Prelude — Adagio for Strings, Op. 11
Samuel Barber (1936), arr. Sean DeHaven · Keene State Saxophone Ensemble
Barber drew this music from the slow movement of his String Quartet, Op. 11, composed in the summer of 1936. The piece is built like a cathedral: a single melodic line begins low and unhurried, then rises patiently — voice answering voice, layer joining layer — until the whole structure trembles at its highest point and falls into silence.
We begin worship with the sound of a building under construction. The first stone is laid before a single word is spoken.
Keene State Saxophone Ensemble
| Voice | Performer |
|---|---|
| Soprano | Ash Nester |
| Alto | Quinne Richard |
| Tenor | Sharon Beaty |
| Baritone | Arrow Hines |
Introit — Musica Lapidum
Dr. Greg (2026) · choir & stones
Musica Lapidum — “Music from Stones.”
I composed this piece last week, specifically for this choir and this sermon. The choir begins by tapping rhythms on actual stones — some collected during church events, some carried in from my garden right here in downtown Keene.
This is not music about a spiritual home. It is music of one — built from the literal ground beneath our feet, voiced by the people who walk through these doors every Sunday.
Hymn of Praise — Christ Is Made the Sure Foundation
Latin, c. 7th century · tune: WESTMINSTER ABBEY (Purcell) · HPP #481, vv. 1, 2, & 4
This text traces back to an ancient Latin hymn, Urbs Beata Jerusalem — “Blessed City, Heavenly Salem.” The image is drawn from Ephesians 2: Christ as the cornerstone, the first stone laid — the one every other stone takes its bearings from.
Get it wrong, and nothing else lines up. Get it right, and a whole house can stand for centuries.
Anthem — Locus Iste
Anton Bruckner (1869) · choir & organ
Bruckner composed this motet in 1869 for the dedication of the votive chapel at the New Cathedral in Linz. The text is the Latin gradual for the consecration of a church:
Locus iste a Deo factus est, inaestimabile sacramentum, irreprehensibilis est.
This place was made by God, a priceless sacrament, beyond reproach.
Listen for Bruckner’s melodies that function like architectural building blocks — small, repeated stones locking together into something far greater than themselves.
Interlude for Reflection — My Shepherd Will Supply My Need
Isaac Watts (1719), tune: RESIGNATION · HPP #52 · organ
Isaac Watts published this paraphrase of Psalm 23 in 1719:
There would I find a settled rest, while others go and come; no more a stranger, nor a guest, but like a child at home.
This sound is the heavenly mansion as a kitchen with the light on — the door standing open, and a voice from inside saying come in, you’re home.
Offertory — I Will Arise
John L. Bell · choir & organ
Bell’s text is drawn from the parable of the Prodigal Son — the moment in Luke 15 when the wayward child sitting among the pigs finally says, “I will arise and go to my father.” It is the shortest possible journey home, because the father has been awaiting his arrival the entire time.
As you bring your offering, consider that the most radical thing this house does is keep the door open.
Closing Hymn — Let Us Build a House (All Are Welcome)
Marty Haugen (1994) · HPP #550, vv. 1, 3, & 5
Marty Haugen wrote this hymn as a vision of the church as it could be — a place “where love can dwell and all can safely live.” The refrain is the entire ethic in five words:
All are welcome in this place.
The spiritual house we build together belongs to whoever walks through the door.
Postlude — Libertango
Astor Piazzolla (1974), arr. Bernard Marillia · Keene State Saxophone Ensemble
Piazzolla composed Libertango in 1974 — the title a portmanteau of libertad (liberty) and tango. The music is driving, rhythmic, unapologetic — saxophones gleaming through the sanctuary like sunlight breaking across the threshold.
We have spent the morning building a house. Now the music sends us out of it.
A house of living stones is meant to send us dancing into the streets.