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St. Mary’s Choir

In many of my HYMN OF THE MONTH write-up’s, I have mentioned with much affection St. Mary’s Choir, of Akron, Ohio. I have included bits and pieces about the organist and choir members from time to time. As I grow older, and Christmas or Easter comes around, I remember them even more and so I thought I would take the time to share a little history and a few anecdotes with you while I am still able. (Click on any image to enlarge)

Our organist was Ralph Jordan and among the many organists that I have had the pleasure to work with over the years, he was the best. The Howe family sat a couple of pews behind the organ which was near the Sanctuary. This organ console was used primarily for School Masses and Sunday Masses when the choir wasn’t singing, and there was also a duplicate organ console in the choir loft.

We generally, attended the 12 o’clock Mass on Sunday’s and we were Catholic’s who liked to sing, and we weren’t shy about it. During the summer of 1977, my junior year of high school, I remember Mr. Jordan turned to me after Mass one day and asked if I would be interested in singing in the choir. I said, yes but that I would have to ask Mom and Dad and see if they were okay with me joining the choir. Please do that he replied, I would really like for you to sing with us. Well, I asked Mom and Dad, and they didn’t object and so began my musical journey with St. Mary’s Choir.

Mr. Jordan apart from being a great organist was also a great singing coach. I remember practicing with him on many occasions to learn to sing solo’s. There were several solo pieces that I learned and one in particular that I have fond memories of is the Christmas song The Christ Child which I sang on many occasions as part of our Christmas program. It’s easy to get caught up in reminiscing about him and what he taught me; I have much to be grateful for.

The newspaper article below from the Akron Beacon Journal sums up Mr. Jordan’s own musical journey. He began playing the Austin Organ when he was a young man in 1929, he was only 13 years old. He last touched the keys of the organ on Christmas Eve of 1995. Shortly after Christmas, he fell ill, was hospitalized and eventually was sent to the hospice center where he lingered until August of 1996. He served St. Mary’s Parish for 67 years.

Mentioned in the article above was the assistant organist, Mary Leary. She became the organist after Mr. Jordan died and continued the musical traditions that had become a signature of St. Mary’s. Mary was also Organist and Choir Director for Visitation of Mary (formerly Annunciation Parish) in Akron, Ohio. Her musical career spans 50 years. Mary was also a gifted artist excelling in Watercolor, Japanese Sumi Painting, and Russian Folk Art.

Mary continued as the organist until 2005, she then became ill and it was necessary for her to step down. Mary and I had many conversations regarding the musical traditions of St. Mary’s. She was so proud to be following in the footsteps of a great organist and choir director. She once told me, enjoy the music while it lasts because when it is gone, it will be gone. In many ways she was right, the musical traditions of St. Mary’s are gone now and the wonderful Christmas and Easter music that we used to sing are only memory.

Being a member of St. Mary’s Choir was like being part of an extended family and one of the fondest memories I have are of the choir picnics and Christmas parties. These wonderful gatherings were hosted at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Jordan who lived in Randolph, Ohio. It was their way of showing appreciation for all our hard work. The Christmas parties were extra special because before the night was over, and with a cup of cheer in hand, we would gather around the organ in the Jordan’s home and sing Christmas carols.

I became good friends with all of the choir members, but two individuals stand out among the rest. The first is Tom McNeill and then Bill Ferreri. Tom and I sang together for the longest time, and I did a special tribute to Tom last year. You can read more about this tribute by clicking on this link: The New Born King.

Bill and I became good friends over the years. He was a connoisseur of music, particularly the opera. He was a member of the Legion of Mary, the Holy Name Society, and a US Navy Veteran. I remember one rehearsal he was helping me to reach a high tenor note. He said, just think of it as climbing a ladder. I am still trying to reach those high notes Bill! We would often sing duets together and our voices blended so nicely that none of the parishioners knew that two voices were singing unless they turned around and looked up into the choir loft.

I credit Bill for starting me off on my Catholic Hymnal collection. He gave me a copy of the 1920 St. Gregory Hymnal and Catholic Choir Book – Complete edition, which he inscribed to me, Given to my very good friend Don Howe this 1st day of May 1984. May God Bless You Always. May you sing his praises forever.

Bill died suddenly in January 1996.

Below are some photos taken of St. Mary’s Choir.

In the photo from 1995, in the top row from left to right is Bill Ferreri, Don Howe, Tom McNeill, and Tel Wartko. In the second row left to right is Kathy Lushbaugh, Charline Cathell, Pat Bettle, and Mary Sargent. In the bottom row is Barb Rotunda, Mary Leary, Ralph Jordan, Dorothy Brouse, and Jeannette McCormick.

In the photo from 2000, in the top row from left to right is Tom McNeill, Don Howe, Bob Howe, Tel Wartko, and Leonard (our trumpet player). The second row is Anna Bennett, Mary Leary, Mary Jo Maximovich, Barb Rotunda, and Jeannett McCormick.

If you live in the Akron area, I invite you to come to St. Mary’s Mass on Sunday’s at 9am, and if you are interested in singing in the choir come and find me. I continue to sing at St. Mary’s, and I share the cantor role with the organist. Most of the St. Mary Choir members pictured above are gone now and I am the last of that wonderful and special group of singers.

In Memoriam

Deceased St. Mary Choir Members

Al Jordan (1911-1995) deceased
Bill Ferreri (1929-1996) deceased
Catherine Wolf (1917-2006) deceased
Dorothy Brouse ( d. 2003) deceased
Eleonore Kuhne (1922-2018) deceased
Harry Considine Jr., (1913-1996) deceased
Jeannette McCormick (1923-2012) deceased
John Petros (1895-1991) deceased
Martin Wolf (1912-1993) deceased
Mary Tsakeres (1923-1994) deceased
Ted Kellers Sr., (1915-2004) deceased
Tel Wartko (1928-2010) deceased
Tom McNeill (1933-2019) deceased

Mr. Jordan was faithful to make recordings of our Christmases, Easter’s and special celebrations like May Crownings. He would place his boom box down on the organ bench near the Sanctuary and instructed his wife Beatrice on how to start, stop, flip the cassette tape, and press record. Needless to say, I have played mine repeatedly and so several years back I digitized the best of these recordings which are featured below. They are not professional recordings and you can hear a wide spectrum of background sounds including banging kneelers, people shuffling by each other, individual choir voices, etc.

The first group of recordings are from a special devotion we did in Honor of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in June 1982. One of the hymns O Sacred Heart, O Love Divine was featured in my HYMN OF THE MONTH, please click on the link to learn more about the author and composer.

The second group of recordings are from the Midnight Mass on December 24, 1985 with special attribution given to the soloist.

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Conducting Hymn Research

I thought some of you might like to know how I do research for my HYMN OF THE MONTH write-ups and so I thought I would take a moment to explain my methodology in hopes that it might inspire and help others. When doing my hymn research, the first step for me is the selection process. Several factors will affect my decision.

my own familiarity with the hymn, i.e., The New Born King
newly discovered information about the author or composer, i.e., Sweet Name
does the hymn fall into any of the categories for Catholic devotions for that month

For example: June is the month of the Sacred Heart, November is the month for All Souls, October is the month of The Holy Rosary, May is the month of Our Blessed Mother, and so on.

Next, to gather information on the hymn, I refer to my prime resource History of American Catholic Hymnals – Survey and Background (1982), and the Handbook for American Catholic Hymnals (1976), written by J. Vincent Higginson, Mus. B., M.A., former President of the Hymn Society of America, an organist, author, and composer. Mr. Higginson’s pioneer research of over thirty years, provides information on the subject of vernacular Catholic hymnody from 1787 to 1970. These two books are a treasure trove of data for anyone interested in American Catholic hymnody. On an aside, he compiled the Catholic hymnal Mediator Dei in 1954 under the pseudonym Cyr De Brant.

In addition to Mr. Higginson’s research, I turn to A Dictionary of Hymnology by John Julian. His work covers the origin and history of Christian hymns of all ages and nations, up to and including the early years of the 20th century. The first edition of his work published in 1892 was one volume. The second revised edition still as one volume was published in 1907. Then in 1957, Dover Publications of New York reprinted John Julian’s work in its entirety in two volumes.

By comparing both Mr. Higginson’s and John Julian’s research and finding similar results, I can be reasonably certain that the data is accurate. However, over time I have discovered errors in these resources. The errors became the impetus for me to start my own library of Catholic hymnals. I also adopted an old axiom, trust but verify.

Other printed resources include:

The Early Hymn Writers of Pennsylvania by Lucy E. Carroll, 2008
Sing of Mary by Stephanie A. Budwey, 2014
The Papers from the Hymn Society, 1948
Converts to Rome During the 19th Century by W. Gordon-Gorman, 1885
Roman Catholic Music in England: 1850-1962 by Thomas Muir, 2004
The Latin Hymn-Writers and Their Hymns by Samuel Duffield, 1889
The Popular Marian Hymn in Devotion and Liturgy by Fr. Thomas A. Thompson, S.M., 1994
Roman Catholic Catechesis in the United States 1784-1930 by Charles J. Carmody, 1975

My own collection of Catholic hymnals is my next prime resource. They now number over 150 dating from around the 1840s thru the 1970s. I have some modern hymn books, like the Adoremus, Gather III, Glory & Praise, and a few others, but I typically don’t refer to them as a resource because, 90% of Catholic devotional hymns have been removed.

I also do my best to maintain a parallel collection of hymnals scanned by Google or made available online, such as from Corpus Christi Watershed. Having a scanned copy of the hymnal makes it much more effecient when searching the contents. In addition to my American collection of hymnals, I have hymnals from England, France, Ireland, Australia, and Scotland. I also use the Internet Archive, ChoralWiki, and other online resources such as The Caecilia Archives and The Catholic Choirmaster Archives.

Prayer is also one of my resources, seek and you shall find, knock and the door will be opened, ask and you shall receive, this was the case for the hymn Ave Maria, Bright and Pure. I also have library access for both Cleveland and Akron libraries. I often explore the newspaper clippings and other historical data in connection to a hymn.

One of the last steps is to examine the different melodies. Some hymns like Bring Flowers of the Rarest have had only one melody throughout its existence while others like God of Mercy and Compassion have several. I use MuseScore to engrave the music and generate an mp3 audio files.

Often times, I contact Peter Meggison, producer of The Devotional Hymns Project. Peter has been collecting Catholic hymnals for many years and has been extremely helpful in supplying sheet music or SATB arrangements of melodies I can’t find. His knowledge on hymnody is bar none. Peter has also been more than kind in granting me permission to link to newly commissioned recordings of the hymns I write about. Please take some time to visit his website and enjoy the many beautiful recordings and learn more about our rich heritage of Catholic music.

I am also grateful to Noel Jones, Creative Director at Sacred Music Library who published A Catholic Book of Hymns & Chants. Noel has often granted me permission to link to this wonderful hymn collection.

Many of my hymn write-ups would not be possible were it not for the help I receive from the archivists of religious communities and university libraries. A recent example of their help was for the hymn God of Mercy and Compassion.

Needless to say, many hours are spent researching a particular hymn. Sometimes it happens that I will discover an author or composer of one hymn while researching another. This was true for the hymn O Sacred Heart, O Love Divine. Some might call it luck, or coincidence that I locate information on an author or composer, but I like to think that Blessed Mother is guiding my hand and would like a certain melody or story to be known again.

I hope this short explanation of the steps I take to do my research will suffice for those who are curious, who might want to start doing research on their own, or who are in doubt of the accuracy about my work.

Mother Dearest, Mother Fairest

Recently, the archivist for the School Sisters of St. Francis sent me a copy of the organ arrangment from the Alverno Hymnal Abridged Edition published by McLaughlin and Reilly Co., in 1963. This collection is the compilation of the three Alverno Hymnals published between 1948-1953. You can read about this wonderful Marian hymn the authors and composers by clicking on the following link: Mother Dearest, Mother Fairest

Psallite Domino honors Sleep, Holy Babe

A special tribute to December’s HYMN OF THE MONTH – Sleep, Holy Babe with a melody set to Coventry Carol was posted on the Psallite Domino blog. Please take a few moments to read about this special tribute and be sure to share it with your family, friends, and church musicians.

Psallite Domino – Sleep, Holy Babe

Old St. Mary’s Church sings Sleep, Holy Babe

On December 24, 2022 at the Midnight Mass, the Choir and Orchestra of the Cincinnati Oratory, Old St. Mary’s Church, Cincinnati, Ohio, along with the twenty-one member Laudate Pueri Children’s Schola Cantorum sang Sleep, Holy Babe. The melody was composed by Jacob Schloeder (1865-1919) and arranged by Aaron Hirsch. This is one of the wonderful melodies featured in my HYMN OF THE MONTH for December. The words of this hymn were written by Father Edward Caswall (1814-1878) a most holy priest of the Birmingham Oratory in London.

Sean Connolly who is the Director / Organist of the Oratory Choir has provided a recording of this lovely hymn and photo of the choir. The Director of Laudate Pueri is Sophia Decker, and assistant director Fatima Spoor. Fatima was conducting that night. The Laudate Pueri are an integral part of the Oratory music program which Sean simultaneously assists and oversees in their integration.

Sean brought this arrangement of Schloeder’s tune from his old parish, St Mary, Help of Christians in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota where it was sung every year for nearly a century. To learn more about this beautiful hymn and Father Edward Caswall please take a few moments to read the short story HYMN OF THE MONTH – SLEEP, HOLY BABE.

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St. Mary Parish May Crowning

On May 2, 2022, I emailed Father Chris Zerucha, Pastor of St. Mary Parish in Akron, Ohio to share with him my short story on the origins of the most widely used May Crowning hymn in the Catholic Church, Bring Flowers of the Rarest. I grew up in St. Mary’s Parish and sang in the choir for over thirty years (1977-2010). I was happy when Father Zerucha invited me to attend the 9AM Mass at St. Mary’s on May 8, Mother’s Day. They celebrated a First Communion and had a May Crowning after Mass. It was beautiful sunny day for an outdoor gathering to crown Our Lady.

Everyone received a small blue leaflet entitled May Crowning with the words of the hymns printed on the pages and on the back page of the leaflet were the words of Bring Flowers of the Rarest. There was a small ensemble of singers that led the congregation. It brought back a lot of memories. The Mass included some exceptionally good hymn selections including, Jesus Christ is Risen Today; Jesus My Lord, My God My All, and O Lord I Am Not Worthy for the First Communion hymn. When I arrived, they were praying the rosary before the Blessed Sacrament.

To my surprise Father Zerucha featured my hymn reflections in St. Mary’s weekly bulletin. God Bless you and thank you Father Chris Zerucha.

I took a few photos which I thought you might enjoy. As you enter from the side entrance, they have this beautiful scale model of St. Mary’s Church. The parish is currently engaged in a $1 million dollar restoration project.

National Catholic Register features Hymns to St. Joseph

I recently bought ad space in the National Catholic Register to promote my collection of hymns to St. Joseph. These traditional Catholic hymns to St. Joseph are available in melody and choir arrangements. I’m very proud of this accomplishment and I believe very strongly about putting approved Catholic devotional music back in the hands of Catholic musicians.

Just in time for the Feast of St. Joseph. These are fourteen of the most widely used hymns to St. Joseph with melody and choir arrangements that are easy to sing with approved text by the Catholic Church. Be sure to look for this ad and buy a copy for yourself and one for your music director.

Hymn of the Month

I am pleased to announce the latest development for the Mother of Mercy Catholic Hymns website! HYMN OF THE MONTH. Each month I will feature a story on a new old hymn with a short biography on the author and composer with links to hymn sources and when possible, newly commissioned recordings granted by Peter Meggison, Producer of The Devotional Hymns Project.

Many of the hymns that I will feature are hymns that I sang in St. Mary’s Choir (1977-2010) and new hymns that I have added to my repertoire. These hymns have kept me grounded in my Catholic Faith and I turn to them in good times and bad. They are a source of comfort and spiritual nourishment to me, and I hope for you as well. They are prayerful and meaningful with approved texts by the Catholic Church. Don’t under estimate the providence that can come from hearing these beautiful hymns.

The first hymn of the month is Dear Guardian of Mary in honor of the Feast Day of Saint Joseph, March 19^th. So, Like or Bookmark this page to follow along or check back often. I hope you will find my selections and my reflections intuitive and helpful.

Mother of Mercy Catholic Hymns Facebook Page

I am excited to announce the launch of the Mother of Mercy Catholic Hymns Facebook page. Be sure to Like this page to follow along to keep updated on current news and project developments.

A Thank You Card from Bishop Malesic

I recently sent the Most Reverend Bishop Malesic, the Bishop of Cleveland, a copy of my book, A Collection of Catholic Devotional Hymns to St. Joseph as a gift. I received this nice thank you card from him congratulating me on a job well done. Thank you and God Bless Bishop Malesic.

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