Dear Friends in Region 2,

It was great to see many of you at our biennial conference, "Rise, Remember Well the Future!" in Minneapolis last month. The conference team did an excellent job preparing and leading the event; thank you for that outstanding work! One of the highlights of the conference was our time together as a Region during our meeting and lunch. It was awesome to run out of chairs and space as our region was well represented. In this summer edition of the Region 2 E-News, we share a few reflections from our members who attended. If you missed the conference, I hope you enjoy these insights and perspectives and start planning to join us in Portland 2019!
 
Please send any information my way ( [email protected]) by October 15 th for our Fall E-News. We'd love to hear about and share your upcoming events, concerts, activities, accomplishments, etc.!
Blessings to you all in these final days of summer for some and first days of fall activities for others!
 
Ryan K. Hostler
President Region 2 ALCM 


Reflections from the Minneapolis Conference

 
Reflection from Patsy Snodgrass....
On Thursday morning, July 13, the last day of the conference, we stood outside on the plaza of Central Lutheran Church and listened to a charming carillon concert. The day was sunny and cool, with a refreshing breeze. Located in downtown Minneapolis, the Central Lutheran edifice is a stunning structure with soaring ceilings, a magnificent pipe organ, and intricate stained glass windows. It was a perfect moment to reflect upon the highlights of the week: the glorious singing of the assembly, the hospitality of all the parishes who graciously hosted our events, the encouraging words of the conference chaplains, evening prayer at the St. John's Abbey chanting the psalms alongside the monks, the splendid hymn festival featuring the National Lutheran Choir, and plenary speaker Chad Fothergill's admonition to "love the people more than you love the music." Time seemed temporarily suspended. The bells rang. The breeze stirred. There was joy! 

Reflection from Brian Larson....
ALCM nurtures and equips musicians to serve and lead the church's song.
 
An ALCM conference for me is a time to renew friendships with colleagues, to share joys and concerns, to worship in a variety of styles and venues, to see newly published resources, to learn new techniques, to refresh old techniques, to be informed, challenged, and affirmed as a church musician, as a "cantor" of the church. And, it is always encouraging to see the next generation of cantors assume leadership roles.
 
At this year's conference in Minneapolis there were many workshops offered on a variety of topics. I especially enjoyed "Come, Thou Font of Every Blessing" which offered suggestions in preparing printed materials (bulletins, newsletters, etc.). The word "font" was not a misspelling in the workshop title! Another helpful workshop included tips for improved choral technique for the church choir and especially encouraged uniform vowel sounds for good choral tone.
 
Several reading sessions of newly published choral music were offered. One piece I was especially glad to find was Anne Krentz Organ's setting of John 8:31-32, "The Truth Will Make You Free," which is always the gospel reading for Reformation. Seems like a winner for the Reformation 500 year! Anne is the immediate past president of ALCM. Another was an arrangement by Eric Nelson of Jayne Southwick Cool's setting of the text "When Memory Fades" by Mary Louise Bringle, one of the plenary speakers at this year's conference. This text about dementia and Alzheimer's has been helpful to many people as they deal with this reality in their families and congregations.
 
An ALCM conference is always a "mountain top" experience that helps sustain us as we return to the plain to serve God's people joyfully. Ours is a high and holy calling!


Reflection from Kevin Barger....
Any time I go to a conference, I go with two goals in mind as I mentioned in our last e-Newsletter. First, I want to come home with something new that I can use in my own setting. One thing. The past days left with me more things to use in my parish than I can count. Not only am I coming home with some new choral anthems to consider from reading sessions, but more importantly I am coming home fed with tidbits on making sure that I am always learning the people's song, and learning it well. Caring for those people. Loving those people more than the music even. 
 
The second goal is to experience things I can't experience in my home congregation necessarily. Again just one experience is all I ask. And again I come home with more than I can name. Whether the experience of singing with the National Lutheran Choir, or just stepping back and hearing nearly 400 pastors and musicians sing a glorious hymn - in harmony, or the penultimate experience of being welcomed to St. John's Abbey and worshipping together with the monks, I had the opportunity to be a part of rich history and worship. 
 
There are more. But I only needed one. I come home refreshed, nourished and overflowing with experiences. Experiences that feed me and equip me to feed others. I already look forward to 2019 when we get to do it all again. I hope even more of our membership will make it to Portland - the future is ours - Rise well - re-member well the future.

Reflection from Tony Cruz....
Worship is one of the best features of ALCM events. The service started outside with an Affirmation of Baptism utilizing handbells and the chorale "To Jordan Came the Christ, Our Lord" (Christ, Unser Herr - Lutheran Book of Worship 79). When we were all in the church, the Gathering Hymn was the ALCM-commissioned "God Alone Be Praised." James E. Bobb, Assistant Professor of Music - Organ and Church Music at St. Olaf College, was at the console. His improvisation on Wie Schön Leuchtet was so energetic that I wanted to stand to sing when we got to the hymn - but it was during communion so I kept my seat. With 360 singers in attendance, it took some time to prepare and serve the Lord's Supper.
Chad Fothergill's plenary sessions on "Re-Membering the Role of the Cantor" was a centerpiece for this four-day gathering. He examined the historic role of Cantors and helped us take a critical look at our roles in leading the church's song today. I'm looking forward to the publication of his presentation so that I can review it more deeply. Daniel Schwandt was a co-presenter, but was not present because of a family emergency. Even so, his presence was clearly felt.

Reflection from Jim Rindelaub....
What a joy to experience the biennial ALCM conference in Minnesota during July. There was a wonderful representation from Region 2. I so wish every member from Region 2 could have been there. One of the many moments that stuck with me is an effective technique used during the National Lutheran Choir Hymn Festival. They made use of handbell chords to accompany the singing. At one point the bells moved into the hallways creating an "off in the distance" effect. It was a fresh new sound that I thought even my children's chime group could do. It takes these conferences to get me out of my rut and thinking creatively in even the simplest ways!

Welcome to New and Returning  Region 2 Members
 Who Have Joined Since January 1

Kevin Anderson, Eustis, FL
Philip Biedenbender, Tallahassee, FL
Ryan-Michael Blake, Norfolk, VA
Emma Brauckman, Cumming, GA
Jill Coffey, Fort Myers, FL
Bruce Dersch, Petersburg, VA
Joyce Finlay, Naples, FL
John Francis, Wilmington, NC
Laurence Furr, Fort Worth, TX
Richelle Gengler, Midland, TX
Brenda Goslee, Knoxville, TN
Donald Harris, Atlanta, GA
Richard Huckaby, Greenwood, SC
Gloria Klockziem, Lakeland, FL
Trevor Kyro, Orlando, FL
Lydia Landes, Destin, FL
Steven Lawrence, Floyd, VA
Julie Lushetsky, Orlando, FL
Barbara Mattingly, St. Augustine, FL
Rene Milam, Merifield, VA
 
Norma Muller, Tulsa, OK
Patryck Nuss, Winston-Salem, NC
Cynthia Pullin, Norman, OK
Erica Quinley, Stafford, VA
Gail Ramshaw, Arlington, VA,
(Honorary Lifetime Member)
John Renfroe, Cape Coral, FL
Vern Richert, Cypress, TX
Charles Russell, Little Rock, AR
Patricia Zindler Scheer, Tallahasee, FL
Marsha Scheusner, Franklin, TN
Alisha Schimm, Edmond, OK
Jeremy Shoop, Herndon, VA
Daniel Sigmon, Missouri City, TX
Ada Smith, Hickory, NC
Peyton Strouth, Arlington, TX
Becky Watson, Norfolk, VA
Keith Weber, Houston, TX
Bob Williams, Fort Worth, TX
 




2018 Local Workshops
 
As we move into the fall of 2017, look for more information about numerous ALCM local workshops that will be held in the region in 2018. These one-day events will include presentations and workshops on various topics related to church music.