Funeral musicians in Messina

In Messina a funeral is arranged quickly: between the call to the funeral home, the agreement with the parish priest and letting relatives know, there are only a few hours left for everything else. Music should not become one more worry. All it takes is one musician who knows the liturgy and can sing and play at the same time: Maestro Ilarion, tenor and pianist, accompanies the whole funeral Mass on his own, at the organ or the piano.

From the Cathedral to the villages on the Strait

Funerals are held in neighbourhood parishes as well as in the great churches of the centre: the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, the sanctuary of Montalto looking down on the city, the churches of the villages facing the Strait, from Ganzirri to Torre Faro, and those along the Ionian and Tyrrhenian coasts. In every church the Maestro agrees with the priest where to stand and how to use the organ, so that the music accompanies the celebration without ever covering the priest's words.

How it is arranged

• Notice: at least 24 hours before the funeral.
• Who calls: the family or the funeral home, with the church, day and time.
• The programme: chosen with the family and confirmed with the parish priest, who approves the music of the celebration.

What is sung

The chants of the liturgy accompany the moments of the Mass; during communion or at the end, when the priest agrees, the Ave Maria by Schubert or by Gounod and Panis Angelicus can be sung. If the family would like a particular piece, perhaps one their loved one cared for, the Maestro suggests the most suitable moment. Every moment, one by one, is in the guide to church funeral songs.

Also near Messina

Ganzirri, Torre Faro, Villafranca Tirrena, Milazzo, Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, Santa Teresa di Riva, Fiumedinisi and the other towns of the province: the same service, with the same notice.