To kick off 2024, host David Ball curates a beautiful playlist of music liturgically appropriate for the month of January. The church begins each year with the Solemnity of Mary Mother of God and continues with Epiphany - the celebration of the gift of the Magi. In today’s episode, we enjoy timeless chants and hymns, music by classical composers Mendelssohn and Max Reger, and wonderful gems by American composers Leo Nestor and Julian Darius Revie. Enjoy the show and find out more about Christ Cathedral’s 2024 music offerings at ChristCathedralMusic.org

TRACKS

1 Salve Sancta Parens

2 Mary the Dawn

3 NESTOR Magnificat

4 Mendelssohn There Shall a Star

5 REGER Wie Schon

6 To Follow a Star

This beautiful performance was recorded live from Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove, California, on December 15, 2023. Feel free to look up the archived video on the Christ Cathedral Facebook page!

ChristCathedralMusic.org

https://www.facebook.com/ChristCathedralCA/videos/1187097862677608

Sounds from the Sanctuary enters the most wonderful time of the year with this episode - an invitation to Christmas at the Cathedral 2023! Sing along to your favorite sacred Christmas music, meditate on the Incarnation with a gorgeous Magnificat by Leo Nestor, and discover some amazing seasonal music especially for Harp and Children’s Choir. Find out more and reserve your tickets to Friday, December 15th’s Christmas at the Cathedral 2023 by logging on to ChristCathedralMusic.org

Changing Seasons – Fall Choral Music   

In today’s episode, Cathedral Organist David Ball brings us into his role as Director of many of the Christ Cathedral’s choirs - open to volunteer singers of all ages and even young singers in grade school who want to learn to sing! With the Fall schedule of choral pieces as a guide, David introduces us to many of the classic pieces in the sacred choral repertoire that the choirs will be singing for liturgies this season at Christ Cathedral - a diverse selection from the Sacred Music repertoire spanning from Palestrina who wrote for the Sistine Chapel hundreds of years ago to a special piece John Rutter composed this past century for his alma mater, Clare College, Cambridge. Meditate with these gorgeous selections and consider singing with us at Christ Cathedral! More info available at ChristCathedralMusic.org

Old Music from France   

Journey hundreds of years back in this episode of Sounds from the Sanctuary to the Baroque era of France, and listen to the glorious music of that special time period. Our host and Cathedral Organist David Ball guides us into this sonic experience with a curated playlist of famous recordings of French Baroque music including some tracks played twice, first on a modern instrument and then on a historic, French instrument, for the listener to compare what we typically hear as an organ sound to the sound world of seventeenth century France. The program concludes with one of the most beautiful orchestral works - Ravel's own tribute to the French Baroque tradition - his Tombeau de Couperin.

Find out more at ChristCathedralMusic.org

Cathedral organ Scholars in Concert   

Tune in to hear the next generation of organists as Christ Cathedral’s own Organ Scholars take the stage and perform on the famed Hazel Wright Organ. These young organists, all students of Cathedral Organist and Head of Music Ministry David Ball, are nationally recognized for their musical achievement. Enjoy their incredible music making and celebrate that the Hazel Wright Organ is already inspiring the future of organ and sacred music! Our organ scholars include Ethan Chow, André Lombardi, Alyce Reynaud and Hubert Tran.

Find out more at ChristCathedralMusic.org

Newport Harbor Summer

Joining David in the studio today are the musicians from Newport Harbor Lutheran Church - a wonderful community in Newport Beach with a beautiful acoustic and a pipe organ. This summer, the music director Nicholas Galinaitis, is starting a monthly concert series to feature local performers playing music in the church's nave. Also in the studio with them is Kevin Cartwright - the curator for Christ Cathedral's own Hazel Wright Organ - who serves as assisting musician at Newport Harbor Lutheran Church. Music on this episode includes favorites by Rachmaninov, two different versions of Stars and Stripes Forever, and highlights from Dr. Emma Whitten and David Ball playing the Hazel Wright Organ.

David Ball in Concert   

Juilliard-trained organist David Ball serves as Cathedral Organist and Head of Music Ministry at Christ Cathedral in the Diocese of Orange, California (formerly the Crystal Cathedral). David completed both the Bachelor and Master of Music at The Juilliard School in New York City, studying under Mr. Paul Jacobs. As part of a wide-ranging musical vision for 21st-century collaboration—a vision cultivated during his time at Juilliard—David is committed to making the “King of Instruments” play well with others.

On this very special podcast recording, we are delighted to present David Ball in Concert with the Hazel Wright Organ - Live from Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove, California!

Find out more at ChristCathedralMusic.org

Dr. Emma Whitten in Concert   

Emma Whitten is an accomplished organist specializing in early Baroque and contemporary repertoire. She performs across the United States and internationally, captivating audiences and introducing the organ to new listeners. Her programs are engaging and diverse, drawing from an extensive repertoire spanning eight centuries of organ music.

Dr. Whitten serves as Associate Organist at Christ Cathedral, where she plays for major liturgies at the Cathedral and accompanies the Diocesan Choir. In celebration of the Dedication Year of the newly-restored Hazel Wright Organ, Emma is recording her debut album, “Hazel Is Back!” to be released on Gothic Records. Emma also acts as Music Coordinator at Church of the Immaculate Conception in San Diego, and she maintains a private teaching studio in Oceanside, California. In Fall 2022, Dr. Whitten joins the faculty of Concordia University Irvine as Adjunct Professor of Organ and Church Music and Interim University Organist. 

Find out more at ChristCathedralMusic.org

May 2023 Recitals Pt. 1   

After the especially sacred seasons of Lent and Holy Week, the Year of Hazel celebrations return in May of 2023 with three concerts every other Wednesday in May! These will feature the "in-house" organists of Christ Cathedral who are normally heard playing major liturgies on the Hazel Wright Organ. Dr. Emma joins Mr. David Ball in the studio today to promote the first of this May series - Dr. Emma Whitten in concert on Wednesday evening, May 3 featuring the famed Prelude and Fugue in g minor by Marcel Dupré in honor of Virgil Fox's birthday, and other new 21st-century compositions by female composers! 
Find out more and purchase tickets at ChristCathedralMusic.org