FROM OUR SEMINARIAN, ALDEN FOSSETT: WHEN THE ART IS UP, IT LOOKS ALIVE

This is an edited version of a 30-minute conversation I had with José Vidal on December 1, 2024, about the SMV Gallery in Saint Joseph’s Hall.

Alden Fossett. Can you tell me about the history of Saint Joseph’s Hall being used for exhibitions, and what its purpose is within the larger community of Saint Mary’s?

José Vidal: The gallery started seventeen years ago. Around that time, I had helped found the Visual Arts Project here along with several other people, and the gallery was part of that project. Originally, we’d hoped to show mostly religious art. But that wasn’t so easy to do for several reasons, so we opened it up to secular art, too. Then I began to focus on Latinx art because that’s something I know and because I know a lot of Latinx artists in New York City. But the idea was always to have this gallery in Saint Joseph’s and to show art, to get work on the walls for people to see and experience. Also, I realized that exhibition space was at a premium here in Manhattan so giving somebody a show was a way to help a struggling artist, and so I started organizing shows and bringing in different artists and having exhibitions. Anglo-Catholicism has always paid attention to the arts and visual art is important in the rituals that happen here. I started picking up on that and decided it would be good to explore different kinds of art, including “secular” art, in this new gallery in Saint Joseph’s Hall. And in a way it was a captive audience. People go into Saint Joseph’s Hall for Coffee Hour after Mass. It was a way of introducing them to something visual and it was kind of practical, too. It gave people, especially visitors, something to look at and talk about if they didn’t know anybody or were feeling awkward.

AF: I know some artists were able to launch a successful career from a show here. Can you talk about that experience for you and what some of those artists might be doing now?

JV: Two artists who I met at the Art Students League. Lola de Miguel, a Spanish artist, was trying to launch a career in New York. She had several shows here. She sold quite a bit. She is still struggling to be an artist in New York, but she’s been showing in galleries downtown. I’m very proud of her. The other one was Beatriz Elorza, another Spanish artist who exhibited here. A gallery owner came and saw her work here and then gave her a show on 57th Street, which was incredible. She’s become extremely successful. She now lives in Italy and is a career painter and exhibits. How do I feel about that? I felt that I helped the artist who showed here. But it didn’t matter if you became successful and famous–what mattered was that you were getting exposure and learning how to promote yourself. They had to invite people. They had to hang the show. They had to deal with all the problems of setting up an exhibition. And we had a couple of shows here where we showed the work of parishioners. Ingrid Sletten showed her paintings here and Brother Damian showed his photographs.

AF: Did you find that some artists weren’t sure how their work would fit in a church?

JV: Well, there was a certain tension. But I always tried to be thoughtful about the setting and the people’s sensitivities and I didn’t push the envelope that much. Sometimes it could be an issue for artists who were pretty secular, but they were always grateful for the opportunity and some people really liked Saint Joseph’s Hall or liked the space or liked hearing music coming from the church. Since the gallery would never be like a Chelsea gallery, I did think that there might be some problems in that the public might not think that the artists were good enough or professional enough, so I tried to make the gallery a little bit more secular by naming it “SMV Gallery.” Like I said, a certain tension, but it worked.

AF: What is the future of the gallery?

JV: I'm not sure. I have stopped doing shows here because it takes a lot of work and Jay and I are making plans to move, and that’s a lot of work, too. So, I don’t really know what the future might be. But I think it’s open. Anybody who really wants to do something like this could try to do it. Father Sammy is very open to it, and I know he would like something there. It shows that we’re alive, open for business, and that we really care about art. He talks about beauty a lot.

AF: It’s an invitation.

JV. Exactly, but you have to be confident talking to artists, you have to have time, and you really have to be sympathetic to artists and their struggle.

AF: What was that like for you?

JV. Listening to them and listening to the fact that there were organizations that were not open to their work. Everybody—galleries and museums—were very professional and they were not open to artists who are just starting. Everything’s a struggle in New York. So, I saw an opportunity to help, and I just jumped in. I used to visit a lot of artists in their studios. Then, I would offer them a show. I got a reputation as somebody that was willing to help. I was responsible. I produced. If I offered you a show, I would give you a show. And I would help you with any problems.

AF: It sounds like this was a ministry to these artists.

JV: It was, but I didn’t start out thinking of it that way. But, yes, it was a ministry. And I thought about it because I’m married to a priest and that word kept coming up. It was very rewarding. And I’ve been very involved in different things in this church and the trick is for me to like what you’re doing and once it doesn’t become fun, leave it alone, because then you’re not going to do it justice.

AF: Do any special memories come to mind?

JV: There was one opening where Arlene Dávila came. She’s a professor at NYU and has written a lot on Latinx art. She was giving a talk at the Ford Foundation during a symposium on Latinx art. It was by invitation only with a lot of heavy hitters. She did a wonderful thing. She took some of our postcards and gave them out. She told the audience that if you really wanted to see Latinx art in action, to come to this opening. We had a huge crowd, and heavy hitters came and bought. It was exciting that she helped me in that way because at that time, Latinx art was working at that level: in little shows and little exhibitions. Not anything big. But now, it has grown. She’s a big cheerleader in that respect.

AF: It sounds like you were part of that, too.

JV: Absolutely. And then the Swann Gallery decided to jump on the bandwagon of Latinx art and I sold a lot of my collection through them, and I also introduced them to different artists. I think three auctions happened in three years, but then they closed it down, which was a shame. So, you know, Latinx art is getting off the ground, but there’s always setbacks.

AF: What is one thing you would want the broader community to know about curating this space?

JV: We are responsible for helping artists. The Church has always commissioned art and helped artists. Knowing these artists is a gift. I want the congregation to be a part of that. I was a small player in that, but it was growing. And there were people who collected and who bought from me. There were several parishioners and some of the priests who always came to the shows. They all felt that it was a good thing. I mean, it was also tough going, but I did it anyway. There were enough moments where I felt that I was helping the artists. And I can see it now: artists live for exhibitions, these little moments where attention is paid to them, and they can keep going. An exhibition is also a goal. You can work on it and feel alive and feel that your profession is improving.

AF: I hope that it will remain a place for artists who have nowhere else to show.

JV: I was so inspired when the photographer Luis Carle, who used to live in Chelsea, but lives in our neighborhood now, was curating and showing his work in a restaurant downtown—it was just a greasy spoon. And once a month, he would put up the artwork. People would come in at lunch and eat and look up and see the art. I think that inspired me a lot. It wasn’t glamorous. He wasn’t getting paid. All he got was a free lunch. And of course, sometimes I heard artists say, “Oh, I’m not going to show there. My painting might get some spaghetti stain on it.” Not everybody is suited for the space downstairs. And that’s OK. But I think that we had a good run with the energy and money that we had. I’m always optimistic. People enjoyed it, and they would tell me, “Saint Joseph’s Hall looks so empty, but when the art is up it looks alive. Thank you.” I feel sad that I can’t do it anymore. And it always helps artists when they sell something. There’s a reason why they’re doing this and it’s for people to enjoy their work and take it home.

José Vidal was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and moved to New York when he was eight. He grew up and learned English in Chelsea in the shadow of the General Theological Seminary. He went to school at Saint Columba’s on 24th Street and began to paint and studied the art of sculpting during that time. He attended Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx and received his bachelor’s degree from New York University at the University Heights campus, also in the Bronx. His major was art history. He studied architecture and received his master’s degree from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design. After apprenticing for several years at three different architectural and design firms, he opened his own interior-design firm, which he ran for many years. During that time, he founded and was curator of a gallery in the library of the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College. He met Father Jay Smith in 1980 before Father Smith was an Episcopalian and long before he was a priest. They were married in 2017.

PRAYING FOR THE CHURCH & FOR THE WORLD

We pray for an end to war, division, violence, and injustice, especially in Israel, Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, Lebanon, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Haiti, Ukraine, Russia, Myanmar, Sudan, and Darfur.

We pray for the people and clergy of our sister parish, the Church of All Saints, Margaret Street, London, UK.

We pray for those who have asked us for our prayers, for Steve, Jane, Martin, Murray, Claudia, Beverly, Martha, Tim, Henry, Kaci, Molly, Gary, Renee, Ruth Ann, Michele, Vicki, Georgia, Janet, Zoë, Desarae, David, Jacques, Suzanne, Rolf, Adair, Susanna, Dorian, James, Margaret, Leroy, Josh, Maddie, Tony, Hattie, Paul, Nettie, Maureen, Chrissy, Tessa, Robert, Duncan, Justin, Audy, Jan, Pat, Marjorie, Sharon, Quincy, June, Barbara, Carlos, José, Hardy, Gypsy, Bob, and Liduvina; James, Laura Katharine, Barbara-Jean and Eleanor-Francis, religious; and Jay, Jean, Julie, Robby, and Stephen, priests.

We pray also for Andrew, Tilly, and Dax, who are to be baptized on January 12, and for Joachim, who is to be received into the Episcopal Church on December 15.

We pray for the repose of the souls of all those who died this week in places of violence, warfare, and natural disaster; and we pray also for the repose of the souls of Brian Thompson, and those whose anniversary of death is on December 15: Joseph Henry Bell (1883); Howard Nugent (1959); Norman Albert Rollings (1986); Lore Brownell Britt (1989); and John Kemper Cannon.

IN THIS TRANSITORY LIFE

We received news this week that former parishioner, Thomas Edwin Kamm, died on December 5, in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He was seventy-eight years old. Tom, and his wife, Esther, were active members of Saint Mary’s and contributed to the life of the parish in many ways. Tom is survived by Esther, their son, Christopher, their daughter-in-law, and four grandchildren. He is to be interred in the columbarium at Saint Mark’s Church, Jackson Heights, New York. A memorial service is to take place at Saint Mark’s in the New Year. We are grateful for Tom’s many years of service to Saint Mary’s. Please keep Tom, Esther, Christopher, their friends and family, and all who mourn in your prayers.

WE ARE GRATEFUL

It was a busy weekend last week. We are grateful to all those who spent Sunday afternoon polishing brass for the next day’s Solemn Mass. And we were pleased and thankful to the group of volunteers who spent Saturday afternoon writing Christmas cards and notes to our homebound parishioners and to some fifty incarcerated folks around the nation. Thank you, Grace Mudd for organizing the workday and to Jennifer Stevens who led the card-writing event.

We are grateful to parish volunteer, Clint Best, who has been covering the office while our parish administrator has been away. Clint, who is very generous with his time, is an enormous help to the staff and to the members of the parish.

Thank you, Father Peter Powell, for giving so generously of your time and expertise, teaching for us once again on Sunday mornings this fall. We look forward to the second half of your series on the Sundays in Lent.

Holy Hour on Wednesdays before the Blessed Sacrament
Wednesday Mornings at 11:00 AM in the Lady Chapel

Healing Mass on Thursdays
At Mass on Thursdays at 12:10 PM, we offer a service of anointing and prayers for healing.

Friday Abstinence
The ordinary Fridays of the year are observed by special acts of discipline and self-denial in commemoration
of the crucifixion of Our Lord.

Confessions on Saturdays
The priest on duty will be in a confessional near the 46th Street entrance at 11:00 AM.

UPCOMING AT SAINT MARY’S

Saturday, December 21, Saint Thomas the Apostle
Mass 12:10 PM

Tuesday, December 24, Christmas Eve
The Last Mass of Advent 9:00 AM
A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols 4:00 PM
Music for Choir and Congregation 9:30 PM
Procession and Solemn Mass 10:00 PM

Wednesday, December 25, Christmas Day
Solemn Mass and Procession to the Crèche 11:00 AM

Thursday, December 26, Saint Stephen, Deacon & Martyr
Mass 10:00 AM

Friday, December 27, Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist
Mass 12:10 PM

Saturday, December 28, The Holy Innocents
Mass 12:10 PM

LIFE AT SAINT MARY’S

If you are coming to the 12:10 PM Mass on Tuesday, December 17 . . . The 46th Street façade of the building will be used for a film shoot Tuesday, December 17 from 10 AM – 3 PM. During that time, access to the church, as well as the Parish House and Mission House, will be limited to when there is a break in the shooting. We strongly encourage folks attending the 12:10 PM Mass that day to enter the church through the 47th Street entrance.

2025 Saint Mary's Calendars are now available! . . . The suggested donation for each calendar is $20 in-person and $25 online (which includes shipping) and $40 for international shipping. Calendars are available in-person after Solemn Masses and Evensong & Benediction in Saint Joseph’s Hall during the month of December 2024. Click here to order your calendar online. Saint Mary’s Flower and Altar Guilds have produced the 2025 Saint Mary’s Calendar and all proceeds will help fund critical guild supplies and restore antique furnishings. Please contact Brendon Hunter with any questions about the 2025 Saint Mary's Calendar. Click here for a preview of the calendar.

We invite you to help us prepare the church for Christmas . . . Volunteers are needed to ready the church for upcoming holy days! Workdays will begin on December 18 and will continue each day through and including December 24. There is a particular need all day on Wednesday, December 18 for people of any skill level—no flower arranging will be taking place that day—to help unpack deliveries. We are also looking for help on the morning of Friday, December 20. Additional preparations will take place after Coffee Hour on Sunday, December 22, including a brief origami workshop to make peace cranes and hanging greens in the church! Anyone interested in arranging the crèche, creating flower arrangements, preparing vestments, candles, and the like, or even carrying buckets and pushing a broom is most welcome during the week of December 18–24. Please contact Grace Mudd if you can help or have any questions.

This year, Saint Mary’s is once again recreating a medieval Paradise Tree in Saint Joseph’s Hall. Apples to symbolize the Fall are added to (unconsecrated!) hosts to symbolize our great salvation, and we’re throwing in Christmas cookies and lights as well. You’re invited to join us to decorate our second annual Paradise Tree as a parish family after the 11:00 AM Mass on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, December 22! — SW

Tomorrow, Saturday, December 14, Father Sammy will lead a Quiet Day in the church and at 12:10 PM tomorrow the Monthly Requiem Mass will be celebrated in the Mercy Chapel.

Adult Formation . . . Come join us for class on Sunday, December 15, at 9:45 AM, in Saint Joseph’s Hall, as Father Peter Powell continues his series of classes on The Passion and Resurrection Narratives in the Gospels. This half of Father Peter’s series concludes on Sunday, but will resume again in late winter on all the Sundays in Lent and on Palm Sunday. Father Pete says his plan for this coming Sunday is to continue his discussion of the theology of the Atonement—asking the question, “Why did Jesus have to dies?” Please come and join us. No prior experience or knowledge is assumed. Coffee, tea, and something to eat are provided.

Our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters celebrated the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe this week. To mark the commemoration, an image of Our Lady was placed on the altar of Saint Joseph’s Chapel on her feast day, December 12. The image will remain there for eight days. You are invited to visit the chapel and ask Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas, to be with all the people of the New World, to be with all those who work for justice and peace, and to help and sustain all immigrants and seekers of asylum, and those who are in any danger, need, or trouble.

Our Lady of Guadalupe,
Mystical Rose,
We ask you to intercede for the Church.
Protect all bishops, priests, deacons, and all the People of God.
Help all those who turn to you in need,
and, Holy Mother of God,
beseech your most Holy Son
to grant us the grace to remain steadfast in the faith,
to give us the gift of hope that we might endure life’s many trials,
to fill our hearts with love for Him and for our neighbor, and
to bestow on us the precious gift of perseverance at the last. Amen.

Also on Thursday, December 12, members of the Church Club held their Christmas party here at Saint Mary’s. They joined us for Evening Prayer and then moved into Saint Joseph’s Hall for food, drink, the singing of carols, and fellowship. A talented pianist was in the Hall, playing seasonal music. It was good to hear our piano—a gift of organ conservator, Larry Trupiano—once again. Father Sammy and Father Jay mingled and conversed with the guests. From the Club’s website: “The purpose of The Church Club of New York is to strengthen the life and faith of The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion by offering its members and others opportunities for education, training, enrichment, discussion, and fellowship. The Church Club of New York, founded in 1887, brings people together from different parishes, in fellowship, to discuss and deepen their understanding of the issues of the day, including those in theology, social justice, the arts, and more. To that end, the Church Club supports and hosts a series of ministries and monthly events including: the Liddell Award for Young Adult Service, Episcopal education, attention to issues such as human rights, charitable endeavors, and other mission-related activities. Members of the Church Club are lay Episcopalians, and membership is open to all interested people who support its mission.”

News from Zach Roesemann, Saint Mary’s Resident Iconographer . . . We were very excited to learn that Zach has been invited to be a Guest Artist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in January 2025. He will be doing three different events in conjunction with the Met’s current exhibition, Siena: The Rise of Painting, 1300-1350:

• January 5 at the Met Cloisters, uptown, in Fort Tryon Park, 99 Margaret Corbin Dr, New York, NY 10040: “How Did They Do That?”, a demonstration and discussion of the painting and gilding techniques used by the fourteenth-century artists—the very same ones Zachary uses to create his icons.

• January 11 at the Met Fifth Avenue, Fifth Avenue and 82nd Street—“Open Studio,” a Saturday afternoon in the Medieval Hall, when Zachary will once again discuss and demonstrate medieval painting.

• January 17 at the Met Cloisters—“Met Experts Gallery Talk,” when he will talk about a specific medieval painting in the Met Cloisters collection.

The public is warmly invited to all of these events. Zach will provide more details soon!

Neighbors in Need . . . This month’s Drop-by took place on Friday, December 13. The January Drop-by will take place on Friday, January 17.

We have an urgent need for donations of COATS in all sizes for both men and women. The temperatures are dropping, and we anticipate that there will be a great demand for coats at this month’s Drop-by. Please look in your closets and see if there are some things you are willing to part with. And we thank you for your generosity!

Seeking Help! . . . We are looking for help in support of our Hospitality Ministry. The costs associated with Coffee Hour, Feast Day Receptions and other events are high and are a constant strain on the budget. You may make a donation online or by mailing a check to the parish office. Remember to write “Hospitality” in the memo line. And, as always, we welcome donations to support the work of the Saint Mary’s Flower Guild. There are many opportunities in the New Year and before Lent to give flowers for the altar and in other parts of the church. For more information, please contact the parish office. We are grateful to all those who continue to support these ministries.

Mark Your Calendar: Parish Retreat . . . If you’re unable to join us for the Advent Quiet Day on December 14—and even if you are—we hope that you will be able to join us on Saturday, January 11, for a Parish Retreat. The theme of the retreat is “The Benedictine Promise”—Benedictine Spirituality and Practice. The retreat, which will take place here at Saint Mary’s, will be co-hosted with our friends from uptown at the Church of the Holy Trinity, Inwood, and will be led by Sister Michelle Heyne of the Order of the Ascension. For more information, please speak to Father Wood.

Preparing for baptism . . . We expect to have several candidates for Father Smith to baptize on January 12, his last Mass before retirement, and Father Sammy Wood is coordinating their preparation. If you are interested in receiving the sacrament of baptism, or having your child baptized, please contact Father Wood.

A Chance to Learn More about the Met’s Siena Exhibition . . . The Metropolitan Museum's acclaimed exhibition—Siena: the Rise of Painting—runs through January 26, and you can learn more about the city and region through a talk on “Siena, the Heart of Tuscany,” to be held in Saint Joseph's Hall on Friday, January 17, at 5:30 PM. Parishioner Mary Robison’s brother-in-law Roberto Bechi, whose family has lived in Siena for hundreds of years, will discuss the history and culture of this beautiful part of the world. Please join us!

Second Sunday Tours of the Church . . . On Sunday, December 8, we offered the first “Second Sunday Tour” of our beautiful church building—we plan to offer these tours on the second Sunday of every month. Next up: January 12 and February 9. Father Sammy will lead the tour, which will begin after the end of Solemn Mass and should last about fifteen minutes. If you’d like to join the tour, please meet Father Sammy in the narthex (i.e., the vestibule) at the Forty-sixth Street entrance to the church fifteen minutes after the end of Dr. Hurd’s postlude, and be prepared to learn about our fascinating, historic—and, yes, beautiful—church building!

A MESSAGE FROM THE BISHOP OF NEW YORK

On November 25, we launched a campaign to help families across the Diocese for Thanksgiving, Advent, & Christmas. With your support, Episcopal Charities will offer 34,000 meals through over sixty congregations and partner organizations in every region of the Diocese. The campaign will end on December 31. The need is urgent—more New Yorkers rely on food pantries than before the pandemic, including many working families. Most programs serve asylum seekers from around the world. Every gift makes a difference: $20 provides 10 meals, and $1,000 provides 500 meals.  Our goal is $25,000. Together, we can brighten Advent & Christmas and ensure that no one in our neighborhood goes without a meal. Make your gift today and share the light of hope and love this season. You may donate here. Today, December 7, I am delighted to announce that Yamily Bass-Choate will become the canon rector of Church of the Intercession and Charles Simmons will become canon rector of Saint Philip’s Church. Both Saint Philip’s and Intercession are congregations whose health and vibrancy plays a role in the health and vibrancy of the whole Diocese. Wardens and Vestries from each congregation have affirmed these calls; these new ministries will be supported by congregational funds, in the case of Intercession supported by a 2023 grant from Trinity Church Wall Street. Canon Simmons & Canon Bass-Choate are experienced and accomplished priests. They are leaving their roles as canon for ministry and liaison for global mission, respectively. [Canon Bass-Choate is particularly well known to some of us here at Saint Mary’s. Her husband, the late Horace Choate, served here as a seminarian and, after his ordination, as an assisting priest. He died in February 2020].  — + Matthew Heyd

ABOUT THE MUSIC AT THE SOLEMN MASS ON SUNDAY DECEMBER 15, 2024, THE THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT

This Sunday’s organ voluntaries again are based upon Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland (“Come now, Savior of the Gentiles”), which has been referenced for the past two Sundays. The chorale (54 in The Hymnal 1982) is Martin Luther’s sixteenth-century adaptation of the fourth-century Latin hymn, Veni Redemptor gentium, attributed to Ambrose of Milan (55 in The Hymnal 1982). The prelude is the second of four sections from the organ partita on this chorale by Hugo Distler (1908–1942). Hugo Distler was born in Nuremberg. He attended the Leipzig Conservatory, first as a student of piano and conducting. However, he later shifted his concentration to composition and organ. He became organist at Saint Jacobi in Lübeck in 1931. He also taught at the School for Church Music in Spandau and became a professor of church music in Stuttgart in 1940. Becoming increasingly depressed from the death of friends, aerial attacks, job pressures, and the constant threat of conscription into the German army, he tragically committed suicide in Berlin at the age of thirty-four. His choral and organ compositions are often described as neoclassical because of their lean and carefully crafted polyphony and their employment of compositional devices associated with Renaissance and Baroque music. Distler had an enormous respect and affection for the Baroque and pre-Baroque organs and their tonal aesthetic. His access to the largely sixteenth-century organ at Saint Jacobi was a strong influence in shaping his compositions for organ. Distler’s Partita on Nun komm is in four parts, the first and fourth of which are identical. Part II, which constitutes today’s prelude, is a harmonization of the chorale by the sixteenth-century composer Baltasar Resinarius followed by seven original variations, each designed for a specific combination of organ stops. Distler’s fine linear writing, tight imitative figures, and spare harmony all contribute to a crisp, wintry mood appropriate to the chorale. The postlude on Sunday is Part III of Distler’s Partita which is a series of seventeen continuous variations over a theme initially stated in the bass register. In this case, the theme is the first seven notes of the chorale melody. Beginning gently, the variations of this Chaconne grow in intensity and become quite animated before broadening into a grand conclusion.

The Mass setting on Sunday morning is the Mass of Light and Smoke by Daniel Santiago Castellanos (b. 1995), which received its premiere here at Saint Mary’s on the Day of Pentecost 2023. While this Mass originally consisted of Gloria in excelsis, Sanctus, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei, Daniel has recently completed its Kyrie which will be premiered at Saint Mary’s on Sunday morning. (Kyrie replaces Gloria in excelsis on Sundays in Advent and Lent.) Daniel is a composer, vocalist, and pianist. His piece for mezzo-soprano and piano, Death is nothing at all, won first prize at the 2019 NYC songSLAM competition. Ensembles that have performed his music include the Semiosis Quartet, JACK Quartet, The Orchestra Now (TŌN), Da Capo Ensemble, and the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys. He received two bachelor’s degrees from Bard College’s Conservatory of Music and received a master’s degree in music composition from Mannes School of Music in May 2023. Daniel was a member of the Choir of Saint Mary’s from 2018 until 2023. He writes the following:

I composed Mass of Light and Smoke (previously titled Missa Brevis) in 2023 for the Choir of Saint Mary the Virgin in Times Square, NYC. The title of this Mass alludes to the famously copious amounts of incense used at Saint Mary's, and how the smoke often plays and curls in the faint, refracted light within the church. The piece itself mixes my own compositional style with various cadences and tropes commonly found in plainsong, Renaissance, and Anglican choral music I’ve sung since I was a boy chorister at Saint Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue. The version of the Mass today includes a new Kyrie composed in 2024, with slow, billowing pulses and harmonies accompanying the motif that is present throughout most of the Mass. The Sanctus opens with an energetic staccato rhythm that gives way to a more prayerful, static Benedictus. The Mass ends with a version of the original Agnus Dei that modifies the countertenor solo to better fit all alto voices.

The Great “O” Antiphons traditionally surrounded Magnificat at Vespers on the seven evenings before Christmas Eve. Each is addressed to Christ, by way of one of his scriptural attributes, summoning him to come. They conflate relevant scriptural texts and are distinguished by their consistent formal structure. Each is headed with the vocative “O” (by which they are known). The “O” precedes a Messianic title from scripture, which is followed by an explanation or characterization of that title. This address is followed by the request: veni, come, and a further projection of what is hoped for as a result. This structure aligns entirely with what we have in our Prayer Book collects: an address to God, often with further description of God, followed by a request or petition, often with the context or rationale for that request. So, the Great “O” Antiphons are as much ancient prayers as they are acclamations. These antiphons share a distinctive ancient Mode 2 chant melody, but also have inspired many choral settings over the centuries. David Hurd composed a cycle of the Great “O” Antiphons, one per year from 2017 to 2023. His setting of O Sapientia, sung as the Communion motet on Sunday, is the first of the cycle. O Sapientia (“O Wisdom”) is traditionally sung on December 17, although an alternative English practice dating from Medieval times launched the antiphons one day earlier on December 16 and then added the antiphon O Virgo virginum (“O Virgin of virgins”) on December 23. This is the practice here at Saint Mary’s. — David Hurd

CONCERTS AT SAINT MARY’S

The Young New Yorkers Chorus
YNYC Mixed & Treble Ensembles present Holiday Modulations
Friday, December 13, 8:00 PM
Saturday, December 14, 8:00 PM

Witness the combined excellence of both YNYC Ensembles as they sing a program full of wintry, solemn, powerful repertoire about the holidays. Works by Joanna Marsh, Dale Trumbore, Saunder Choi, Zanaida Robles, B.E. Boykin, Joel Thompson, Eric William Barnum, and more! Please note that only Saturday night's performance will be livestreamed. Livestream ticket buyers will receive a link to the livestream via email on the day of the performance. Buy tickets here.

The Miller Theatre at Columbia University presents Stile Antico
The Prince of Music
Saturday, March 29, 2025, 7:30 PM

The remarkable Stile Antico marks its twentieth season by honoring the 500th anniversary of one of the greatest masters of Renaissance polyphony, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, whose career was inextricably intertwined with the papacy and the great churches of Rome for which he composed. The program includes some of the composer’s most beloved and timeless motets, gems by other leading composers active in Rome at that time, and a new work by British composer Cheryl Frances-Hoad, written especially for this occasion.

We need your help to keep holding our services. Click below, where you can make one-time or recurring donations to support Saint Mary’s. We are very grateful to all those who make such donations and continue to support Saint Mary’s so generously.

Saint Mary’s is a vibrant Anglo-Catholic witness in the heart of NYC. With our identity in Christ and a preference for the poor, we are an inclusive, diverse community called to love God and each other for the life of the world.

This edition of The Angelus was written and edited by Father Jay Smith, except as noted. Father Matt Jacobson also edits the newsletter and is responsible for formatting and posting it on the parish website and distributing it via mail and e-mail, with the assistance of Christopher Howatt, parish administrator, and parish volunteer, Clint Best.