BOSTON -- "This is a little bit like conducting a 747," Richard Clark says as he looks out over the 250 fourth through 12th-grade singers filling the pews of the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston on March 8.

The young singers, representing 16 parish and school choirs throughout New England and New York state, sang a Mass celebrated by Bishop Robert Reed at the cathedral for the Pueri Cantores Youth Choir Festival. Clark, the archdiocesan and cathedral music director, conducted.

Among the choirs were seven from the Archdiocese of Boston: St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Hudson; St. Agatha Parish in Milton; St. Columbkille Partnership School in Brighton; the St. Kizito and St. Cecilia Society of Waltham; St. Mary of the Assumption Parish in Brookline; St. Paul's Choir School in Cambridge; and Ursuline Academy in Dedham. This year's festival was the largest in Boston since the COVID-19 pandemic.

"It's inspiring," Clark told The Pilot. "I'm looking out at a sea of young kids who have come a long way. Some of these kids got up really early. Some of them drove two, three hours to get here today."

For several hours before Mass, Clark led the students in rehearsing sacred works by Mozart, Theodore Marier, and Giuseppe Pitoni, a repertoire spanning centuries.

"Everybody supports each other," Clark said. "That's the big thing about this. It's all about the kids supporting each other, getting an experience they might not have in their own parish, necessarily."

For example, since Ursuline Academy is an all-girls school, the choir doesn't often get to sing songs with lower voices.

"Having this experience to sing with the full soprano, alto, tenor, bass is just a wonderful experience for them, and for them to come and sing in such a glorious space," Ursuline Academy Choir Director Susan Glancy said.

Senior Elizabeth Power has been singing since she was in kindergarten.

"Music has always had a special place," she said. "My dad and I really bonded over it when I was younger, and music is what first introduced me to the church and God. So, it's really important for me and how I connect to my faith."

Her classmate Onyeka Nwazojie said that singing during Mass has always made her feel more connected to her faith. She is a firm believer in the old saying that singing is praying twice.

"It's just a way that I've really enjoyed being part of my community," she told The Pilot.

In his homily, Bishop Reed said that the Pueri Cantores festival was "a magnificent way" to begin Lent.

"Here at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, our voices, our hearts are lifted up to the Father of Mercy," he said. "This is such an amazing thing to see. Two-hundred-fifty, 300 of you guys, our young brothers and sisters, each of you bringing your faith here and your voice as well to inspire us at the beginning of these 40 days."

He told the singers to take their time at the cathedral seriously, so they could deepen their appreciation of their faith.

"It makes me so proud to be part of this amazing, amazing church," he said.