The fine arts play a major role in the life of The Chicago Temple. The Temple Choir sings at all major worship services during the heart of the church year. Directed by Erik Nussbaum, it is composed of volunteer choristers anchored by professional section leaders.

The organ in the sanctuary is a four-manual Skinner-Wicks instrument with 92 ranks of pipes. Katie Ann McCarty is the organist. In addition, the Temple's services are enriched by the contributions of the Temple Handbell Ensemble, the Joyful Noise Children's Choir, and the Temple Strings.

 
Joyful Noise Children’s Choir
This cheerful ensemble is for elementary school children who love to sing and express their praise through music.  Your children will learn many of the songs and hymns of the United Methodist church, and will be taught basic music skills in the process, often using instruments that inspire creative play.  The choir sings in worship five times each year anthems suitable for Children’s Sabbath, Children’s Nativity, Black History, Palm Sunday, and Mother’s Day.  Practice begins at 9:30am on Sunday in the 4th Floor Choir Room.

 
Youth Handchime Ensemble       
This brand new group is open to all 6th through 12th graders who have an interest in playing handchimes and handbells.  They meet at 9:30am every Sunday in the youth music room adjacent to the 3rd floor choir room.

 
Chicago Temple Choir
Led by eight section leaders, the 35-voice Temple Choir continues to grow.  The choir learns and sings music from all eras of music history and from many of the world’s cultures that is appropriate for both the season and the liturgy of the day.  Our repertoire is vast and worldly, and we sing in many languages.  The choir enhances our worship greatly by leading in hymn singing, presenting anthems, and often solos every Sunday during the 11:00am service.  Rehearsals are every Wednesday evening from 6:00pm to 8:00pm in the 3rd Floor Choir Room.

 
Chicago Temple Choir Section Leaders
The Choir’s section leaders are:  Julia Tarlo and Karen Nussbaum, soprano; Rachel Fry and Erin Wieneke, alto; Adam Doe and Jim Parsons, tenor; and John Gauthier and Bob Trautvetter, bass.  The section leader octet sings together in worship at 8:30am for the second, fourth, and fifth Sundays of each month.  However, it is because of their excellence as soloists that they are most admired and enjoyed by our congregation.  Being a section leader requires a commitment of one year, and they are called upon regularly to sing for weddings, memorials, and other special events in the artistic life of the Temple.      

 
Gospel Choir
The 12-voice Gospel Choir sings the authentic music of the African-American tradition, past and present.  They learn music in the oral tradition and rarely use printed music.  The ensemble sings during the 8:30am worship services on the first and third Sunday of each month.  They rehearse every Tuesday evening from 6:15pm to 8:00pm in the 3rd Floor Choir Room.  They are led by Kelly Tiebout at the piano and Brad Opland on bass, and are anchored by four section leaders: Jennifer Booth, soprano; Denise Yates, alto; James E. Jones II, tenor; Khary Laurent, bass.

 
Temple String Ensemble
The Temple String Ensemble is led by a professional violinist, and sustained by amateurs of various age and skill levels.  They provide excellent music for worship in a variety of ways:  as soloists, as an ensemble, and as a chamber ensemble supporting a soloist or the choir.  They rehearse regularly either at 9:30am or at 12:15pm in the choir room on Sundays.

 
Temple Handbell Ensemble
The majority of the Temple’s eleven-member Handbell Ensemble have been playing together for four years.  They play a wide variety of sacred music with a 3 octave set of Schulmerich Brass bells.  They rehearse on Monday evening from 6:00pm to 7:00pm and play in worship for the 11:00am service on the second Sunday of each month.

 
Devotional Dance Ensemble
The Devotional Dance Ensemble arose to become an important part of the Fine Arts Ministry at the Temple because their strong common interest encouraged them to act.  The Devotional Dancers share their art with the congregation in worship on an as-inspired basis, and rehearse together when the call summons.  Look forward to the establishment of a spring dance recital with live music in Pierce Hall, and please introduce yourself to Mr. Nussbaum if you are interested in participating.

 
WDW Fine Arts
The William D. White Fine Arts Committee has sought to establish and strengthen significant relationships with the artistic and cultural organizations of the city of Chicago. 

The Chicago Humanities Festival, the Chicago Children’s Choir, the Merit School of Music, the Department of Cultural Affairs, the Chicago Historical Society, and the School of the Art Institute all are in association with us in making rough places plain where divisions divide.  Through the gifts established, such distinguished artists as:  Kurt Elling, Jim Post, Jeremy Taylor, The Millenium Chamber Players, Celebration Strings, Josephine Lee, the Chicago Brass Band, Willie Pickens, 1000 Generations, Mariachi Sol de Oro, The Lakeside Singers, and The Apollo Chorus have all shared generously their unique gifts with our congregation and those who live and work in the Loop. 

The Fine Arts Committee is chaired by Jon Kaplan, and currently has twenty members.  

 
Film and Faith
Film and Faith class is an occasional discussion group that attempts to think about our lives in terms of one current popular art form – the movies – and subject it to theological categories.  About half of the people participating are not church members, and some come from other churches to be part of these discussions.

The group started last winter with a discussion of The Constant Gardener, in which the role of pharmaceutical companies’ experimentations in the Third World plays a major role.  In North Country, we looked at labor and misogyny in the Northern Minnesota mining region.  We held three discussions on different days for The Chronicles of Narnia, and had widely different reactions to the famous child’s book and its prescription for peace and how violence plays a role in the Christian resolution of problems.  Brokeback Mountain lead to a striking discussion not only of how homosexuality plays a role in individual lives, and sometimes breaks lives apart, but how it impacts the people who are part of the circle of lives with whom the participants live.  We also got a chance to talk in depth about the policy of our denomination with regard to homosexuality.

We teamed with the Friends of the Earth group in our church to discuss Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth, and to talk about global warming policy and how it impacts our planet in an invigorating discussion. The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada  allowed us to talk about the realities of immigration, but also the mysteries of grace and forgiveness.   We rented Crash and showed it, then discussed it in terms of how much racial progress is being made in America, a topic that with the “Borat” and Larry Richard  controversies seems prescient.  But we also talked about forgiveness and penitence and the power of an unconventional Holy Spirit to change lives.

After every discussion, I have received comments that there often is not enough time in everyday life to explore these kinds of topics, nor a group that meets to think about them in a Christian context.  I think that that is reason enough for our efforts.   --Gerald Forshey 

 
Faith Writers
The Faith Writers provide an open sanctuary for writers of all faith-based traditions who seek often to focus their creativity on religious and spiritual themes.  It is a very welcoming group that, through sharing, reading, and discussion of personal work, as well as the writing of others, explores the myriad ways God speaks to and through us.  Discussions center on poetry, stories, journaling, and family history, and aren’t limited by words specifically about faith.  They meet regularly on the fourth Thursday of the month.

 
Silk Road Theatre Project
The SRTP showcases playwrights of Asian, Middle Eastern, and Mediterranean backgrounds, whose works address themes relevant to the peoples of the Silk Road and their Diaspora communities. 

Through the creation and presentation of outstanding theater, their aim is, “to promote discourse and dialogue among culturally diverse audiences in Chicago.”  SRTP is a creative response to the attacks of September 11, 2001.  Company co-founders and life partners, Malik Gillani and Jamil Khoury, felt galvanized to respond to the anti-Arab and anti-Muslim sentiments that swept the U.S. in the aftermath of the attacks.  Chicago’s first ever theater company dedicated to representing such diverse peoples and cultures, has made the Chicago Temple their artistic home. 

Look for the purple brochure to learn more about the outstanding artists of the Silk Road Theatre Project, and please visit their website, www.srtp.org, to see about their season of plays, playwright discussions, and many other related events.

"Come and see…"
(John 1:46)