Our Alma Mater

All Together! The words of our Alma Mater never fail to remind us of the unbreakable bonds that were formed in our college years at St. Joseph’s. Listen & share >>

Origin

Did you ever wonder how our Alma Mater came to be? Sister Mary Bernard McEntee, D.C., answered those questions in her book, The Valley:

"Any student who had a voice and could carry a note and had `an ear for music,’ was encouraged to take Vocal. The musically ‘challenged,’ whom the Muse had passed by, were corralled into the study hall once a week, and Sister Francis Lawler would attempt to teach them singing. She used Saint Basil’s Hymnal and a nameless old songbook from which she played and sang for their entertainment, her favorite, 'All Together', encouraging the class . . . to join in the chorus. The result would have driven Saint Cecilia to suicide. This little cultural séance was the origin of the school song for which Dorothy Graham Class of 1926 wrote the lyrics and set them to music learned in the 'cultural' singing class."

— Sr. Mary Bernard McEntee. THE VALLEY. (Emmitsburg, MD: St. Joseph College Alumnae Association, 1972), p. 53.

Listen & Share

Sister Anne Higgins, D.C. ’70 arranged for a chorale at Mount St. Mary’s University to record our Alma Mater in Fall 2008. Feel free to share this recording with friends and family.

Play All Together >>
Download sheet music >>

Our thanks to Sister Anne, Andy Rosenfeld and the Mount Choir for their wonderful and generous work!

Additional Links

Ave Maria

Play Ave Maria >>
Download sheet music:  page 1>>   page 2>>

Share Your Memories!

What does our Alma Mater song mean to you? What memories do you have of music at the College? Take a few moments to share your memories in our Class News Blog or by emailing us.