MARBLEHEAD – Recording artist/songwriter Bob Franke and other musicians will perform Franke’s “Meditations on the Passion,” known familiarly as the “Good Friday Cantata,” Friday, 8 p.m., at the Church of St. Andrew.
Vocal and instrumental performers from New England and beyond will participate in the annual cantata, which offers songs about Christ’s Passion as well as songs about contemporary people who have faced figurative crucifixion. In addition to the St. Andrew’s choir, vocalists include Howard Bursen, Franke, Martin Grosswendt, Chuck Hall, Reggie Harris, Doug Johnson, John Kirk, Kate Katzberg, Sally Rogers, Kate Seeger, Cosy Sheridan and Kim Wallach. Instrumentalists include Paul Combs, Joshua Levin-Epstein and Dave Mattacks, as well as Grosswendt, Kirk and Franke.
The cantata, first performed at St. Andrew’s on Good Friday in 1980, has been performed there nearly every year since. Franke said “Many friends from the music world as well as many fine singers from the parish have been with the production throughout its lifetime. You will find the names of various cast members and musicians over the years on some of the finest recordings and writing in the classical, pop, folk and jazz worlds.”
“Although the story we retell here is at the core of Christianity, it is not necessarily about being a Christian,” Franke continued. “It’s about being human in the presence of the Divine, and it’s about the presence of Redemption in the midst of the most horrific and tragic dimensions of the human condition.”
The Rev. C. Clyde Elledge, rector at St. Andrew’s, said “This is art, but it is also a true offering of Midrash, that is, commentary on the scripture.”
The Church of St. Andrew is at 135 Lafayette St. Donations ($15 suggested) will be accepted at the door. For more information, call the church office, 781-631-4951, or visit www.standrewsmhd.org.
