Music at St. John’s
Music is an integral and essential part of worship at St. John’s. Our music program is known for its excellent quality and distinctive style. Our volunteer choir and Choral Scholars from CMU lead the congregation in a wide range of music, from traditional Anglican and Episcopal hymns to medieval chant and Renaissance motets to American folk music and spirituals.
Our Musicians
Ethan Kindle, Organist | Eric Vinciguerra, Choirmaster
Our Choral Scholars
The Choral Scholar ministry at St. John’s is our primary outreach to the Central Michigan University community. This year, five students from the School of Music are singing in our choir with members of the parish – we love them, we embrace them, and they, too, become part of our community.
Gavin Foley is a sophomore at Central Michigan University from Columbus, IN. He is majoring in Vocal Performance and is a member of the CMU Chamber Singers.
Haley Phillips is a sophomore from Haslett, MI. She is majoring in Choral Music Educataion and is part of the Vocal Performance Concert Choir. She is also a member of the American Choral Directors Association, Kappa Delta Pi, and will be in the School of Music’s opera this year, Gianni Schicchi.
Knight Emerson is a sophomore from Belleville, MI. He is pursuing BFA in Musical Theatre Performance. This is Knight’s 1st year singing with the St. John’s choir as a choral scholar.
Ryan Linton, a senior student pursuing a Bachelor of Music Education with a German minor at CMU, is in his 3rd year as a St. John’s Choral Scholar. He is from Grand Rapids and is currently a member of the American Choral Directors Association (ADCA) as well as the CMU Chamber Singers.
Our Organ: St. John’s organ, Op. 65, was built by the internationally known Canadian organ builder, Gabriel Kney in 1973. It is one of only two tracker instruments in Mt. Pleasant, the other being a studio organ at Central Michigan University, also built by Gabriel Kney. The organ has 2 manuals and 16 stops.
Gabriel Kney, Organ Builder, grew up in the city of Speyer-am-Rhein in Germany where he apprenticed with master organ builder Paul Seattle. In 1951 he immigrated to Canada. In 1955, in London, Ontario, he started his own business of building organs, retiring in 1996.
At the time of the Tracker Organ Revival in America, in the late 1950s, he was the first Canadian organ builder to again build mechanical (tracker) action organs. St. John’s Opus 65 is an outstanding example of the visual and tonal character of his instruments.