ROGERS — As the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe approaches Dec. 12, members of the Hispanic choir at St. Vincent de Paul Church make plans for their performance. Starting the choir practices two weeks earlier, music director Lourdes Montgomery said, is an integral part of our liturgy so it will play a big part in the celebration.”
When Montgomery began as music director four years ago, she started with four people singing at the Spanish 8 a.m. Mass, accompanied by two guitarists. The noon Mass in Spanish had a musician on a keyboard and three female singers.
Now four years later, the Hispanic Choir has grown to about 30 members, including a small orchestra of violins, trombone, flute and trumpet.
“Little by little, people have come on board. There are some that have just come this month. I feel that I have been able to accomplish more here in Arkansas in four years than I ever did in my 19 years at my church in Miami,” Montgomery said.
The Hispanic choir has a wide spectrum of ages. The youngest member is 10 years old.
Montgomery also encourages children to accompany their parents in singing along with the choir.
“I love this, and I encourage it since the children are the seeds of tomorrow,” he said.
This choir runs on youthful energy. Although there are many adults in the choir, the talent emerging among the student members is evident. One young musician, Armando Gutierrez, is a senior at Heritage High School in Rogers. Last spring, he received the Louis Armstrong Award at a northwest Arkansas regional competition for the trumpet. In November, he qualified for first chair in both orchestra and jazz competitions for the region.
Gutierrez has been playing in the choir for three years. Describing his progress as a musician in the choir, he said, “Working with Lourdes is great. She has pushed me to become the musician I am now. I started with the choir in ninth grade. Then I started playing for all three Masses. I know I have come so far and I can’t quit now. Once you quit, you basically have lost the gift God has given you. My mom has told me that God has given me a gift and I should use my gift in appreciation to him.”
To Sandra Sanchez, the choir is a ministry.
“We invite people personally,” she said. “Sometimes people just come. Everyone is welcome. If you want to do it, just do it with your heart. … At first we learned the music from Lourdes. Now the choir sounds more professional. We are now thinking as altos, sopranos. As a member I believe this is my duty. For me it is not a job. I love what I do. And I think everyone else feels the same way.”
Sanchez’s close friend, Norma Contreras, is also a member of the choir, along with her two daughters, ages 17 and 10.
“Six months after Lourdes started working with the choir, I decided to join,” she said. “I just loved the songs. Whenever I came to church, I wanted to sing along.”
A single mom, Contreras said she is so proud of her daughters’ participation in the choir.
Two other sisters in the choir, Jessica and Evelyn Salvedo, have been performing in church for several years. Jessica, now in junior high school, started in third grade and Evelyn, a junior in high school, has been active in the choir for two years.
“We usually sing the Psalms together and take turns. I started really young and I was nervous. But now it is easier for me to sing in front of a big group because in a little group, you can see all of their faces. In a big group, you can’t see every single person’s face so you can focus on the music,” Jessica said.
Another young student, Sarah Nieto, and her mother, Victoria, joined the Hispanic choir five months ago when they moved to Rogers.
“I loved how the choir sounded,” Victoria Nieto said. “It is beautiful. We asked about it and they invited us to join. My daughter joined first. So we are here. For me, personally, it is great to sing to my God. He is wonderful with me and my family.”
These newcomers find the choir to be a social outlet in this church community and a good way to get acquainted.
In planning the musical selections for the Our Lady of Guadalupe feast day, the choir prepared the traditional songs that accompany the specific liturgy for the occasion, including “Las Mañanitas,” “Cántico de María,” “La Guadalupana” and “Viva la Virgen Ranchera.”
“These songs pay homage to our Blessed Mother. One of the songs retells the history of how the Virgin Mother appeared to Juan Diego ’from the sky one morning’ to the mount called ’Tepeyac.’ Another song cries out to the dark (morena) Virgin of the Ranch who is the ’queen of my love,’” Montgomery said.
On Friday, Dec. 11, the feast day procession will begin at 6:30 p.m. followed by a Spanish Mass at 8 p.m. Saturday’s celebration will begin with the Las Mañanitas at 4:30 a.m. and conclude with Mass at 5 a.m.
