This week we have a group of three mass settings in the Anglican tradition by the prolific composers, Herbert Howells, Harold Darke, and Kenneth Leighton. Each one takes the same ancient text and brings it to life as a new and fresh artistic expression.

Play all the music HERE,

​or sample each piece in the browser below. 

The Anglican tradition has some beautiful music for the Easter season from the English reformation to the Victorian era, all the way to the present day. Enjoy this album of favorites from the Choir of St. Thomas’ Church, New York City.

Enjoy all the music HERE, 

or sample each piece in the player below.

Many are familiar with the famous St. John and St. Matthew Passions composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, but equally impressive is the Easter Oratorio, written around the same time.


Listen to all the music HERE

or sample each piece in the player below.

The sound of organ pipes can be heard once again in St. James' Church thanks to the gift of a beautiful new continuo organ crafted by Bennett & Giuttari located in Rehoboth, Massachusetts. A continuo organ is primarily used for baroque and early music as part of a "continuo group" of instruments that form the foundation of the ensemble. It also accompanies choirs, solo voices, and solo instruments and can be part of a chamber orchestra.

The new continuo organ will be used on Sunday mornings to accompany choral and solo music. Additionally, this will be the primary instrument for smaller services held in the chapel. The organ is on wheels and travels easily between spaces.

It will also be used in performance by the St. James Music Series and our community partners who present baroque and early music concerts at St. James by-the-Sea.

George Damoose and his children, Alison and Christopher, gave this beautiful new instrument in memory of their late wife and mother, Cari Sweeney Damoose (1942-2020). George and Cari have long been patrons of the arts in La Jolla, and we are grateful for their generosity and love for music at St. James and the St. James Organ Project. 

Read more and see more pictures HERE.

This week we celebrate Easter Day, a time of great fanfare and beauty. Some of the most majestic music written for the church can be heard in these varied recordings. Enjoy the grandeur of this feast!

Listen to all the pieces HERE,

​or sample each in the player below.

This week's playlist is a meditation on Holy Week. Some of the most beautiful and stirring choral music has been written on texts for Holy Week, such as "Crux Fidelis," which translates to "Faithful Cross, noble tree beyond compare."

Listen to all the music HERE,

​or sample each piece in the player below.

This week we celebrate the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem with shouts of "Hosanna to the Son of David!" and "All Glory, Laud and Honor!"

Listen to all the music HERE,

or sample each piece in the player below.

Sunday's Gospel contained the famous quote from John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life." Here are several beautiful settings of that text as it has been set through the centuries.

Listen to all the music HERE

or sample each piece in the player below.

Organ Project Progress!

A lot is happening with the St. James Organ Project these days. Construction is underway, and we are regularly receiving updates from Parsons Pipe Organ Builders in Canandaigua, New York. Final designs are coming together, and decisions have been made about keyboards, draw knobs, and layout. Many components of the organ have been ordered from suppliers around the globe.
Read more

"Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged," Moses tells us in the book of Deuteronomy. The assurance of God's closeness during our Lenten season of introspection is set beautifully to music this week by composers John Rutter, Philip Stopford, and Herbert Howells.

Enjoy all the music HERE 

​or sample each piece in the player below.

Lent is a time for reflection and prayer, and what better way to center yourself than through music? This is a playlist of introspective pieces for Lent with a variety of genres from Traditional Spirituals to Johann Sebastian Bach. Enjoy!

Listen to all the music HERE,

​or sample each piece in the player below.

Words: Henry Williams Baker (1821-1877)
Music: Traditional Irish Melody;  harm. Charles V. Stanford (1852-1924)

Ash Wednesday begins the season of Lent, a time of prayer and introspection. Psalm 51 asks "Create in me a clean heart, O God," and it has been set to music in many ways, including these beautiful settings by Allergri and Pergolesi.

Play all the music HERE,

​or sample each piece in the player below.

This is the last week after the Epiphany, and the readings remind us of the Transfiguration. This is the moment when the disciples climb the mountain with Jesus to find the clouds part away and God declares "this is my Son, my beloved."

Play all the music HERE,

​or sample each piece in the player below.

This week's playlist is on the theme of God's love to coincide with St. James' discussion of Presiding Bishop Michael Curry's book, The Way of Love. Enjoy these selections of choral music and hymns both familiar and new.

Play all the music HERE,

​or sample parts of the music in the player below.