Music and Art
Artistic expressions should evoke, edify, enhance, and expand worshipers’ consciousness of the reality and grace of God. We respond through creative expressions in music, art, language, and movement. Artistic creations awaken us to God’s presence.Music Soothes the Soul
Whether it’s a small gathering in the Commons during Lent, or a packed Sanctuary service on Christmas Eve, music is a major element of our worship experience together. Our musicians help to lead and shape the worship service, but we are also connected to the congregation as opposed to a separate, ‘performing’ group. The opportunity to participate in any group is open to all.
You never know what style of music will be featured any Sunday at First Presbyterian. We are grateful to have many talented musicians and vocalists in our church family who enrich our lives through music. Come share your talents with us!
Music is an important element of our church life and the FPC-SSP Choir is at the heart of it! Choir is open to all youth and adults. We sing a wide variety of music from classical anthems to social justice songs and everything in between. We help lead worship most Sundays September-May and rehearse once a week.
Christian Education on Sunday mornings starts with a special Children’s music time for all children Pre-K through 5th grade. We do warm-ups, listen to music, learn some basic music fundamentals, and sing songs. There is an opportunity to participate in worship occasionally.
Bells of Praise is for youths through adults. Some music reading experience is helpful. This dedicated group works hard, but we have a lot of fun too! We provide a variety of music for worship once a month and rehearse once a week.
Jubilation Ringers is for children grade 3 and older. Bells are a fun way to learn the finer points of music reading, or expand on knowledge learned through piano or instrumental instruction. We meet once a week on a seasonal basis.
We welcome new ringers at any point in the year. Come join us – bad music puns are welcome here!
Drumming Circle is a great way to unwind at the end of the day. It is open to middle school students through adults. Bring your own drum if you have one, or we have a nice selection to choose from.
Solos/Ensembles come together to perform throughout the year. Our worship experience often includes a variety of other instrumental performances such as flute, cello, violin, piano, and guitar as well as combinations of these. Small vocal ensembles and soloists are also featured occasionally.
Join Us
New members are welcome to join our music groups at any time of the year. If you’re interested, contact our Music Director Linda Kachelmeier at music@fpcssp.org or 651-451-6223.
Art as Worship
As people of God we respond to God’s call through creative expressions in architecture, furnishings, appointments, vestments, visual arts, music, drama, language and movement. Here at First Presbyterian, our worship services often include the use of different art forms including poetry, movement and dance, photography, readers theater, fabric art, visual art, and more.
Art helps people engage their imagination; it challenges understanding; furthers the exploration of ecological issues; social injustice; and ideas about (belonging (as in LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC).
Art enhances relationships in the local arts community and in other religious communities in our area. We partnered with the Jewish Women Artists’ Council to exhibit the art of its members. They offered several classes at our church and we ended our three-month collaboration with a joint worship service in which we used their beautiful pottery for communion while their paintings still hung in our sanctuary.
Our gallery includes walls in the sanctuary, commons area, classrooms, the office, and the library. Exhibitors are all Minnesota-based artists. The art work includes different media including fabric quilting, oil, acrylic, pencil, ink and photography.
Rotating exhibits change on average quarterly, and we are building a permanent collection that contains works by well known artists such as He Qi and Paul Granlund.
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