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Association of Lutheran Church Musicians
February 1, 2025 e-newsletter
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Greeting from Robert Hobby | |
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Dear treasured colleagues,
Since my college days I have been one of many ALCM members who have benefitted from our organization's conferences, printed materials, and other offerings that have supported me in my vocation as a church musician.
Even as I write this, a thoughtful program committee is giving shape to our national gathering next August in Raleigh-Durham, NC, and several of us are putting final touches on the plans for a composers symposium here in Fort Wayne. The latter will seek to stimulate discussion and discernment related to musical and spiritual calling related to composition, as well as the pragmatic manner of learning music notation software. Plus, it will be rewarding to informally share a few manuscripts with each other and enjoy conversation with both new and familiar faces.
As we mark our 40th anniversary this year, I invite you to join me in celebrating the many and various ways ALCM has sought to nurture us as church musicians, equipping us with tools and inspiration to keep the church's song alive and vibrant. Grateful for what has been, may the observance also inspire us to dream of further creative and faithful ways to enable the voice of God and God's beloved creation to interact through song.
May God's peace, joy, love, and hope accompany your journey in this new year.
Bob Hobby
Composers Symposium organizer/host
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ALCM is excited to offer a symposium titled Where do we go from here? to stimulate conversation among composers regarding our efforts to be faithful, creative, and nurturing stewards of the church’s song – even where gatherings have limited human and material resources. Registrants will also have the opportunity to explore newer music software. For a more detailed look, visit the Symposium website. More information is added regularly, so be sure to check back often.
ALCM is especially grateful to the hosts for this symposium, Bob Hobby and Trinity English Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne. Generous donations from the Fred Jackisch Memorial Fund as well as from Trinity English Lutheran have helped to maximize the benefits of attendance while minimizing costs to registrants.
Those who attend both the 2025 Composers Symposium and the Raleigh-Durham Conference will receive a $70 dollar refund at the close of the Raleigh-Durham conference.
| Join us in Raleigh-Durham in August! | | |
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For several months now you have been reading about our national worship and music conference in Raleigh-Durham, NC, this summer from August 4-8.
You've heard about the delightful benefits of the location and the hotel; the musical groups who will grace us with their stunning abilities; the worship we will share; and the workshops that will enrich our craft. Now I want to talk to you about the spaces we'll be in.
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Recently I have been intrigued to hear various places of human habitation described as "magical," from the experimental architecture of some of Southern California's unique homes that were lost in the fires to the house into which our daughter's family is moving. "This place is magical," my son-law marveled on my first visit. I think he was trying to say that just being inside lifts you up out of the commonplace to see life and your place in it in an entirely new way. | |
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In Raleigh-Durham we will discover how houses of worship can have this same effect on us. Imagine how our joyous song will unfold beneath the soaring vaulted ceilings of the English Gothic Duke University Chapel (above) and within the symmetry and gilded classical elegance of Raleigh's Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral (right). After you have experienced our assembly being woven together in the great act of congregational song, you may come up with an even better word for these spaces than "magical." If so, please share it with me!
I look forward very much to seeing you there as we position ourselves together "for all that is to be."
Nancy Raabe
ALCM President
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Volunteer Position Opening: CrossAccent Reviews Editor
The CrossAccent journal includes reviews of books, recordings, podcasts, and other professional development resources. We are seeking a new volunteer willing to serve as Reviews Editor and coordinate the publication of these reviews. A full position description can be found here.
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ALCM Board Meeting, January 20-21, 2025
The ALCM Board of Directors met in Chicago on January 20 and 21, 2025, at the offices of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. At this meeting the board:
- Heard highlights from Executive Director Jim Rindelaub about ALCM's activities in 2024, including being in a strong financial position
- Adopted a budget for 2025
- Affirmed ongoing work to make our resources more useful and available through digitization and organization on our web site
- Approved recipients of the Faithful Servant award in 2025; they will be recognized at the 2025 Biennial Conference
- Encouraged the Scholarship Committee to continue with their plans to award conference scholarships
- Heard and affirmed plans to celebrate ALCM's 40th anniversary
- Heard updates about the 2025 Biennial Conference in Raleigh-Durham, and initial thinking about conferences in 2026 and 2027
- Set meeting dates for the Board through August 2025
- Thanked Deacon John Weit and the ELCA for their meeting space and hospitality
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Kyries & Glorias
Kyries (prayer concerns) and Glorias (thanksgivings) are posted in the members area and on this page on the ALCM website. Kyries and Glorias for the following people have been recently posted:
In memoriam
Paul Baker (Jennifer Baker-Trinity's father)
Lorraine Brugh*
Rev. James Capers
John Ferguson*
Richard Jaeggi
Rev. Louis Nuechterlein*
LaRee Shebeck (Patrick Shebeck's mother)
Kyrie
Luke Tegtmeier
Mark & Kathy Helge
Bob & Lois Rimbo
Bob Hobby*
Jenny Hobby
ALCM members are invited to submit Kyries and Glorias following the link in the members area of the website. Non-members may contact the ALCM office at office@alcm.org with information for posting.
* indicates a Founding Member
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Do we have your current contact information?
The 2025 ALCM Membership Directory will sent out in February, and we want to be sure that it includes your correct contact information. If you have recently moved and/or changed church positions and haven't yet reported the change, please let us know no later than Wednesday, February 12. You can email the changes to office@alcm.org or fill out the online contact information form. Not sure whether you've reported changes? Just contact us using either of those options and we'll check for you.
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2025 Norma Aamodt-Nelson
Student Scholar Award
Applications are still being accepted for the 2025 Norma Aamodt-Nelson Student Scholar Award. Students who are currently enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program are encouraged to apply.
This award was established in 2021 to honor the legacy of Norma, a practicing church musician and instrumental acquisitions editor for Augsburg Fortress from 1993 until her death in 2020. The award is designed to encourage collegiate students as they prepare for a vocation in church music. In addition to completing the scholarship application, applicants are required to submit a video audition. The award winner will receive a full scholarship for the 2025 ALCM biennial conference in Raleigh-Durham, which includes conference registration, hotel housing, transportation, conference meals, a one-year membership in ALCM, and a cash prize of $500. The award winner may also be invited to play a piece at the 2025 ALCM biennial conference.
The application deadline is February 15, 2025.
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Direct Your 2024 Thrivent Choice $$$ by March 31!
Thrivent Choice Dollars allows eligible clients with membership to choose where Thrivent distributes a portion of its funding each year. A profound thank you to those of you who have designated ALCM to receive your Thrivent Choice dollars. In the past 10 years over $20,000 has been contributed to ALCM through Thrivent. Especially for those of you who still have 2024 dollars "in the pot," remember that March 31 is the last day to direct those dollars to participating organizations. After March 31 the 2024 dollars go away and 2025 dollars start to acrue. Once again, many thanks to all who choose ALCM as a recipient of Choice Dollars!
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Events are published both in the website calendar and in the monthly e-newsletter. Adding your local event to the calendar is easy. Members can simply log in to the members area of the ALCM website and select "Add an event to the calendar" under "What would you like to do?" Click on the "Post Your Event" button and complete the form. Non-members should send event details to office@alcm.org for consideration.
Your event will appear on the main event calendar, on the main page of the website, and in the e-newsletter for the month in which the event will take place. Good advertising - and it's free to ALCM members!
View the complete ALCM calendar.
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Do you have practical thoughts, suggestions, or resources that could help your fellow ALCM musicians? In Tempo is always looking for new contributors! The deadline to contribute to the next issue is March 1st. Questions and submissions may be directed to intempo@alcm.org. | |
Hymn Resources
As part of your Epiphany worship planning, be sure to check your hymn selections against the list of Hymn Settings in the members area of the ALCM website. (See the link under the "Quick Links" heading.) There are hundreds of hymn settings to support congregational singing.
As you plan for Transfiguration Sunday, consider using "How Good, Lord, to Be Here" set to the tune POTSDAM. Below you will find a part for B-flat instrument by Jean Boehler and a setting for organ and with soloed melody by Paul Otte.
POTSDAM – Boehler instrumental parts
POTSDAM – Otte harmonization
There are many resources in the members area. If you haven't looked for a while, log in and do some exploring!
Having difficulty logging in to the members area? First check to be sure that you are using the email address that we have on file (the address at which you receive the e-newsletter). Click on the "Forgot your password?" link in the login box and follow the instructions to reset your password. If you still have difficulty logging in, send an email to office@alcm.org and we'll be happy to help.
| The Hymn Society in the United States and Canada is conducting a competition for one or more theologically rich hymn or song texts for congregational singing that could be used in celebration of God the Creator. The search is for a text, whether written for an existing or a new musical setting. The writer of the winning entry will receive a $500 prize. Second and third place prizes of $250 may be awarded to other writers if there are additional outstanding entries. Deadline for submissions is May 2, 2025. Complete information, guidelines, and submission form may be found at https://thehymnsociety.org/2025-hymn-search/. | The Center for Church Music at Concordia University Chicago publishes video interviews with promient church musicians titled "Profiles in American Lutheran Church Music." Each video is about 45 minutes long. If you browse the list of interviews, you will recognize the names of many ALCM members, including Lorraine Brugh and John Ferguson, both of whom died within the past month. The videos are fascinating, insightful, and at times quite entertaining! | |
Nominate Young Musicians for Lutheran Summer Music | Youth musicians from across the country are headed to Valparaiso University this year for the 2025 Lutheran Summer Music Academy & Festival (LSM). Students in grades 8-12 will be immersed in a supportive community that nurtures their musical growth, and invites them to share their musical gifts in performance and in worship. With the Standard Enrollment deadline approaching on March 1, now is the perfect time to nominate students so their families can directly receive information and an invitation to apply. Do you know young musicians who would thrive at LSM? Nominate them today at LSMacademy.org/nominate. | |
The Raabe Prize at 25!
2024 marked the 25th Anniversary of the Raabe Prize for Excellence in Sacred Composition. Endowed in 1999 by Dr. William and Pr. Nancy Raabe of Philadelphia, this prize is awarded every two years for a single musical work that reflects a larger history of excellence on the part of a composer. Its aim is to recognize and encourage significant accomplishments in composition contributing to the body of sacred music for the church in the Lutheran heritage. Throughout 2024 and 2025, ALCM is highlighting each prizewinner with a video describing the piece, its significance and, where possible, featuring a conversation with the composer.
You can view previous interviews on the Prize Winners page on the ALCM website. Watch for new interviews in the coming months!
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Embark on an unforgettable European adventure enriched by a captivating blend of history and natural beauty from Poland to Tallinn, Estonia. Begin your travels in Warsaw, then proceed through the Polish countryside to Zakopane, nestled at the base of the Tatra Mountains. Explore Krakow’s rich history, including visits to Wawel Cathedral and Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory. Journey onward to charming Tallinn, Estonia, where you’ll celebrate the 28th Estonian Song and Dance Festival. The Song Celebration tradition began in 1869 as a way for Estonians to meet, share their national spirit, and celebrate their unity in times of oppression. Hear tens of thousands of voices lifted in song and see the performers colorful regional costumes. Reserved seats are included for the final day of the festival.
Additional information.
Register for the event.
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Are you getting the most out of your ALCM membership?
Did you know that new member benefits are being added all the time to the members area of the ALCM website? You will want to log in whenever you visit the site to be sure that you have access to everything available to members. Can't remember your login information? In almost every case, your username is your email address. You can change or reset your password by following the "Forgot your password?" link in the login box.
Items in the members area are available for unlimited use as long as your membership remains active. Here are a few items for members only:
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All issues of CrossAccent (from the very beginning) and In Tempo are available for viewing. These items are for sale in the Marketplace to non-members;
- Advertise your local events on ALCM's calendar;
- Listen to all ALCM CD recordings for free;
- Hymns, accompaniments, descants, concertatos, and hymn stanza alternations for choir;
- Other free downloadable seasonal and non-seasonal resources;
- Discounted registration fee for ALCM-sponsored webinars and conferences;
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Past issues of ALCM's original practical resource, Grace Notes, from 1997-2011;
- Discounts on purchases of CDs and other items in the Marketplace; and
- A host of other resources free for viewing and downloading.
If you have any difficulty logging in or if you have questions or comments about the website or your membership, please feel free to contact us by email at office@alcm.org.
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Are you a congregation looking for a musician?
A musician looking for a position?
ALCM can help!
Employment resources have been developed to assist congregations in the process of searching for and hiring a musician. Presented in a step-by-step format, these resources will guide you through the entire employment process.
The ALCM job listing service connects those looking for positions in the field of church music with congregations and other institutions that have openings. By completing an online job posting form, congregations can post their positions on the ALCM website where those looking for employment may view them.
Musicians searching for a job may view posted job openings on the ALCM website, where those looking for positions can view them. Both full-time and part-time positions are listed, and new positions are added as received.
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The Association of Lutheran Church Musicians
nurtures and equips musicians
to serve and lead the church's song.
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