The people in the crowd are singing and keeping rhythm on the pews with their hands. The drum is beating, the vocalists are singing, and religion teacher Richard Gatto is strumming the keys to a guitar.

This happens almost every Sunday when Gatto and his band play at the Church of the Annunciation in Rosedale, Md.

Throughout his life, Gatto has found ways to incorporate music in his activities. He directed the choir and folk group at St. Mark’s in Fallston for eight years. When he was in the seminary, he played music with several groups. He picked up the guitar and accordion 40 year ago and recently started playing the keyboard.

“My avocation [or hobby] is music,” Gatto said.

For the past 30 years, Gatto has been the contemporary ensemble leader at the Church of Annunciation. He plays with 15 other people, and according to Gatto, each person plays a significant part in making the music the best that they can.

Practice makes perfect and once a week the group gathers to prepare their songs and start new ones. “Everyone in the group puts lots of work and effort into it,” Gatto said.

With music, the group praises God and tries to encourage people to strengthen their faith.  “You see the connection the music makes with people. When we do a more meditated song, we can sometimes see people out in the pews wiping tears away,” Gatto said.

Along with playing at their church, the group has played at outdoor concerts with other bands and has been invited to several other churches.

“My group and I were invited over to another parish in Baltimore. They were having their 100th anniversary. When we went over there, the music that we played was not church music, it was songs like ‘Margaritaville’ and ‘Livin’ la Vita Loca,’” Gatto said.

“People would come up and say that they really like our music, and it lets me know that we are doing some things right,” Gatto said. The music that he plays is for the enjoyment of his audience, and when he gets positive feedback, it encourages him to do even better.

 Erica Kelble is a Multimedia Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.