You will routinely find ministerial and program staff at First Presbyterian Church (FPC) engaged in activities to grow their knowledge and skills.
Sam Carlton, Classic Worship Arts Director, recently traveled to Mexico as part of Festival Singers of Florida, a choral ensemble, to present a concert in Mexico City.
“Combined with spending the next week at Montreat, it was some of the best two weeks of my life,” he says. “I prefer to travel with as little as possible, just an open mind. That’s the position for gratefulness to come into our lives.”
“I came away grateful and renewed,” Carlton says.
Festival Singers provide community performances of the highest quality and are dedicated to engaging and inspiring through impassioned singing while also expanding awareness and appreciation of the choral arts, according to the Festival Singers website.
Festival Singers have been in existence for the last 15 years, and Carlton has been involved for the last five.
The group is led by Dr. Kevin Fenton, professor of choral conducting and ensembles at Florida State University. Carlton serves as one of two accompanists for the group.
“In college, I took every class Dr. Fenton offered, performed with every ensemble he led,” Carlton says. “He is an important mentor to me, and I love him so much. That’s initially why I joined Festival Singers.”
Carlton calls Festival Singers – which currently boasts 127 members – a built-in network of like-minded people, many of whom are music education teachers. One of Carlton’s passions at FPC is music education.
“Festival Singers are about community and community building,” Carlton says. “At each year’s retreat, we arm teachers with warm-ups and games they can use when they start classes. You add tools to your toolbox, which is valuable for teachers.”
The trip to Mexico is just one of the international trips Festival Singers has taken. “It’s about sharing the love of music,” Carlton says. “Music does something to people and changes them, almost always in a positive way.”
In describing the performance of Mozart’s Requiem while in Mexico, he says, “The piece transcends so much. There is a perception of Mexico as a place of violence, and while I am sure there is violence, that wasn’t my experience. My perception was shattered.”
“We build bridges through music,” he says. He tells of working with an orchestra they only rehearsed with once and with a conductor with whom they had language challenges. “Everyone was so open and willing to work together.”
“One of the hallmarks of the Festival Singers is that it champions new music, much of which is replete with challenging harmonies and tricky rhythms,” says Ron Hatley, FPC member and former Festival Singers member.
“Sam, being the extraordinary musician that he is, provides the vocal leadership necessary for the basses to master those issues,” Hatley continues. “He’s an exceptional solo singer and an excellent accompanist, composer, and conductor.”
“He’s pretty much the whole package, if he could just dance,” Hatley jokes.
Hatley retired from Festival Singers last year, and the group honored him with the creation of the Ron Hatley Commission Fund, which has a goal to raise $3,000 a year that the ensemble may use to commission composers in the future.
“Ron celebrates in possibilities, and we believe the Ron Hatley Commission Fund will allow us to continue to enhance the choral arts,” according to the Festival Singers website.
Last year’s commissioned work was dedicated to Festival Singers of Florida’s current and past presidents: Holly Hodges Cook, Lauren Rizzo, Melinda Bradley, and Leslie Gray. Composer Bridger Heruth’s new work, “When You Are Old,” premiered at the Festival Singers first concert performance last fall, here at First Presbyterian Church.
“If you are a singer in Florida, this is the group you want to be part of,” Carlton says.
Festival Singers perform concerts at FPC routinely. Watch this space for details of their next concert at the church.