Cherryfield Congregational Church

The choir at the Cherryfield Congregational Church.

Music has always been important in Cherryfield Congregational Church. The old folks still can remember the “Star Quartet” of the early 19th century and we still find music in the cabinet marked for the Star Quartet. In recent years, we have maintained a strong and diverse music program in spite of our small size. Come on any Sunday morning and you may be surprised at our performance. If it’s summertime, Marg Small is here as choir director and can she get our group to perform like the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Marg is a concert pianist who gives master classes and concerts. In the winter, she and husband Don live near the West Point Military Academy where she is sometimes the back-up organist on the largest church organ in the world with it’s 24,000 pipes. Summers in our church, she plays one of the smallest church organs and has to manually pump it to boot. The summer choir is often 10 or more singers, often with instrument accompaniment – trumpet, flute, clarinet and even castanets and tambourines. Winters we have Malen Hsu of Ellsworth who teaches piano and voice who does a wonderful job with the fewer voices that we have.  The Sundays that Malen isn’t leading us in music,  Sepp Huber of Steuben “jazzes” us up with his music, piano, keyboard, guitar and once in a while, his signature banjo.  Thanks to both of these music makers, Cherryfield Congregational almost always has music and a choir, although in winter our choir may be a duet, trio or quartet.

Sepp Huber “jazzes” our choir up in the winter.

Our energetic summer music director, Marg Small shows off photos of the hymn sing.

Stowe, Beck and Grandfather Peter Duston play “When the Saints Go Marching In”

Don and Marg Small host a Sunday afternoon old fashioned Hymn Sing at their home on Schoppee Hill in Bedington in late July every year. This traditional event is always a hit with all who attend. Sitting in the Small’s parlor with Marg playing the upright grand, we sing and raise the roof and then enjoy a sit-down dinner prepared by Don and brother Bob and his wife, Joyce. It’s a summer hit! Before each of our church suppers in the summer, we have a brief hymn sing-along and offer music to dine by. Come and sing for your supper sometime!!!! Choir meets at 9am every Sunday before Church.

Choir Practice: Summers @ Thursday 7pm with Marg Small

Winters @ Sunday 9am with Malen Hsu

2 year old Nevaeh loves to come to church and certainly will be singing in the choir or playing music before we know it.  This past Sunday, she practiced a duet with Sepp and charmed us all.

Nevaeh practices a duet with Sepp!

Stowe Duston practices with Marg Small on the French Pocket Trumpet for Sunday morning’s music.

Malen Hsu, our winter choir director.