Music

FIRST MUSIC celebrates the musical diversity of the Gate City, and the rich musical heritage found at The First Church of Nashua. Artists from across the United States and Canada bring their musical talents to FIRST MUSIC in a wide variety of literature.

Our 16^th Anniversary season offers four Sunday afternoon concerts, two Friday chapel organ mediation programs and one collaborative music offering within Sunday morning worship services.

ALL 7 programs are free admission through the philanthropy of the FRIENDS OF FIRST MUSIC with our opening concert sponsored by Edward and Suzanne Boyd. Our Series is now open to ALL, without ticket or free-will offerings! We hope this will inspire you even more to come and see what FIRST MUSIC is all about: Bringing the Joy of Music to the Gate City.

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First Music Concerts 2023-2024 Season Preview

Past Seasons Concerts

Please check our calendar for Upcoming Concert Series!

An Expression of Christian Faith in Song

Hymnody– the practice of singing hymns- is the foundation for all music at The First Church. Whether accompanied by the Anderson Memorial Organ, or sung a cappella (unaccompanied) in smaller worship services: hymnody is integral to the long-standing tradition of strong congregational participation in our worship experience.

The body of hymns produced for the modern Congregational tradition date as far back as chant-tunes from the early Christian church, through post-Reformation hymn influences from Germany, France and England; to more contemporary American contributions in the 19th through early 21st century.

The First Church music ministry and its congregation are proud to continue use of The Pilgrim Hymnal, as the primary source for its hymnody in the 21st century. The hymnal’s rich Christian tradition in both melody and lyric continues to inspire. Based on church season and in coordination with weekly scripture passages found in The Revised Common Lectionary, our hymn planning weaves the fabric of word and song together, allowing music and scripture to be unified within the weekly liturgy.

The First Church’s rich tradition of hymnody was further enhanced starting in June 2008. From that period, the hymns used in worship- whether known for many years or new to the congregation- were chosen in a sequence that did not repeat titles until nearly all possible resources in The Pilgrim Hymnal had first been exhausted. Furthering this project in recent years with inclusion of many cherished hymns “not” in the Pilgrim, our congregation has experienced 425 different hymns within its worship services, with 325 of these hymns coming from the Pilgrim Hymnal.  This expansion of hymn repertoire, and its rich theology through song, has enriched the worship service and encouraged bolder singing in both well-known and first-time hymns. The varied resources found in The Pilgrim Hymnal– with some vibrant, yet less common hymn tunes untouched for generations- have both surprised and inspired.

Consequently, as The Pilgrim Hymnal in its inception did not embrace much cross-denominational music outside of some particular influences from the Lutheran and Episcopal communion, the CCLI license (Christian Copyright License International) allows the occasional reproduction of standard hymns not found in The Pilgrim Hymnal, for congregational use. These hymns are drawn from sources such as The United Methodist Hymnal, Hymns for the Family of God, The Harvard Hymnal, and The New Century Hymnal (a more recent publication of the United Church of Christ).

As much as the music ministry has many ensembles that grace our worship services, the congregation remains at the center of hymnody at The First Church, and its hymnody remains a key element, worshipping in both word and song.

Service Music 2023-2024

Service Music 2022-2023

Service Music 2021-2022

Service Music 2020-2021

Service Music 2019-2020

Service Music 2018-2019

Service Music 2017-2018

Service Music 2016-2017

Service Music 2015-2016

Service Music 2014-2015

Anderson Memorial Pipe Organ

The first pipe organ in the current church building was a Jesse Woodberry three manual tubular-pneumatic instrument with a magnificent façade, whose pipes swooped under the north rose window; the side-playing console finding close proximity to the central pulpit in the grand Auditorium/Akron-style sanctuary.

It was common for many American churches from the mid-19th century through early 20th century to often replace an entire pipe organ, every generation or so. By the mid-1920’s, the late 19th century (then prototype) “modern” 1894 playing system and its patented register action (controlling the movement of the stops) began to fail and the need for a new pipe organ was met by the commission of a new instrument from the Austin Organ Company of Hartford, Connecticut.

Len Levasseur © 2019

​The Anderson Memorial Pipe Organ-Austin’s Opus 1406- was dedicated in 1926 and is the second pipe organ to be housed in the Sanctuary. The chancel was reconfigured at this time and the new console moved to the center of the north side of the Sanctuary. Its austere non-speaking pipe façade is concentrated in the center of the instrument, in front of the north rose window.

The three manual electro-pneumatic instrument’s enclosed divisions (speaking through wood grilles), are found to the left (Swell), right (enclosed Great and Choir), and far right (Solo) of the rose window. The unenclosed Great is found under the rose window, and the Pedal division splitting remaining space inside the wide expanse of the central organ case.

Len Levasseur © 2019

Under the guidance of Minister of Music Dr. Robin Dinda, FAGO (1989-99), a new Austin console was designed and installed for future expansion of the instrument with a new Solo division, additional prepared stops on other divisions, and a multi-level memory system. This state-of-the art console was dedicated in 1996 to the memory of Claudia Rae Young and serves the playing needs of the instrument well into the 21st century.

Under Dr. John Pagett, AAGO (1999-2006), a new 8′ Bourdon, 4′ Octave, 2′ Fifteenth, and IV Mixture was added to the Great division – replacing non-original upper-work additions to the Great from the 1970’s.

Len Levasseur © 2019

In late 2014, under Joseph R. Olefirowicz, CAGO (2008-present), and as a pillar of the “Ministry-Music-Mission” Capital Campaign, the Anderson Memorial Organ was removed from The First Church for a substantial restoration and tonal expansion. Austin Organs, Inc. of Hartford, CT (the organ’s original builder) returned the organ to its original 1926 specification using existing and vintage pipework, while judiciously adding upper-work to each division in the style and voicing of the instrument’s original era.

This magnificent instrument- donated through the generosity of the Anderson family in 1926, and carried on in vibrant stewardship of our 21st century congregation, provides a powerful music presence in worship services: leading hymns, accompanying choirs, and allowing ample color resources for organ literature of all periods. In addition to its fiery harmonic reeds, specialty color stops like the Swell Vox Humana, Choir Harp, Great Grand Diapason, and Solo Cor Anglais are signature voices on this Austin instrument. The restored three-manual instrument over six divisions includes a new floating Solo division, bringing the tonal resources of the organ to 60 ranks, and ca. 4,085 pipes.

Found in the link above, is the wide array of repertory offered in praise to God in our worship services, during our program year.  Nineteen centuries of music from the Christian tradition enhances our weekly worship, and allows our choirs to offer their finest gifts unto God.

The work of the ministries of the Chancel Choir, Decibells, First Folk, and First Schola is listed here. Not included in these listings is the repertory of the children’s and youth choirs: Chapel Chimers, Joyful Noise and Jubellation, and some services where professional and resident soloists offer their talents in our worship services.

Combined with listing our offerings of anthems and voluntaries, is the list of congregational song for worship, reflecting the rich hymnody found in our Christian tradition.  You may choose to write down any week’s selections of hymns and reflect on the text of the prayers lifted in song we sing each week. The rich use of language and melody strengthen our faith and our worship together.

Music is one aspect of the worship service where our congregation and choirs offer praise to God. Perhaps there is room in your schedule to join us. Further information about choirs is found on this website.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Mary Park Nutt Memorial Tower Chime

A unique part of the rich music heritage of First Church is its Vanduzen & Tift Company memorial Tower Chime; calling the faithful to worship with its melodic voice for over 114 years. A generous $5000 donation in 1893 to First Church made the inclusion of this magnificent instrument possible in the “new building’s” majestic 118-foot high bell tower.  The Tower Chime was dedicated on June 28, 1894 to Mary Park Nutt; just 5 weeks after the inauguration of the magnificent Victorian church building, the 10th in First Church’s history.

The 15 bells of the chime are manually played from a mahogany and brass “plow handle” Clavier (keyboard) located one story above the main front entrance to the church. The smallest bell (high g) weighs a modest 300 pounds, and the largest (low C) weighs an imposing 5,600 pounds (2.8 tons).  10 of the tower’s 15 bells have a slightly longer history: the Vanduzen Company of Cincinnati had crafted 10 bells (in a C major scale – from C to e) for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. Housed in the tower of Machinery Hall at the Fair, the award-winning bells needed a new home after the Fair was to close in October.

Vanduzen agreed to sell the bells to First Church in July of 1893. After the Fair closed, they returned to Cincinnati where the Tift Company cast 5 additional bells in 1894, (3 chromatic pitches and two upper bells) to extend the range to 1-1/2 octaves. Shortly after the Chime’s centennial, a thorough restoration of the bell playing system and further reinforcement of the bells’ oak support frame (through steel I-beams in the tower) was executed. The rededication of the restored chime took place in September 1998. Each Sunday before the 10 AM (or in the summer 9 AM) service and other special services- the Tower Chime is played live by a dedicated group of volunteer solo ringers, who can only hear the bells at the mechanical playing console through a small microphone amplifying the bells into the playing space.

Although a substantial amount of tower chimes were once found in bell towers across the United States, few extant (and functional) chimes are still playable solely from their original playing mechanism, not having their original grandeur diminished to either a small electronic keyboard to play the bells- or a completely automated system without the human touch.

A detailed description of the chime at the Columbian Exposition and the subsequent sale to First Church is recounted in the book: “Musical Instruments at the World’s Columbian Exposition”.

“In 2023, a re-casting of the 15 clappers of the entire chime, were produced from casting molds using the original clappers. The new clappers were installed in the summer of 2023, with the historic clappers left in storage at the church. The Verdin Company oversaw this work, which also included some updates for mechanical assists, making the lower bells’ clappers a little lighter to activate from the plow-handle Clavier.”