Dear COS family,
Last December, I had an opportunity to spend some time with Alice Rucker rehearsing for our cello + organ offering at the 11 pm Christmas Eve service in Grace Chapel. Along with our musical preparation, Alice had shared with me anecdotes about the hymns we were preparing and her beautiful insights on liturgical music. We dived deeper into the etymology of the word liturgy: liturgy comes from the Greek root words lēitos and -ergos, which roughly translates to “public” and “work,” respectively ... Liturgy is the “work of the people.”
I realized that this is what makes me gravitate to COS—our community is built by the work of the people. I have been so inspired by how every member of this parish has shared their gifts and hearts with COS, to make our home a better place. It’s in our tagline: “We are better because you choose to spend time among us.” For me, I have felt a genuine call to share my gifts and heart for chamber music here at COS. It has been an honor to convene three concerts in this beautiful sanctuary, and I have been blown away by not just the sheer support I have received but also the genuine invitation by everyone to call COS my spiritual and artistic home.
I am excited to announce that, with the support of the Vestry, we will be launching the inaugural season of “Laós Chamber Music” in the fall of 2022. Laós (the Greek root word for people) hopes to present six classical chamber music events of both secular and sacred classical works on the COS campus throughout the 2022/23 season and, in parallel, offer musical programming at COS ministry campuses of Jubilee Homes, Our Savior Center, as well as at the Dorris Dann Kids Campus.
Laós could not be possible without the unending support of the COS family, and I invite you to take ownership of Laós as a true musical offering for the COS parish and our community at large. As part of the initial launch, I will be sharing a Facebook birthday fundraiser campaign this upcoming week. I also invite you to join us on Saturday, May 28, at 10 am in Allan Hall for a “soft launch” Laós Chamber Music Salon, a refreshing morning of cello/piano music, coffee, and pastries.
With love,
Dustin Seo, COS Staff Cellist