Lutheran Church Composer-in-Residence Program

Program ContributorsSo far, $720 has been donated...

Thu, 3 May 2012 15:02:19 -0600

Program Contributors
So far, $720 has been donated separate from the Chipin Website. Thus, the current donation total is $1580.

~ Anonymous
~ Russ & Shirley Christian
~ Kathryn Crumrine
~ Robert Imholz
~ Louis & Martha Jander
~ Michael Kneemueller
~ Richard Mintzlaff
~ Patricia Nelson
~ Shepherd's Choir
~ Bethany & Jon Schmidt
~ Carol Stewart
~ Shirley Woods

Well, so much for the once-a-week updates. ...

Thu, 3 May 2012 15:00:57 -0600

Well, so much for the once-a-week updates. I hadn’t realized that it’d been almost two months since I last updated. My apologies. So, here’s what’s been happening.

Holy Week went very well, especially “Last Words from the Cross” on Good Friday. The Shepherd’s Choir stepped up to the plate and made the music come alive for the service and for the congregation. For any of you choir members reading this, I give you a great big THANK YOU!!!

“Jesus Is My Shepherd” has been sung during the Kid Friendly Worship at Good Shepherd the past three Sundays. I had the opportunity to hear it sung by the children and their parents for the first time this past weekend. Jaime, the Youth and Family Ministry Director, developed actions/sign language to go along with the first verse. After singing with the group twice, I listened and watched on the third time through. I’ll be honest. I choked up just a little bit. How great it was to hear children singing my music, especially with words sung to God.

“Jesus Is My Savior” is the second song to be completed. The text was written by my mom and I am truly blessed and honored to have the opportunity to set this and two other texts she’s written for the children’s song project. An idea for “beefing up” each of the songs came about after the second tune was finished. Once a song is complete, I will set the music in a variety of idioms to be used within worship. “Jesus Is My Savior” has already been arranged as a round; as a lead sheet; for handbells and for solo piano. The final setting will be a fugue.

Needless to say, the direction of this project has taken a rather delightful turn. I am looking forward to presenting each of the songs in the original version and in the alternate arrangements.

With God’s grace and patience, I will update sooner next time.

God’s Peace!

The past few weeks have been rather...

Wed, 7 Mar 2012 15:05:51 -0600

The past few weeks have been rather fruitful on the music front. Final touches were put on an impromptu project, compiling/editing/rewriting previous components/settings of Christ’s seven last words into a new compilation/work, "Last Words from the Cross." Plans for the Good Friday service were ironed out in discussions with Pastor Linda, pastor at Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd. Two major differences from my previous compositions are, I incorporate congregational hymn singing as reflections on a few of the sections and the choir participates in only six of the eleven movements.

The choir has already begun preparing the movements they are singing. Their openness to trying something new and out-of-the-box (for them) is very reassuring. “Last Words from the Cross” will be premiered at the Good Friday Service (7 pm) at Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd on April 6, 2012.

This past week I began work on one of the planned major projects for the residency, a compilation of songs with a straight forward, Christian message geared towards children. Pastor Linda challenged me to compose a small handful of “Jesus Loves Me” type songs. The goal is to merge newly written text with music that will be sung by children and adults alike for years to come. That being said, the first song is almost complete. “Jesus is My Shepherd”, text by Kathryn Crumrine, will be a strong first entry for the compilation. May God guide this endeavor.

That’s all for now.
God’s peace!

Greetings to everyone, This is my first entry...

Wed, 7 Mar 2012 14:59:15 -0600

Greetings to everyone,

This is my first entry and personalized use of a blog. Its main purpose is to share with you the goings on of the residency over the course of the next two years (2012-2013). My hope is to post at least once a week any updates, news worthy items, thoughts, struggles, etc. having to do with this musical endeavor. God willing, this will be a successful blogging experience. Enjoy your time catching up.

Peace,
Ted

What is the Lutheran Church Composer-in-Residence Program?You...

Fri, 4 May 2012 09:17:15 -0600

What is the Lutheran Church Composer-in-Residence Program?
You may be asking yourself, “What is a Lutheran Church Composer-in-Residence?” Such a position can take on a variety of characteristics. The goal of this program is to invigorate sacred music and to provide the composer an opportunity to create fresh music for the worship setting. The composer will collaborate with a single congregation to create new works and arrangements reflecting the Lutheran Church. Once the music has been premiered for the host congregation, it will become available to other churches and organizations. This host congregation will be benefited as this position, through publicity, will draw people to visit and inquire about the uniqueness of the residency; enhance the worship experience; and show that the congregation has
the desire to build on its reputation of music. Finally, this distinctive post can be a source of pride for the congregation.