard Choir learns to ring hand bells, and they play bell preludes or hymn accompaniments in church. They also learn choral anthems and assist the Choristers when they sing in church.

The St. Paul's Organ

The first church organ heard in Lynchburg was installed in St. Paul's in 1826. The current instrument is a 1972 three-manual Schantz pipe organ, located in the rear gallery. The organ consists of 41 ranks, totaling 2,239 pipes.

Organist-Choirmaster

Ann Eutsler Coulter has served as organist-choirmaster of St. Paul's since January of 2001. A graduate of Randolph-Macon Woman's College, she holds the Master of Music degree in organ performance from Northwestern University, where she has done additional graduate study. In addition to her work at St. Paul's , she is also a faculty member in the music department of Randolph-Macon Woman's College where she teaches courses in music theory and organ performance. acoulter@randolphcollege.edu