Awake! Arise! Voices of Trinity Church

A new recording featuring the choirs of Trinity Church, Copley Square, Boston

Richard Webster, Conductor

Colin Lynch & Ross Wood, Organists 

O Holy night!

"Highest version ever"

(sung by Ryan Williams and Simon Sivers, trebles)

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HYMNS

arranged by Richard Webster 

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Heaven Comes to Earth

The sublime singing of the Grand Rapids Choir of Men and Boys is gorgeously displayed on this new recording, featuring works of Parry, Rutter, Archer, Stopford, Wesley, Webster and more. Though they claim no ecclesiastical affiliation, this superb choir offers the finest in sacred music, elegantly sung. This magnificent ensemble would be the pride of any city. 

An inside look at the recording session 

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Richard Webster

Richard Webster -- composer, church musician, choral conductor and organist -- is Director of Music and Organist at Trinity Church, Copley Square, Boston. As a composer and arranger he is in demand for several commissioned works a year. His hymn arrangements for brass, percussion, organ and congregation are heard across the English-speaking world, including the CBC's annual Christmas and Easter broadcasts and BBC's "Songs of Praise." A new recording from Taiwan features his hymn settings sung in Chinese.  

At Trinity, Boston, he has led the Trinity Choristers and Schola on two tours to England, with residencies at Lincoln, Ely, Chichester and St. Paul's Cathedrals. Richard is Music Director of Chicago's Bach Week Festival, featuring some of the nation's most acclaimed musicians. Sought after as a choral clinician, he has led choir courses and workshops across the U.S. and South Africa. In 2011, he was awarded the honorary Fellowship of the Royal School of Church Music (FRSCM) in England. 

He has performed and recorded as organist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in works from the Saint-Saens Organ Symphony to Ives’ Fourth Symphony. He is the Organist and Choirmaster Emeritus of the Parish Church of Saint Luke in Evanston, Illinois, where, from 1974 to 2003 he directed the Choir of Men and Boys, the Girls Choir, Adult Schola and the St. Luke’s Singers in a program widely respected and emulated. The restoration of the celebrated 1922 Ernest M. Skinner organ at St. Luke’s was accomplished under his leadership.

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Host a Hymn Festival

Under the direction of Richard Webster, hymn festivals featuring his hymn settings for brass, organ, choirs and congregation are held in cities across the country, and meet with resounding success. 

What do YOU need to host a hymn festival in your city? 

• Five to eight accomplished brass players and a timpanist
• A dedicated choir - perhaps a massed ensemble drawn from area churches
• An organist who plays hymns in the "symphonic" style
• A fine organ in a favorable acoustic 
• A crowd of people who love to sing hymns!

To plan your hymn festival, choir workshop, or organ recital, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . 

A church musician's perspective on the Boston bombings.

Read Jason Overall's article about Richard Webster in The Diapason magazine - "A church musician's perspective on the Boston Bombings".

Commission a work by Richard Webster

Many of the works in the Advent Press catalog are the result of commissions -- from churches, colleges, dioceses, the American Guild of Organists, the Association of Anglican Musicians, municipalities or individuals. Perhaps you would like to mark a festival service, the dedication of a new church or organ, or other special occasion with a new composition or hymn arrangement. The memory of a loved one can also be honored by the creation of a new sacred work.  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to discuss these and other possibilities.