In their 30-year history, the Lawrence-based Motet Singers have never traveled farther than Kansas City, Mo., to perform.

That will change in a big way Sunday, when the group represents all of Kansas during the state’s official worship service at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.

“It’s a real honor for all of us,” said Pat Blair, a soprano who has performed with the group since its inception. “It’s a really special place.”

The 16-member ensemble, directed by Dave Grisafe, will provide a half-hour of prelude music Sunday before the Kansas State Day service. Each state is represented with a service every four years.

The group was asked to sing by Sandra and Allen Wiechert, Lawrence residents who are Kansas co-chairs of the National Cathedral Assn.

Lawrence's Motet Singers rehearse for their performance on Sunday at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. The group practiced Tuesday at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 6001 Bob Billings Parkway.

“They’re a small group. They’re not a huge choir, but oh, are they mighty,” Sandra Wiechert said. “They’re all great musicians. Dave Grisafe is a wonderful director. They’ll be a fine, fine representative of Lawrence.”

The service, which begins at 10 a.m. CDT, showcases the state, from the sunflowers that will decorate the altar to the preacher, the Rev. Kelly Bender, a native of Ulysses who now is pastor at Paradise Valley United Methodist Church in Paradise Valley, Ariz. He previously served churches in Manhattan, Topeka and Wichita.

This is the second consecutive Kansas State Day at the cathedral that has included a Lawrence choir. The Lawrence Civic Choir sang in 2001.

Tom Wilcox, a tenor who works in the comptroller’s office at Kansas University, is a member of both choirs.

“It’s a dream come true to be able to sing there,” he said of the cathedral. “Going twice is just amazing.”

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The Wiecherts and the singers won’t be the only Lawrence connection to Sunday’s service. With the cathedral’s main organ under construction, Sandra Wiechert said the service’s organist would play the backup organ, which was constructed by the Reuter Organ Co. in Lawrence.

Perfect timing

For the Motet Singers, the invitation couldn’t have come at a better time, as the group is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The group, which generally performs sacred music from the Renaissance, has five of its original members still singing.

David Grisafe leads Lawrence's Motet Singers during a rehearsal for their upcoming trip to the National Cathedral, where they will perform Sunday. The group practiced Tuesday at Corpus Christi Catholic Church.

The choir performs during church services primarily in Lawrence, Topeka and Kansas City, and especially is active during the summer, when most church choirs are on vacation.

They meet weekly, usually at a member’s house, for rehearsal.

“We’re kind of a family,” Grisafe said. “You can do that after 30 years.”

Sunday’s repertoire includes eight early pieces by composers from Germany, Poland, Russia and Palestine. The final number is a version of the Lord’s Prayer in Latin by Jacob Handl.Photos of the event will be posted on the cathedral’s Web site, www.nationalcathedral.org, on Monday.

Challenging performance

Grisafe, a retired Kansas Geological Survey employee, said he expected to get about 30 minutes of rehearsal time in the sanctuary.

Dave Grisafe leads the Motet Singers during a rehearsal for their Sunday performance at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.

The large sanctuary, with ceilings more than 100 feet high, will pose both opportunities and challenges for the choir.

“It’s going to be so live,” Grisafe said of the acoustics. “It’ll reverberate forever. People really need to be precise with their diction. It might be an advantage to be a small group. The probability of getting four sopranos to come in together is probably higher than 30 or 40 sopranos.”

Grisafe said even though the Motet Singers have been around for three decades, they’re not well-known in town. He’s glad the group is finally getting some recognition for its efforts.

“It’s about time we did something like this,” he said. “It’s kind of neat. You don’t get a chance to do this very often.”