Ave Maria - 11

At the end of the day on September 8, Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, I offer you one more time the Bach-Gounod Ave Maria, sung here by soprano Jessye Norman with Orchestre de l'Opera de Lyon under the direction of Lawrence Foster. (Unfortunately, I was not able to find the name of the harpist.)

The Marianist Brothers at the University of Dayton have a superb collection of materials relating to devotion to the Blessed Virgin. Here's a link to their page on September with Mary.

If you do not know Jessye Norman's voice you will never forget it after hearing her sing here. When I hear a performance like this and consider what the human voice can produce, what the human mind and imagination can compose, what the human hand can craft for musical instruments - I wonder how anyone who hears this could not believe in God as the source of every good gift and the artist of all that is beautiful.

I'll be busy most of the day tomorrow up until the time of Evening Prayer and the concert so this is the last in this series of posts on the Ave Maria. I have thoroughly enjoyed putting this together and I'm grateful for your comments here, in email and in person.

I only wish all of my readers who are spread over the map could join us this Sunday night. I will be thinking of you and praying for you at Evening Prayer when our prayers rise like incense...

Evening Prayer at 7:00 p.m., followed by Chosen From All Women: Lauren Sprague (soprano) and Carol Messina (piano). Please join us and bring some friends with you.

Ave Maria Numbered Series