Praising God through song (Part 3)

Editor’s note: This is the third of a four-part series on some of the liturgical music shared in our diocese.

By Eileen Jevis
Staff writer

Tom Andino is the former director of Campus Ministry, Liturgy, & Music at Le Moyne College. For over 20 years, he encouraged and inspired students to praise God through song. Whether they are musically talented performing arts students, or their faith inspires them to fully participate in Mass, Andino welcomed all congregants to express their love of God and to the church through music.

Lessons and Carols is one of LeMoyne’s most well attended programs at the Panasci Chapel.

  In addition to other obligations, Andino serves as the director of music at the Church of St. Michael/St. Peter and Our Lady of Hope Parish in Syracuse. He said Le Moyne’s Panasci Family Chapel is different from other places of worship because the congregation is transient. The students he taught are there and gone in four years. “It’s not the same as working in a parish where you are able to build a stable repertoire where you have cantors or singers that become familiar with the music,” he said. “Many of the students are not familiar with the typical songs presented at traditional parishes.”

   They do become participating members of the congregation, though, along with community members, staff and faculty that attend the weekly liturgy during the traditional academic year. Kasha Mitchell Godleski is a member of the congregation and is employed as the senior director of alumni/parent engagement at the college. She said the music for each Mass is chosen carefully and strategically and reinforces the messages of the Gospel readings. “The messages stay with me throughout the day and bring true joy to my heart and spirit,” she said.

This is why they call it ‘Mass on the Grass.’

   One of the most revered and well-attended programs at the Panasci Family Chapel takes place each holiday season. Lessons & Carols tells the Christmas story in word and song. Andino said the performance, held on the first Sunday in December, has become increasingly popular. “Over the years, I began to expand the story by including different songs and adding additional production elements like lighting and candles,” explained Andino. The Mass now has full instrumentation as well. “The event grew so large, we had to reconfigure the layout of the church.”

   When the pandemic shut down the Christmas celebration, students did not want to let go of the tradition that meant so much to so many. They came up with a creative solution. To incorporate the music for the live-streamed event, each soloist went into the studio and recorded their harmony parts separately. They then gathered in the chapel one evening, each sitting far from the others, and lip-synced the music parts they recorded. The result was astounding. “I was home in my living room watching Lessons & Carols during the pandemic,” said Andino. “And I knew that that year, it was all about trusting my students. They took charge and pulled it off. We had close to 3,500 views from all over the world.”

   Music is about ministering to the people present, Andino explained. “Ministering through music is very powerful. Over the years, it’s about the people I’ve met that makes my job vibrant and relevant.”