Jolie Peal

Easter has always been an enjoyable time at Marian thanks to the talented junior jays that join our Worship choir, and now Creighton Prep finally gets the chance to feel the Marian spirit on their own grounds. On Dec. 7, Marian’s Select Women’s Choir joined the choir at Creighton Prep’s Feast of the Immaculate Conception Mass. The theme of this Mass was service to celebrate Operation Others.

This is the first year Marian has been able to join the Prep choir at Mass. Senior P.J. Mooney was especially excited that after four years, the schedules finally aligned. “I am excited that they got to come sing with us this year because the sound we produce as a choir is always very uplifting. I could finally share that with my school, and the members of my class could also see what Marian gets to experience during their Easter Mass,” Mooney said.

The process to get Marian girls to come sing was a very simple one. “It was literally just Mr. Chesire, our choir director, had simply emailed Ms. Morrissey [Marian’s Choir Director] and asked her in the past. This year it worked out with the schedules that Marian could come sing,” Mooney said. In past years, Marian and Prep would have their Immaculate Conception Mass on the same day, so it was not possible for Marian girls to join their choir. This year however, the Immaculate Conception falls on Saturday, so Marian did not have a Mass. Since, Prep chose to still host a mass, 24 Marian students were able to celebrate music with Prep’s choir.   

Out of the many songs the two groups sang in Mass, “Mary Did You Know” was a favorite. “We have an arrangement of our own we do at Prep, but we got a new one to sing with female voices to accommodate. The arrangement was very moving and touching,” Mooney said.

Marian girls started preparation for the Mass several weeks ahead of time in class. Junior Gabrielle Watton shared her excitement for the event. “I was most excited to hear all of the voices come together for “Mary Did You Know” and also excited to hear how deep the guys’ voices could go,” Watton said.

Having been to Marian’s Easter Mass for several years, Mooney knows the differences between the two schools. “Prep’s Masses are usually a little more subdued; they are a little more focused on the choir, too. We try to get the other guys to sing, but it is an all-male school, and many of the guys are…quiet,” Mooney said.

Marian and Prep students have also had various opportunities outside of Mass to sing together, including Marian’s fall musical and some of Prep’s yearly concerts. “This year we performed Whitney Houston’s ‘Joy to the World,’ and this song was fitting for the emotional impact that we provide to others. It’s an amazing opportunity to join as one chorus of talented musicians and provide joy for others through music,” Mooney said.

When Prep students sing at Marian’s Mass, Marian students share their excitement. However, Prep student reactions are very different. “I think they were excited to hear something new and to just see the Marian girls,” Watton said.  

After many years of Creighton Prep choir students joining Marian’s Easter Mass, Marian choir students will finally get to experience a Creighton Prep Mass. Mooney hopes the tradition will continue in the future. “I think the fact that we can get together and form a spiritually uplifting group of singers and musicians is a really inspiring aspect of the two dynamics of our schools,” Mooney said.