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MISSOURI DISTRICT MUSICIANS ATTEND 29th ANNUAL LUTHERAN SUMMER MUSIC ACADEMY
The 29th Annual Lutheran Summer Music Academy (LSM) took place at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, from June 20 to July 18, 2010. Karin Dye of Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Chesterfield, Alexander Arensmeier of Peach Lutheran Church in St. Louis, Adele Burge of Shepherd of the Lakes Lutheran Church in Forsyth, and Laura Snyder of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Emma were four of 149 students accepted into the program. LSM is the pinnacle program of Lutheran Music Program and is one of the nation’s premier music training programs for young people. The program’s mission is to transform lives and connect people through faith and music. LSM fosters musical excellence and spiritual growth in a caring community for high school band, orchestra, choir, piano, and pipe organ students from all faith backgrounds.
Students at LSM were immersed in:
Music Instruction — Led by our faculty of 34 educators, esteemed professional musicians and teachers from across the country, students received two private lessons each week, played in both large and small ensembles, and were placed in a musicianship class led by LSM’s composer-in-residence. Students were also given elective options such as conducting, church music, handbells, and more.
Worship and Devotions — LSM’s 2010 Chaplain, Rev. Michael Costello, led students in liturgically-rich worship twice daily and devotional study weekly. Evening Prayer, Compline, and Holden Evening Prayer settings were used centrally. Worship during the month also included a Hymn Festival and Bach Cantata.
LSM also utilizes a commissioned musical arrangement of Martin Luther’s Morning Prayer by Carl Schalk. Written expressly for LSM and introduced in 2009, this piece is sung by the entire community each morning and already a favorite tradition. LSM culminated in Festival Week, the final week of the program which included the hymn festival, student solo and chamber recitals, and evening concerts by the band, choir, and orchestra. More than 2,000 people were in attendance.
Lutheran Music Program’s national offices are located in Minneapolis, MN, and LSM itself rotates its location among various Lutheran colleges. Since its founding in 1981, more than 3,000 students have attended Lutheran Summer Music. Hundreds of these alumni have pursued careers in music education, church music, and performance. LSM 2011 will mark the program’s 30th anniversary and will be held June 26 to July 24 at Luther College.
New for congregations is the Young Musicians Partnership (YMP) which encourages churches to set up local scholarships for youth interested in attending Lutheran Summer Music. In return, students in "partner” congregations receive a 10% discount plus matching dollars for the locally-seeded scholarship. In the YMP’s third year, 38% of the students who attended LSM 2010 came from partner congregations, including Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Chesterfield, Peach Lutheran Church in St. Louis, and Shepherd of the Lakes Lutheran Church in Forsyth. To enroll in the Young Musicians Partnership or for more information on Lutheran Summer Music, please visit www.lutheransummermusic.org or contact Director of Admissions Sue Olstad at 888-635-6583 or solstad@lutheransummermusic.org. |
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Local Publisher Named 2010 National Best Christian Workplace
Concordia Publishing House in St. Louis Obtains Honorable Workplace Award for Two Consecutive Years
The Best Christian Workplace Institute(BCWI) announced Concordia Publishing House as a certified Best Christian Workplace for 2010, the publisher’s second consecutive year. The BCWI’s mission is to "create cultures of excellence;” and this is exactly what they found in Concordia Publishing House.
Concordia Publishing House’s mission is to strengthen and aid congregations in their proclamation of our Lord Jesus Christ by providing resources that are faithful to the Scriptures and Lutheran Confessions—all to the glory of God. The company is the publisher for the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, and also serves the greater Christian market at large. CPH values customer focus, continuous improvement, stewardship, accountability and excellence. These natural and spiritual values are embedded in every process, practice, and interaction within CPH.
"CPH is a continuous quality and service based Christian organization. I must say I am proud of the CPH team, our mission, and our results, and I know the Lord will bless our organization. All glory be to God!” CPH president and CEO Dr. Bruce G. Kintz said.
In order to become certified, CPH asked employees to complete the Best Christian Workplaces Institute Staff Engagement survey and met the distinguished predetermined standards of excellence. The survey covers such issues as job satisfaction, organizational commitment, Christian witness, supervisory effectiveness, work satisfaction, personal growth and development, management effectiveness, customer/supporter satisfaction, teamwork, communications, and pay and benefits.
CPH won the Missouri Quality Award last year and is continuing efforts to obtain the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award.
CPH keeps Christ front and center by praying before meetings, hosting chapel service each week, and displaying biblical messages of hope throughout the halls of the workplace. |
