Earth Mass

This will be the 45th year of Missa Gaia/Earth Mass at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. In 1980, Paul Winter was invited to compose a contemporary Mass for the Cathedral. He set out to create a work that was both ecumenical and ecological, one that would embrace all the voices of the Earth. “I wanted to feel the Earth-power of percussion in harmony with the serene voices of the choir, and to share with the congregation that spirit of celebration we know with our concert audiences,” Winter explains. EARTH MASS/MISSA GAIA was premiered on Mother’s Day, May 10, 1981, celebrating Mother Earth, with a sermon by David Brower, founder and president of Friends of the Earth. The Mass was recorded that September on two nights in the Cathedral with invited audiences, and on St. Francis Day, October 4th, honoring the beginning of the year of the Saint’s 800th birthday. Now the MISSA GAIA or EARTH MASS is performed at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on the first Sunday in October every year as part of the Cathedral’s Celebration of the Feast of St. Francis. While there will be no procession of animals this year, pets are still welcome! 

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