| It was the summer of 1974 and I had been a voice student at the University
of Maryland for about 4 years. James
Hansen, the Cantor at The National Shrine of Immaculate Conception,
Washington DC asked me to substitute for him as Cantor. Jim was my
music teacher at Hight Point High School, Beltsville Maryland, and we had
become instant friends and are to this day. Jim is one of the leading
experts on the subject of Cantoring as well as an excellent performer.
I had already been a member of the National Shrine Choir for several years. As a voice music student, many of us had "church jobs". The Cantor job was quite an honor. Particularly since Jim's plan was to break me in, giving him some much needed time off, and eventually have me substitute for him on the Christmas Eve Mass, 1974. The Christmas Eve Mass was one of the biggest events of the church year. It was held at midnight, attended by thousands and broadcast on NBC-TV. I was going to sing in front of thousands of people.
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