39 members of the Saint Michael's College Liturgical Ensemble and Singers will sing at Mass in four locations over three days, Feb. 3, 4, and 5, in Portland and Westbrook, Maine. The singers will be accompanied by the Rev. Brian J. Cummings, SSE, Director of Campus Ministry at Saint Michael's, who will say Mass at each location, and by Jerome Monachino, Associate Director of Edmundite Campus Ministry for Liturgical Ministry, who directs the singers.
They will sing "Salumu Maria," an African Folk Hymn, the Hail Mary in Sawhili, arranged by Jerome Monachino, as well as a number of other selections.
The Mass schedule with the singers and Rev. Brian Cummings, SSE, as principal celebrant, is as follows:
Friday, February 3, Mass at 9 a.m. at Cheverus High School, Portland
Friday, February 3, Mass at 1 p.m. at McAauley High School, Portland
Saturday, February 4, Mass at 4 p.m. at St. Patrick Church, 1342 Congress St. Portland
Sunday, February 5, Mass at 9 a.m. at St. Hyacinth Church, 268 Brown Street, Westbrook
The high school Masses will coincide with the end of Catholic Schools week in our nation.
The Saint Michael's Liturgical Choir and Ensemble performs in its own eclectic and popular musical style, using a combination of African, Brazilian, and American Swing flavors to compliment traditional hymn singing. Guided by their mission of inspiring sung prayer, they perform with great enthusiasm. The group was one of the select few choirs invited to perform for Pope John Paul II at World Youth Day in Denver, Colo., in 1993.