Music is at the heart of the mission of the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys. It is one of the primary ways in which they worship, love and serve the Lord Jesus Christ. The choir's primary raison d'être is to provide music for 5 choral services each week at Saint Thomas Church. The choir performs regularly with the ensemble named, “Concert Royal,” and with the, “Orchestra of St. Luke's.”
The Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys from 12 March 1929, simulate the 31 March 1929, Easter Mass, singing the opening procession, “The Strife is O’er the Battle Done,” in an excerpt of a rare Fox Movietone News Story (2-138) nitrocellulose film recording. This is followed by a closing procession from 6 Feb 2011, where the choir sings Psalm 150 at the close of Evensong. Saint Thomas Church is located at 1 West 53rd Street, New York, New York, U.S.A. It is an Episcopalian Church in the Diocese of New York. The church began on 9 January 1824. The current building is the 4th structure to house the church. It was completed in 1914 in the French High Gothic Revival style.
The church is home to the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys. The boys receive their education at Saint Thomas Choir School at 202 West 58th Street in New York, and the men are professional singers. The Men and Boys Choir is currently under the direction of Jeremy Filsell, PhD. The Boys Choir is regularly featured on the, “Today Show,” by the National Broadcasting Co. /Comcast in New York City. In February 2012, the Boys Choir toured Dresden, Germany and premiered Lera Auerbach's Dresden Requiem. They also performed in Thomaskirche at the Bachfest Leipzig.
The strife is o'er, the battle done
The tune is entitled, “Victory,” written by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. It was translated into English by Francis Pott in 1861.
1 The strife is o'er, the battle done; the victory of life is won; the song of triumph has begun.
Alleluia!
2 The powers of death have done their worst, but Christ their legions has dispersed. Let shouts of holy joy outburst. Alleluia!
3 The three sad days are quickly sped; He rises glorious from the dead. All glory to Our Risen Head. Alleluia!
Amen.
Psalm 150:
O praise the LORD in his sanctuary; praise Him in the firmament of his power.
Praise Him in his noble acts; praise Him in his excellent greatness.
Praise Him in the sound of the trumpet; praise Him upon the lute & harp.
Praise Him in the cymbals and dances; praise Him upon the strings & pipe.
Praise Him upon the well-tuned cymbals; praise Him upon the loud cymbals.
Let everything that hath breath praise the LORD!
Followed by the Gloria Patri::
Glory be to the Father & to the Son & to the Holy Ghost, as it was in the beginning is now & ever shall be world without end, Amen.
Fox Movietone News Story 2-138 nitrocellulose film stored at Fort Jackson (U.S. Army), donated by 20th Century Fox to the Moving Image Research Collections Digital Video Repository, Univ. Library, Univ. of South Carolina in 1980
