SingCon is an annual gathering of cantors, choristers, choir directors, and anyone interested in the musical tradition of the Ukrainian Greco-Catholic Church, held with the goal of advancing the state and quality of music in that Church within the English-speaking world. The weekend includes workshops on liturgical and musical topics, vocal exercises, mass choir practices, and liturgical services, including Vespers, Matins, and the Divine Liturgy. This year’s edition, which began yesterday evening, is being hosted at the church of St Elias in Brampton, Ontario, which has a well-deserved reputation for cultivating this tradition in all its fullness; the final day will be Monday, September 14, the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross.
There will be several live-streams available from the event over the few days, which you can access via the dedicated YouTube channel, a wonderful opportunity to hear some of the splendors of this rich tradition: https://www.youtube.com/@singconugccmusic/streams. There will also be a lecture by His Excellency Erik Varden OCSO, bishop of the territorial prelature of Trondheim in Norway. (Bishop Varden preached the Lenten spiritual exercises for the Pope and Curia this year.)Saturday, Sept. 12:
10am - Parastas (a prayer service for the dead)
6pm - Great Vespers
7:30pm - Lecture by Bp Varden, “ ‘He Who Sings Prays Twice’; How? ”
6pm - Great Vespers
7:30pm - Lecture by Bp Varden, “ ‘He Who Sings Prays Twice’; How? ”
Sunday, Sept. 13
8am - Matins and Hierarchical Divine Liturgy of the Sunday before the Exaltation of the Cross.
7pm - Vigil (Great Vespers, Litia, Matins) for the Universal Exaltation of the Precious and Life-giving Cross.
7pm - Vigil (Great Vespers, Litia, Matins) for the Universal Exaltation of the Precious and Life-giving Cross.
Monday, Sept. 14
9:30am - Hierarchical Divine Liturgy
