Gospel Choir Fills Gaston Hall with Music

Spring 2015

Over 500 of Georgetown’s students and community members packed the seats of Gaston Hall on April 19 for the Georgetown University Gospel Choir’s “Service of Song and Praise.” While the audience filed in, backstage the 40 members of the Gospel Choir buzzed with excitement for their first concert in Gaston Hall. Unable to fit the audience in their campus home of St. William Chapel, the Gospel Choir upgraded to the famous stage of Gaston Hall, to great applause and success. Phillip Carter, the Gospel Choir Director, reflects on the performance:

“The Spring Gospel service was a culmination of a whole year worth of hard work. Many of the choir members had never sang in a choir of this magnitude before. It is always marvelous to experience the love of God through music and this year’s choir did just that. We were also excited to have our concert in Gaston Hall which drew hundreds of people.”

One of the most stirring moments in the performance was the choir’s rendition of the favorite Jesuit hymn “These Alone Are Enough For Me,” featuring soloist Emmanuella Bonga Bikele (G’16). Gospel Choir president, Samantha Hamidan, said, “The moment was breathtakingly beautiful, and if you closed your eyes it was not difficult to imagine that you were hearing a tiny slice of heaven.” This moving rendition, as well as the rest of the concert, may be found on the Gospel Choir’s YouTube page: “These Alone Are Enough” – YouTube.

For those seniors poised on graduation the experience was both wonderful and bittersweet. “I have been extremely blessed to be a part of Campus Ministry in this fashion,” said Samantha Hamidan, reflecting on her experience. “It’s rare to be able to minister to a group of people every single week, and find your soul being ministered to as well. Each Gospel Choir rehearsal was a respite from hectic Georgetown life, and I cherished that time every week.” The choir members often refer to their singing as a “ministry” first and foremost.

For Jordan Blackwell (C’15), the choir embodies even more:

“As a gospel choir, we represent the diversity that Georgetown strives towards. Various ethnicities, socio-economic classes, sexual orientations, even religions all come together to embody the essence of our university which is to be women and men for others. “

Interested in becoming a part of the Gospel Choir? Email gospelchoir@georgetown.edu for more information.

The Gospel Choir will be back next year with even more song and praise! Be sure to mark your calendars for November 22, 2015, and April 10, 2016!

Tori Savage , Assistant Director for Ecumenical Christian Life