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Social and Political oppression will often try to stop art from being created. In a sense, music that comes in these circumstances, has a unique longing and joy to it. Could it be that this music longs for ultimate justice? Join us for this concert as we explore this idea in music.

Featured in this concert are a group of wonderful artists of local and international acclaim. The concert will feature solo, chamber music and dynamic singing. This is an audience friendly program in which the performers will be explaining the pieces before they play them. You will not want to miss this free concert with a reception to follow. Below the artist listing is a sampling of the music that will be performed.

Artists:

Graeme Burgan is a passionate and versatile pianist working within opera, chamber music, musical theatre, and jazz. He has performed in collaboration with artists Alan Held, Margaret Cusack, Timothy Bentch, Steven Condy, Robin Massie, Nick Parnell, and Samuel Hsu, and at events including the Adelaide Fringe Festival, Bundaleer Forest Weekend, and Woodend Winter Arts Festival. Graeme has also appeared at the Melbourne Recital Center, the Resonate Concert Series at the Art Gallery of New South Wales and Friday Musicale in Jacksonville, Florida.
As a répétiteur, Graeme has worked with the State Opera of South Australia, University of Adelaide, University of South Australia and Westminster Opera Theater where he assisted Daniel Beckwith as chorus master. As a chorister, Graeme has performed with the Adelaide Chamber Singers, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, the Westminster Symphonic Choir, the Philadelphia Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic, singing under the batons of Carl Crossin, Paul Hillier, Joe Miller, Arvo Volmer, Christoph Eschenbach and Ton Koopman. Graeme is a staff accompanist and vocal coach at Westminster Choir College where he accompanies for the voice studios of Sharon Sweet, Laura Brooks Rice, Sally Wolf, Scott McCoy, Amy Zorn, Carolann Page, Claudia Catania, Katherine Johnson and Nova Thomas.

He is also the director of music at Hilltown Baptist Church and the Hilltown Creative Arts Academy. Piano teachers include Samuel Hsu, James Correnti, Graham Williams, JJ Penna, Daniel Beckwith and Dalton Baldwin.

Cellist Daniel Delaney is an acclaimed classical and cross-over artist with a “contagious and vibrant spirit”, whose performances have been called “highly relevant” and “compelling”.  Recognized for his performances of the Dvorak Cello Concerto and the J.S. Bach Suites for Solo Cello, he has also been praised for his work in rock and musical theatre.  The Philadelphia Inquirer praised him as a “master musician… a pleasure to hear.”  Broadway World Magazine called him a “world-class cellist” and Edge New York an “inspired choice” for his performances in the MAC (Manhattan Academy of Cabaret) Award-winning musical-cabaret Hot Mess in Manhattan (2008-2012). 

Mr. Delaney holds the Master of Music degree in Cello from Mannes College of Music in New York, and the Bachelor of Music degree in Cello from the University of Northern Colorado.  His chamber music mentors have included pianist Victor Rosenbaum and the Alexander, Orion, and Takaćs string quartets.  His teachers have included violinist Kimberly Fisher and cellists Paul Tobias, James Fittz, Owen Carman, Timothy Eddy, Darrett Adkins, and Ron Leonard.

Celebrated as a versatile recording artist, Mr. Delaney is credited with performances on contemporary pop projects by Elvira Nikolaisen (SONY), mewithoutYou (Tooth and Nail), Twin Sister (Domino), Sharon Kenny, Dan May, Little Grey Girlfriend, and many others.

Mr. Delaney has served on music faculties at the Csehy Summer School of Music (Houghton, NY), the Frontier Academy (Greeley, CO), and Philadelphia Biblical University (Langhorne, PA).  He has held principal cello positions with the Wilmington Ballet Company, Manhattan Chamber Symphonee, New York’s Ensemble 212, and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestra.

A lover of collaborative interpretation and chamber music, Mr. Delaney devotes a great deal of energy to cultivating working relationships with other like-minded artists.  He has performed extensively as soloist and chamber musician throughout Europe, Canada, and the United States, most recently with pianist Bethany Brooks as the Brooks-Delaney Duo.  He is cellist for the hit musical, Hot Mess in Manhattan, and performs frequently in New York City with cross-over collaborators Sharon Kenny, Vince Peterson (Choral Chameleon, NYC), and many others.

Mr. Delaney plays a beautiful modern American cello, made by L. Bowers in 1989.

Visit www.dandelaney.com.

Benjamin Harding, pianist, was born and raised in Dipper Harbour, New Brunswick, Canada, a small fishing village on the Bay of Fundy. At an early age he studied piano with his grandmother Juanita Spragg and then finished the Associate Diploma with the Royal Conservatory of Music under the tutelage of Carol O’Neil. While studying with Samuel Hsu at Philadelphia Biblical University, he completed Bachelor Degrees in Bible and piano performance. Benjamin has a Masters and Professional Studies Degrees in piano performance from Manhattan School of Music where he studied with Nina Svetlanova. He is currently a doctoral student at the University of Maryland in piano performance as a student of Bradford Gowen.

In previous seasons he has collaborated with such artists as violinist, Anthea Kreston, and cellist, Kangho Lee. He has recently been seen in performances in Hartford, New York, Rochester, College Park and at the Karamoor Festival. He was formally on staff at the Hartt School at the University of Hartford as collaborative pianist. He is also a faculty member at the Csehy Summer School of Music where he met Marji.

Kristine Biller Mattson’s professional career continues to climb with an acclaimed performance of Carmina Burana with Helena Symphony. She recently received rave reviews in Johnstown, PA while singing an Opera Gala with Maestro Istvan Jaray. Last year she performed The Lord Nelson Mass in Philadelphia with orchestra members from the Philadelphia Orchestra and Curtis Institute. She recently delivered a moving performance in  Górecki’s powerful Symphony No. 3 with the North Penn Symphony.  Last spring she performed The Bells with the Helena Symphony, The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace with the Rockham Symphony in Detroit and the Mahler 2^nd with the North Penn Symphony. She was casted in the acclaimed, Margaret Garner as Caroline with Michigan Opera Theater and toured the production inChicago as well. She shared the stage with renowned mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves who sang the title role. TheChicago Sun acclaimed: “Kristine Biller Mattson is a lovely soprano and one to look for in the future.” TheWindyCity stated: “Ms. Mattson’s voice possessed smoky depths with bell-like highs while maintaining a spine of steel on stage.” This year, she has already performed Adina in L’Elisir d’Amore, and has sung the soprano soloist in the Beethoven’s C Major Mass and the Verdi Requiem.

In the spring of 2008, Kristine was selected to perform a concert in honor of Ms. Ruth Ann Swenson. In the winter 2007, Kristine performed Micaela with the Helena Symphony. She returned to Philadelphiaand was chosen to sing for The Voice Foundation, honoring amongst others, Mr. Robert Goulet and Ms. Harolyn Blackwell. In the fall 2007, Kristine sang with the Opera Company of Philadelphia in Hansel and Gretel as the Sandmännchen. This is her fourth role with the Opera Company of Philadelphia. Her other roles include Frasquita in Carmen, soprano lead, Wanda in the Grand Duchess of Gerolstein and Caroline in the world premiere-tour of Margaret Garner. Because of these opportunities, Kristine has shared the stage with singers like Stephanie Blythe, Denyce Graves, and Angela Brown, to name a few. She has sung Clorinda in La Cenerentola with Michigan Opera Theater opposite another well-known mezzo, Ms. Vivica Genaux. In the fall, 2005 she sang another world premiere piece, The Happy Prince, with Kentucky Opera.

Kristine placed 2^nd in the Florida Grand Competition in 2004. She graduated from Indiana University in May, 2002. While attending Indiana with a full scholarship, she was selected to perform five leading roles. She began performing within two months of being there in Carmen as Micaela, followed by Mimi in La Bohème, Princess Ninetta in Love for Three Oranges, Adina in L’Elisir d’Amore and Manon in Manon. She also won the Palm Beach Opera Competition twice: placing 2^nd and 4^th.  While still in undergraduate school she began her professional career with Opera Roanoke singing Second Lady in Die Zauberflöte. She went on to sing with them several times thereafter.

Kristine gives all the glory and praise to God. She is blessed to be used by Him and thankful for all He has given her.

Sara Seglem-Hocking holds Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from Oklahoma City University. She continued her graduate work at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia where she completed a four-year program of intensive operatic and vocal training. Ms. Seglem-Hocking is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Music at the University of Delaware and has taught voice at Haverford and Bryn Mawr colleges in Pennsylvania.

Ms. Seglem-Hocking has won acclaim on operatic stages and concert platforms across the United States. She made her professional debut as Zerlina in Don Giovanni opposite Sherrill Milnes with Palm Beach Opera, a company to which she returned as both Pamina in The Magic Flute and Violetta in La Traviata. She appeared with the Santa Fe Opera for three summers as part of its apprentice program. Ms. Seglem-Hocking has also performed principal roles with the Santa Fe Opera, as well as the Opera Company of Philadelphia, the Dallas Opera, Indianapolis Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City and Arizona Opera. She has sung leading roles with OperaDelaware, Buffalo Opera, the Oklahoma Opera Theater and the Pennsylvania Opera Theater.

As an orchestral soloist, Ms. Seglem-Hocking has sung Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Delaware Symphony Orchestra, Dalila in Handel’s Samson with the Baltimore Choral Arts Society and Mozart’s Mass in C Minor at Carnegie Hall, as well as principal roles in concerts with symphonies in California and Ohio.

Ms. Seglem-Hocking maintains a voice studio in her home, and she is active in music ministries at Faith Baptist Church of Wilmington as both vocal and flute soloist and as leader of the children’s chorus and women’s small ensemble.

Shelby Sender is a candidate for the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance at the University of Maryland.  A student of Mayron Tsong and Bradford Gowen, Shelby is active as both a solo and collaborative pianist.  In March 2012, she performed in Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall as a part of the Adamant School of Music’s 70th Anniversary Concert.  Shelby was featured in a 2011 festival at Ithaca College commemorating the 200th anniversary of Franz Liszt’s birth, and she recently gave world premieres of works by Walter Gieseking at the American Musicological Society’s 2009 annual conference.  She was the concert accompanist for the Washington Youth Choir from 2008-2009, and has appeared on multiple occasions with the Annapolis Chamber Players.  Shelby can be heard on an upcoming Centaur recording of unpublished works by Walter Gieseking, playing both solo and chamber music.  As an alternate for a Fulbright Grant to Hungary, she studied during the 2010/2011 academic year under Kálmán Dráfi at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest.  Shelby received her Master of Music degree from the University of Maryland and her Bachelor of Music degree from Ithaca College.  She currently coordinates the class piano program at the University of Maryland, where she also teaches class piano and gives private lessons to piano minors.

Gary Seydell has performed in regional opera houses throughout the United States and Italy and has been a soloist with several orchestras including the Buffalo Philharmonic, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Delaware Symphony Orchestra, Newark Symphony, and Northern Kentucky Symphony. He currently holds the position of Assistant Director of Academic Advising at Wilmington University.  The 2011-2012 season finds Mr. Seydell as a featured artist with Opera Delaware’s Studio Series and Rodolfo in La Boheme with Winter Opera of St. Louis and The Southern Ilinois Music Festival. Mr. Seydell earned a B.A. in Voice from the University of Delaware, a M.M. in Vocal Performance and an Artist Diploma in Opera from the University of Cincinnati. He performs regularly throughout Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He resides in Newark, Delaware.

Since his solo debut with Stephen Gunzenhauser at the Delaware Symphony Orchestra’s Opening Night Gala, violinist Benjamin Shute has given numerous performances internationally as concerto soloist, recitalist and chamber musician.  He is also frequently called upon as orchestral leader on both modern and period instruments, serving most recently as concertmaster of the Boston Chamber Orchestra.

A native of Wilmington, he received early instruction from Kathleen Hastings and Lee Snyder before matriculating at the New England Conservatory as an undergraduate student of Masuko Ushioda, during which time he also participated in performance courses in Orford, Québec and Salzburg, Austria.  He subsequently undertook two years of graduate study with Berlin Philharmonic first-concertmaster Rainer Kussmaul in Freiburg im Breisgau (Germany), where the Rhine Valley meets the mountains of the fabled Black Forest.  Returning to the States, he again entered the New England Conservatory as a doctoral student of Lucy Chapman, founding and directing the NEC Early Music Society and from time to time leading classes in such subjects as 16th-century counterpoint, solfège, harmony, and various topics in music history.  In addition, he has served on the faculties of festivals in Italy, Japan, and the USA, including the Csehy Summer School of Music at Houghton College, to which he returns yearly. When not engaged in musical activities, he enjoys outdoor activities and writes for the Center for Gospel Culture and the Deep Down Things.

Our approach to this challenge over the past several years has been to have large events for men in the fall and in the spring. We encourage all men to attend, whether or not it is their custom. The goal of these events are to challenge men through topics at hand, encourage men through the fellowship that they experience, and provide opportunity for continued fellowship and service. These events are efficient and highly focused–otherwise men will not attend. We have developed a positive reputation among our brothers in the community and often have men from other churches attend.

In the past several years, the large group events had been followed by a series of Saturday morning studies. These studies were successful in engaging more men spiritually. As a result, more men became ministry leaders, Sunday School teachers, elders, deacons, and youth workers. We also formed a new ministry that required more male leadership from this same pool of men–the Elevation Community Groups. With so many men from these Saturday morning studies being called upon for additional time and leadership, the short term strategic decision was made to stop doing the follow up series on Saturday mornings.

Paul Veenema and Benjamin Harding provide leadership to the Men’s Ministry from the Session and Staff respectively. Many other men have been vital to implementing the large events, small group series and Door of Hope Fundraiser Golf Tournaments. Currently a team of men in our congregation is exploring how we can better equip men to serve Christ faithfully in our culture. I expect that this team will be bringing forward special events (and perhaps a few ongoing series) that raise awareness among our men for the need for Christian leadership and provide opportunities for them to grow in that leadership. I look forward to another year of seeing how God deploys men to serve him in our church and community.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Jay

Our Christmas Sunday morning service will be at 10:45AM.  This will be a short, family friendly service.  We will not have Sunday School.  During the service, our children’s choir and orchestra will be singing Jesus, Joy of Highest Heaven. This Sunday will be a wonderful time for us to gather on the Lord’s Day to celebrate our Saviors birth.

The Unreached Will Be Reached

Ancient Stories and Timeless Truths

An engaging, timeless and relevant sermon series Sunday mornings from November 27 through December 25 at 10:45am.

Child of God – Dec 4th, 6pm

A service by our children and youth celebration the coming of Christ. Children can come at 5:15pm to make ornaments which will be seen and used in the Christmas program at 6pm. This is for our community and entire church family! There will be singing, playing from our Junior Bell Choir, Youth Orchestra, Flute Choir and singing from our Sunday School Children’s Choir and soloists. A reception will follow.

A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols – Dec 11th, 6pm

Our Chancel Choir will be accompanied by a full orchestra in this special service of music and readings. This traditional service has been celebrated since Christmas Eve 1918 at King’s College, Cambridge. Through choral and instrumental music, readings of Scripture and congregational singing, the full redemption story will be told and experienced. Come for an exceptional evening of music in the life of our church at 6pm on December 11.

Candlelight Christmas Eve – Dec. 24th, 7pm

A beautiful service lit by candlelight at 7pm. Join us for a service pointing us all to the real reason of the Advent Season.

New Year’s Eve – Dec 31st, 7pm

Begin the new year worshiping the risen King with us.

1. Lack of thankfulness is a foundational sin, beneath other sins. (Rom 1:18-25). Therefore, thanksgiving should be cultivated, practiced. You can grow in this area if it is not your disposition.
2. Paul says that we are to give thanks in all circumstances. (1st Thess 5:16-17) Some sets of circumstances are obviously more challenging than others.
3. If it is a sinful temptation to make good things ultimate, and God’s judgment is seen in giving some over to their desires (Romans 1:18-25), then we can be thankful to God when he has either taken what we loved or not given what we wanted. He is protecting us.
4. Romans 8:32—All the wrath of the Father was laid on the Son for us. Nothing that comes to the believer is from a disposition of wrath–the Son bore all of that wrath. All we face is under the loving hand of our Father, to bless us and grow us. Therefore, we can be thankful to God in the midst of bad situations, even those wherein we may have been wronged. We don’t have to be thankful for bad things, but can be thankful to God and for Christ and the work of the Spirit in our lives. God is for us, not against us. He is working lovingly for our good in all things, so we can be thankful in all things.

Here is the link to the sermon, entitled Commitment Phobia.

Toward the end of this sermon Rankin quotes from an essay by Page Benton Brown which highlights some of the wrong thinking that exists in the church when it comes to singleness. The whole essay can be found here. Here is an excerpt:

Warped theology is at the heart of attempts to “explain” singleness:

“As soon as you’re satisfied with God alone, he’ll bring someone special into your life”—as though God’s blessings are ever earned by our contentment.
“You’re too picky”—as though God is frustrated by our fickle whims and needs broader parameters in which to work.
“As a single you can commit yourself wholeheartedly to the Lord’s work”—as though God requires emotional martyrs to do his work, of which marriage must be no part.
“Before you can marry someone wonderful, the Lord has to make you someone wonderful”—as though God grants marriage as a second blessing to the satisfactorily sanctified.
Accepting singleness, whether temporary or permanent, does not hinge on speculation about answers God has not given to our list of whys, but rather on celebration of the life he has given. I am not single because I am too spiritually unstable to possibly deserve a husband, nor because I am too spiritually mature to possibly need one. I am single because God is so abundantly good to me, because this is his best for me. It is a cosmic impossibility that anything could be better for me right now than being single, The psalmists confirm that I should not want, I shall not want, because no good thing will God withhold from me.