“How Long, O Lord?”
A Musical Exploration of Lament and Deliverance for Lent
in partnership with Deus Ex Musica
Wednesday, February 24, 2021 • via Zoom
7:00 – 8:00 pm (Eastern) Listening & Learning
8:00 – 8:30 pm (Eastern) Small-Group Discussion (optional)
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This online session invites participants to dive deeply into the richness, beauty, and mystery of the psalms in a unique and memorable way. Participants will gather to listen to three brand-new musical interpretations of Psalm 13, each written by a contemporary composer representing a different Christian tradition. Prof. Delvyn Case from Wheaton College in Massachusetts will lead a moderated conversation with the composers, exploring how the different musical settings help us experience, understand, and appreciate the depth and subtlety of this powerful psalm of lament and deliverance. The evening will end with an opportunity for conversation in facilitated, online small groups.
This event is an opportunity for faith formation for anyone and everyone, so no musical experience is necessary; all you need to bring are open ears and an open heart!
Developed by Deus Ex Musica, an ecumenical organization that promotes sacred music as a resource for learning and spiritual growth, versions of this unique event have been hosted by a variety of churches, seminaries, and organizations, including the national conference of the United Church of Christ, the Parish of St Martin in the Fields (London), Eden Seminary, Boston University School of Theology, and Gordon College.
Meet the leaders of this event:
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Delvyn Case is a composer, conductor, scholar, and educator based in Boston. His music has been performed by over 80 orchestras across the world, as well as by the numerous Grammy-winning artists. He is the composer of the opera The Prioress’s Tale, which toured New England for three seasons as part of a unique initiative promoting Jewish-Christian dialogue. He is the founder of Deus Ex Musica, a global ecumenical organization that promotes the use of sacred music as a resource for faith formation. Dr. Case grew up in Cumberland, Maine, then studied at Yale and the University of Pennsylvania. He serves as Associate Professor of Music at Wheaton College in Massachusetts, and is a member of Old South Church in Boston (UCC).
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Composer, Wheaton College Conservatory of Music, Illinois
Shawn E. Okpebholo is a widely sought-after and award-winning composer, recently winning second place in The American Prize Composition Competition (orchestral division). His many commissioned works have been heard on five continents and across the United States, including at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. He earned his masters and doctoral degrees in composition from the University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music. Currently, he is Professor of Music Composition and Theory at Wheaton College-Conservatory of Music (IL). He worships at the Salvation Army in Oakbrook Terrace.
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Composer, California Baptist University School of Music
Josh Rodriguez was born in Argentina and spent his childhood in Guatemala and Mexico. He completed a BA in Music through Thomas Edison State College and MM in Composition at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Awarded the prestigious Eugene V. Cota-Robles Fellowship at the University of California, Los Angeles, Rodriguez completed his Ph.D in Composition in 2015. Dr. Rodriguez’s music spans various genres including classical concert music, film scores, sacred choral works, and contemporary popular songs. He currently serves at the Collinsworth School of Music at California Baptist University as Assistant Professor of Music Theory and Composition.
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Composer, Gordon College Dept. of Music, Massachusetts
With music described by the Boston Globe as “hypnotic… haunting and hopeful,” Mary Montgomery Koppel is a sought-after composer in a variety of genres. Her music is richly complex, intricate, and refined, while both aurally accessible and challenging. Dr. MK was a founding member and composer-in-residence of the highly-acclaimed Lorelei Ensemble, through whom she contributed eight new works to the repertoire for women’s voices. Her home church is First Church in Wenham (UCC), where she sings and composes for worship regularly. She recently made her Symphony Hall debut with MIT Orchestra’s performance of Kaleidoscope. Dr. MK teaches at Gordon College and Boston University.
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Follow-Up Event for All Interested: |
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How to Use Sacred Music
as a Resource for Faith Formation
Lunchtime Conversation with Dr. Delvyn Case & Debbie Gline Allen
Wednesday, March 10, 2021
Noon – 1:00 pm (Eastern) • via Zoom
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We hear great works of sacred music in corporate worship, in the concert hall, and on the radio, but none of these contexts allows Christians to intentionally explore how sacred music can contribute to our faith and to our understanding of our tradition. During this lunchtime conversation pastors, educators, and lay leaders will learn how to develop and lead sessions that use sacred music as a resource for faith formation in their own communities. No musical experience is necessary. Led by Dr. Delvyn Case, professor in the music department at Wheaton College in Massachusetts and founder of Deus Ex Musica, and Debbie Gline Allen, Associate for Faith Formation & Youth Ministries at the Southern New England Conference, United Church of Christ.
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Dr. Delvyn Case, whose photo and bio are included above, will be joined by Debbie Gline Allen. |
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Debbie Gline Allen
Debbie Gline Allen is a Minister of Faith Formation for the Southern New England Conference United Church of Christ.
Before graduating from the Presbyterian School of Christian Education (now Union Presbyterian Seminary) in Richmond, Virginia with a Masters degree in Christian Education and Sacred Music, she earned a Bachelor’s degree in music education from Keene State College in Keene, NH. Her dual loves of faith education and music are a part of her ministry both within and outside of the church setting.
Debbie is married to Dani Gline Allen. They live in Derry, New Hampshire, and have two sons and two cats. When not involved in a church somewhere, Debbie enjoys reading, playing soprano recorder, cooking, trail walking, and snowshoeing.
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Allen Ewing-Merrill
Executive Director
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Nicole Diroff
Program Director
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Aram Mitchell
Director of Partnerships & Formation
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Our mission is to catalyze spiritual imagination with enduring wisdom for transformative faith leadership.
We equip and support faith leaders for theologically grounded and effective 21st-century ministries.
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