Music at First Parish of Watertown
When you attend a worship service at First Parish, music is one of the reasons you come back! We want music to engage your body, heart, and soul, and it is always performed live in our sanctuary. Hymn-singing and piano music in many styles are part of our weekly ministry.
Services are often enhanced by guest musicians who come from a wide variety of backgrounds, including Classical, folk, ethnic, world music, some jazz, as well as popular music and music composed by contemporary artists. Those artists are often part of our congregation or friends from the musical community in the Boston area.
The First Parish Choir meets weekly to rehearse, and we sing in a church service once per month. The 2025-2026 rehearsal calendar is here. Again, the music we sing reflects a wide variety of styles to uplift both choir members and the congregation. The choir music we sing reflects the UU monthly themes.
Musicians at First Parish often collaborate on their own, which speaks to the huge amount of talent and interest in the arts that exists in our church community. You need only look across the aisle to see someone who might be happy to create something with you for our annual variety show. This was exactly how our First Parish rock n’ roll band began. Now, the band provides and supports the music at select worship services.
Our music directors welcome input from our community about what they want our music program to be. Please feel free to approach us!
Hand in Hand Hospice Singers serve the wider community in Watertown and beyond. Sponsored by First Parish, this group travels to hospice sites to sing for people who are ill or at the ends of their lives, bringing joy and serenity to their days. They rehearse weekly.
Musically Speaking Blog
Updates and reflections from Charlyn Bethell, Music Director
Musically Speaking – May 2020
It occurred to me that all churches right now must be doing online services. I do not believe that any church would just stop all operations, especially during a pandemic when they are so needed. HOW they do the online services might be quite different. So, I...
Musically Speaking – April 2020
As I sit to write this, I admit to being at a loss for words. The world has changed. But what hasn’t changed is that music has never been more important.
Musically Speaking – March 2020
Abundance is our theme of the month, and I celebrate all of us as artists with recognition and gratitude. I am serious that I think we are all artists! Special about us is that we are active in the church community and the general community at large as we share our...
Musically Speaking – February 2020
When I think of my identity and sense of belonging in the world, it all centers around music. There is no question that music moves my spirit and that music is essential to my life. Music has sustained me through the good times and the challenging ones. I basically...
Musically Speaking – January 2020
February 2nd is a day filled with history from the British Isles, as Candlemas, Imbolg, and/or Groundhog Day. It is exactly half-way between Winter solstice and the Spring Equinox. Its roots are from the pagan and Christian beliefs about the end of Christmastide and...