By Augie Segger
On Sunday, November 12, the Choir of Adults & Girls celebrated their twentieth anniversary with a special Evensong and reception. It was a joy to have several alumnae join the choir and to have so many choir parents, friends, and former music staff—including Rachel Segger (Music Program Manager from 2016-2023) and Andy Kotylo (Associate Director of Music from 2008-2016) with us in the congregation. Some members of our extended Trinity family were not physically with us but were nevertheless present through their music—like Jessica French (Organ Scholar from 2007-2008), who composed the evening’s Preces and Responses.
The Boys’ Choir joined the Adults & Girls Choir, conducted by Director of Music Walden Moore and ably accompanied by Associate Director of Music Sarah Johnson and Organ Scholar David Preston. The service began with a prelude played by Maria Cusick (chorister from 2013-2022), who also composed the descant to the hymn “As Newborn Stars Were Stirred to Song.” Two of our present choristers carried the choirs’ banners in procession with reverence and dignity. The Adults & Girls banner led the choir, while the Men & Boys banner followed in support. Other musical works included “Come, Renew Us” by Eleanor Daley, a setting of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in A by C. V. Stanford, and “A Hymn for St. Cecilia” by Herbert Howells. The scripture readings aptly captured the community and friendship our choirs seek to foster: If one member suffers, all suffer with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it (1 Corinthians 12:26-27). Indeed, our choristers bring a variety of gifts and talents to the table, and our program teaches them to use such gifts in collaboration with one another. Community is our central tenet, and all who pass through Trinity’s choirs live, work, and are nurtured as the body of Christ.
As the service drew to a close with a Prayer for Church Musicians, our Rector Rev. Luk De Volder took a few moments to acknowledge the hard work of our choristers and organists, the sacrifices made by our choir parents, and the many ways our choirs enrich the life of our parish. Rev. Luk offered special gratitude to Director of Music Walden Moore, who received a standing ovation from the congregation. The Choir of Adults & Girls was founded at Walden’s direction, and so it is fitting that this service marks the first of several legacy events honoring him before his well-earned retirement in June 2024. For 40 years Walden has formed the hearts, minds, and musicianship of hundreds of choristers, adult singers, and organists who—even after many decades—continue to look up to his musical prowess, great faith, and generous spirit. Our chorister program is a testament to Walden’s unwavering commitment to educating young people, and it is hard to imagine Trinity without him.
A festive reception followed Evensong—spearheaded by Sarah Johnson—which included a slideshow curated by Rachel Segger and a delicious cake from Angela Arpino and Children, Youth, and Family Ministries. Each choirgirl and alumna received a commemorative necklace featuring the choir’s logo. After a singing of “Happy Birthday” to the choir, the novice girls (those in their first year in the choir) assumed the task of blowing out the candles. It was a beautiful moment that brought together past, present, and future.
The Choir of Adults & Girls was founded in 2003 to grant girls the same musical education, formation, and community that has been offered to boys since 1885. Since then, children of both genders have joined the long procession of alumni/ae who have been shaped by Trinity's chorister program. In addition to its regular duties at Trinity, the Girls' Choir has taken its music to cities and towns up and down the East Coast, performing with noted orchestras in concert, and has toured twice to the United Kingdom, singing regular services in churches and cathedrals there. "The Choir of Adults & Girls has already assumed an important place in the ongoing history of Trinity's strong and unwavering support of the musical and personal formation of young people in the greater New Haven area," says Walden Moore. "It has already proven itself a vital part of the worship life of the parish, and its graduates testify to the important role that it has had in their formation, especially as seen from their perspective as the adults they have become. I am honored to have been a part of this important step in Trinity's ongoing community work."
Click here to watch the full livestream of the service.
Click here to view photos of the service and reception.
