草莓社区

, assistant professor of music at 草莓社区, is one of three winners in the 2017 .

Seventy-eight entrants competed for the prize, offered every two years by The Association of Lutheran Church Musicians. Among other guidelines, 鈥減reference is given to those entries which grow out of but are not necessarily restricted to, the worshiping assembly of the baptized who gather around Word and Sacrament.鈥�

Keebaugh won honorable mention for his a cappella composition 鈥�,鈥� a meditative tableau on the text of Isaiah 53.

Honorable mention was also given to Thomas Keesecker of Bel Air, Maryland.

Erik Meyer won the $2,000 prize, which is split between the composer and a musical or ecclesiastical organization of the composer鈥檚 choice. Meyer, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is music director at the Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, where he oversees a large choral and instrumental program.

Keebaugh counts this award among the top three of his career, including being a semi-finalist for the American Prize in 2013 and a finalist in the international in 2015.

Since the announcement, five people have inquired about performing the work. Among them was a representative from , a Los Angeles group which specializes in performing quality new choral works.

鈥淚t鈥檚 an honor to receive an honorable mention in this contest, which received so many entries,鈥� Keebaugh said. 鈥淚t was very competitive and I received some beautiful feedback, which I certainly appreciated.鈥�

The selection committee, headed by Dr. Zebulon Highben of Muskingum University, called the work 鈥渄ense 鈥� setting a theologically rich text with tone clusters and long unaccompanied lines in a style that evokes the holy minimalism of Tavener and P盲rt. Though it is more difficult than the other two selections, and requires a vocal stamina that would put it beyond the reach of many choirs, it stands clearly in the 鈥榟igh art鈥� stream of the Lutheran musical tradition and is worthy of inclusion as an honorable mention.鈥�

“Ryan is becoming recognized as one of a few leading young American composers,” said Professor , chair of the EMU . 鈥淗is music has a mystical quality that appeals to both performers and audience members alike. We are fortunate to have him on faculty. He is having a positive influence on the next generation of composers who are being 鈥榞rown鈥� in our backyard.”

鈥淭he Suffering Servant鈥� premiered in August 2012, performed by the Bridgewater College Alumni Choir, and has subsequently been performed and recorded by the University of South Florida Chamber Singers and the Western Michigan University Chorale.