The choir at Trinity Episcopal Church in Roslyn has recently recorded and released a CD, "With a Voice of Singing." Including 31 songs and running up to 74 minutes in total playing time, the CD consists of traditional Christian hymns and songs. It also features performances by a multi-generational handbell choir, and the children's choir.

The CD was the idea of Martha Regelmann, the church's music director. During the Christmas season two years ago, Ms. Regelmann noticed that the choir had "never sounded so good" or had "put [its] message across with as much feeling." By now, Ms. Regelmann had enjoyed a 20-year association with the choir, most of them as organist/choir director and with the choir at its peak, she knew she wanted to preserve its sound.

Ms. Regelmann then went about the task of selecting pieces of music the choir had performed on a regular basis. The church hired Barry Hartglass, a Long Island-based professional recording engineer for technical work. In late April 1999, the choir began the first of what would turn out to be six recording sessions of two hours each over a three-month period. John Ernst, a tenor in the choir, recalled that truck noise on Northern Boulevard was a problem during evening recording sessions in the church sanctuary, but that such complications were eventually solved by Mr. Hartglass's digital editing.

"We didn't work out the actual publishing of the CD and the accompanying booklet until we believed we had something worthy of publishing," Ms. Regelmann said. "Our procrastination delayed things, but at least our confidence level was high enough to motivate us for the hard work of editing and engineering the CD, and providing the publisher with what he needed. We made things a little cheaper---but more work---for ourselves by designing and writing our own CD insert. All that happened between September and December [of 1999]." The CD was released in early December, 1999, and sales were enough for the church to break even on the project right away.

"The CD is much more than a 'feel-good-as-we-listen-to-ourselves' musical presentation," Ms. Regelmann said. "In addition to preserving our music, it is a terrific tool for sharing our music ministry outside of our church building. For instance, the new principal at the school where I teach let me know he is church shopping. He asked about our music program---voila! Give him a CD! Our shut-ins, people too ill or otherwise unable to get out for church, now have a way to bring the church into their homes.

"Everything was recorded in the sanctuary itself, thus making it [the CD] sound the way we sound," she continued. "In addition, the accompanying booklet is beautifully illustrated with photos of some of our favorite stained glass windows, St. Cecilia, the patron saint of music, being featured on the front cover."

Explaining the importance of the CD, Ms. Regelmann called it "a powerful tool for meditation, enrichment, and some spiritual renewal in this challenging world of ours. It communicates the deepest, most lasting messages of the Christian faith, reminding us of our universality and humanity; and it communicates the joy of God's creation, of 'all creatures great and small.' We hear this especially when the delightful, enthusiastic voices of our children sing praises in their own unique and joyful way."

Some of Ms. Regelmann's favorite moments from the recording process included trying to get the children in the choir to sing their songs and keep from shouting in their "excitement and exuberance," the choir and congregation making it through a grueling session in the heat of a June afternoon, singing Silent Night while "the rivers of perspiration trickled down our backs," and the "triumphant look" on the faces of the hand bell choir after one particularly successful recording session.

"It was a difficult, time-consuming and expensive project for sure," Ms. Regelmann concluded, "but one of the most rewarding things I have ever had the privilege to be part of."

In addition to her work as conductor, Ms. Regelmann also played piano and organ. Joan Ernst served as assistant conductor. Ho Sun Moon helped out on piano and Peggy Rakas played flute. The choir included sopranos Martha Gibbons, Virginia Marshall, Ariann Miller, and Shelia Platt; tenors John Ernst, Robin Newbold, and John Platt; altos Gail DeGraff, Barbara Holzkamp, and Sarane Ross and basses John French, George Graff, and John Simmons. The hand bell choir consisted of Gail DeGraff, Ruth Fick, Isabel Glomb, George Graf, Michael Hansen, Virginia Marshall, and Suzanne DeGraff Mendes.