Church musicians from 22 states participated in the 53rd
annual Sewanee Church Music Conference, which was held July 14-20 at DuBose
Conference Center in Monteagle, Tennessee, and at the University of the South
in Sewanee. Keith Shafer, director of music and organist at St. Paul's
Episcopal Church in Augusta, Georgia, planned and directed the conference.
Heading the conference faculty was Murray Somerville who had
just completed a long tenure as university organist at Harvard and had moved to
Nashville as the newly appointed director of music and organist of St. George's
Church. Along with Somerville, Robert Delcamp, professor of music and
university organist at the University of the South; Thomas Gibbs, professor at
Birmingham-Southern College; Mark Schweitzer of St. James Press; and Keith
Shafer led rehearsals and presented lectures, workshops, and reading sessions.
Hazel Somerville, artistic director of Youth Pro Musica, the Greater Boston
Youth Chorus, discussed choral techniques for young voices. For demonstration
purposes Jason Abel, organist and choirmaster of the Episcopal Church of the
Nativity in Huntsville, Alabama, brought his junior choir. The Rev. Dr.
Christopher Bryan, professor of New Testament at the School of Theology of the
University of the South, led the daily services and in a series of lectures
explored Biblical concepts of creation.
In mid-week three buses took 125 conferees to Atlanta where
they formed the choir for Evensong at the Cathedral of St. Philip. Somerville
conducted the choir, David Fishburn, associate organist and choirmaster of the
cathedral, played the organ, and Bryan was the officiant. On Saturday night at
the University of the South the conferees sang the Mozart Requiem
style='font-style:normal'> with the Sewanee Summer Festival Orchestra conducted
by Joseph Flummerfelt. On Sunday the Holy Eucharist service used the Missa
Brevis in D by Mozart and Telemann's Laudate
Jehovam, all accompanied by organ and a string ensemble under Somerville's direction.
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