Big Sound Backs Up Youth Mass

By Mary Donovan

The music at 5:30 p.m. Mass on Sundays is just a little different. It's a heady mix of drums, keyboard, guitar and young voices. There's one more ingredient in the mix – a steady, punctuated rhythm. It's not organ music, that's for sure. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.)

It's Big Sound music, said Paul Gannon. Paul is the tall fellow with black hair and round glasses whose guitar and voice lead the singing at the 5:30 p.m. Mass. Paul is also director of Youth Ministry at St. Mary's. Paul said this about big sound.

"Oftentimes we'll sit in church not realizing the meaning in the words that we hear. Hopefully people will hear it almost like hearing it the first time."

Paul works closely with Harry Duchesne who is coordinator of high school religious education. Harry can also be seen and heard singing with Paul. He is a tall fellow with salt and pepper hair and glasses. More often, however, the singers are high schoolers, Teresa Kuruvilla, Lauren Bailey, Christine Dunn who teaches music in Shrewsbury and Anthony Pereira. Backing up the singers and guitar are Steve Reed on organ and keyboard, Ben Scibelli on drums and Dan Stone on guitar.

Ben, a junior at Shrewsbury High School, has been playing drums for six years, he said. He plays in two bands, Midway and Leviathon and in the acapella group at the high school. He has been in the youth ministry music group since the fall. Why join another music group?

"I felt like doing a good thing helping out in church," he said. "Anyway I can play is fine with me."

Paul Gannon said he hopes to create a real young people's Mass, with young people participating in all phases – in the music, as eucharistic minister, and so forth. Meanwhile, he said they are always looking for more instruments and more singers. Anyone with any musical background who likes to play should contact him, he said.