SEWANEE CHURCH MUSIC CONFERENCE
A Brief History
“We are here making a beginning of what promises to be a very pleasant and profitable thing, and we ask you for your help and interest, as well as yourself to take part in it.” Writing these words in April 1951, Bishop Theodore N. Barth, Bishop Coadjutor of Tennessee, announced the creation of an annual summer conference of church music patterned after one held in Evergreen, Colorado. Because of the difficulties in traveling to Evergreen it was felt that such a conference should be held in the Fourth Province of the country. On February 27, 1951, at Bishop Barth’s request, ten representatives of the 13 dioceses in the Fourth (Sewanee) Province met at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee. As envisioned by Bishop Barth, the conference was not to be a school in organ playing nor a general instruction in the art of choral singing. It was to do purely with the relationship of music to the liturgy of the Episcopal Church. It was his hope “that many of the organists and choir directors in the average city, small town, and even country parish will be able to come to this, and that the congregations they serve will help to make it possible.”
Dr. Adolph Steuterman from Calvary Church, Memphis, was made chairman of arrangements. Thomas Alexander, St. Paul’s Church, Chattanooga, would be bursar and registrar, and M. B. McGrew, Church of the Good Shepherd, Memphis, would serve as secretary. He was succeeded by Richard T. White, St. John’s Church, Memphis in 1953.
The fee of $50.00 covered tuition, room and board for the ten-day conference held July 17-25 that year. Daily classes included topics such as “Liturgy and Church Music in their Historical Development”, sessions on Anglican and plainsong chants, choir techniques and the Hymnal 1940. Anthems and service music would be studied and performed in the liturgies held during the conference, with the choir made up of the attendees themselves. As stated in the brochure for this first conference, “Afternoons will be free for recreation and private consultation with the faculty and members of the provincial committee. Not the least important is the close companionship and discussion with many fellow musicians from all over the South. This is a rare and valuable experience, cementing life-long friendships. Not infrequently, much invaluable learning results from informal discussion at the dinner table or on a leisurely stroll along some mountain trail.” These very words could be penned today, 50 years later, about the spirit of the Sewanee Church Music Conference.
The first conference attracted 54 persons from 11 Dioceses who gathered at the DuBose Conference Center in Monteagle, Tennessee. The Rev. Massey H. Shepherd, Jr., Professor of Church History from the Episcopal Theological School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, made his first of many appearances as a faculty member. Robert L. Hobbs, St. Luke’s, Louisville, Kentucky, Lyman P. Pryor, St. John’s Cathedral, Jacksonville, Florida, and Robert L. Van Doren, Trinity Church, Columbia, South Carolina, comprised the music faculty. The Rev. Cyril N. Sturrup, Rector of St. Paul’s, Winter Haven, Florida was the conference Chaplain.
Regarding Massey Shepherd, Richard White (registrar for over 13 years) shared: “He was probably the finest liturgist in the country. He could talk for 50 minutes (the length of the classes) on the Prayer Book, the psalms, the structure of the service, etc. with no notes and never searched for a word. He was even invited to the Vatican to participate in discussions on liturgy.”
Highlights of the first conference included Sunday worship at St. Paul’s, Chattanooga, where Tom Alexander was Organist-Choirmaster. A picnic followed at Chickamauga Lake. Wednesday Choral Evensong was celebrated at All Saints Chapel on the Sewanee campus. Response was so enthusiastic that it was agreed to make the gathering an annual event.
The second conference grew to 73 attendees (representing 17 dioceses). Massey Shepherd and Robert Van Doren returned as faculty, joined by Ray Francis Brown from General Theological Seminary in New York; William Teague, St. Mark’s, Shreveport; Frank Slater, St. Andrew’s, Jackson, Mississippi. Bishop Frank McElwain, Director of the DuBose Center, was Chaplain. The conferees again served as the choir for the Sunday service at St. Paul’s, Chattanooga, and Wednesday Evensong were “back on the mountain” at All Saints Chapel, with Bishop Barth preaching.
By 1955 there were 90 attendees from 17 diocese in 9 states. Anthems sung that year included Judge Eternal by Marchant; Richard de Castre’s Prayer by Terry; Save Us, O Lord by Bairstow; God Is Gone Up by Titcomb. The tuition increased to $55.00 by the ninth gathering in 1959 when 88 conferees from 24 states were treated to a study of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Haydn’s Creation, and Sowerby’s Forsaken of Man.
In a 1964 letter to Peter Fyfe, Christ Church, Nashville, Adolph Steuterman – in his final year serving as Chair of Arrangements - informed him that funds to cover travel expenses for the Music Committee of the Diocese of Tennessee had been authorized. This committee, headed by Bishop Barth and chaired by Dr. Steuterman, led the conference planning in its early years. 1964 saw the conference leave the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Tennessee and come under the umbrella of the Fourth Province of the Episcopal Church, broadening its reach and appeal to a wider area.
The Registrar mailed the conference brochures, maintained a card file of those attending with a large map showing the places the attendees came from. One of his more pleasant jobs was to ring the bell in Claiborne Hall every morning to wake the conferees - that is, when the bell rope wasn’t tied up in the belfry, out of his reach. David Ramsey, then at Church of the Holy Communion, Memphis, became Registrar in 1965. In 1970, Richard Sidey, St. John’s Cathedral, Knoxville, took on the task and faithfully fulfilled the important duties of Registrar until an emergency appendectomy a few days before the 1992 conference. Happily, he recovered, but the incident forced the small “Committee on Arrangements” to face the issues of the conference’s dependance on the shoulders of a few devoted members.
In 1965, Gerre Hancock, now of St. Thomas Church, New York, made his first of two appearances on the Sewanee faculty.
By 1967 the leadership of the Conference began to rotate and various individuals served as Director. First was Everett O’Neal of Lookout Mountain, Tennessee. Later, under the title of Manager, Everett was to serve the Conference for many years, continuing the good work of the founders. After his death in 1996 a scholarship was named in his memory to be awarded to two first-time attendees each year.
As successful as the conference was, it was felt that 10 days was too long for some to be absent from their positions; others thought that the experience climaxed with the Eucharist on Sunday and the remaining days were somewhat of a letdown. The 1970 conference featured a schedule of seven days, beginning on a Monday evening with a mid-week Evensong and culminating in the Sunday Eucharist at All Saints Chapel. This pattern is still followed today.
The 25th Anniversary of the Conference was directed by John L. Hooker, then of St. Paul’s, Chattanooga. This gathering in 1970 was celebrated with an unusually festive schedule of events, including Choral services sung by the Choir of Christ Church, Nashville, the Colson Chorale, Advent Matins, Epiphany Evensong, organ recitals by Jack Ossewarde, Sam Batt Owens, and David Koehring. Fees for the week had risen to $165.00, but the new Bishops’ Hall provided air-conditioned facilities and private baths for the first time.
In the brochure describing the various offerings of the 1970 conference, the first reference is seen of the annual Conferee “Stunt-O-Rama” which evolved into the much-anticipated “Frolic” now held Saturday evening after the closing banquet. It is interesting to note that in the same brochure, this directive regarding conferees’ mode of dress was deleted after many years: “Slacks and shorts are not acceptable wear for ladies at class sessions and services. Extreme modes of clothing are not desirable. A high standard of conduct is expected of all who attend the Conference.”
Throughout its existance, the Sewanee Church Music Conference has drawn its faculty and recitalists from among the leading lights of the musical profession and the clerical world. In addition to those already listed, conferees benefitted from the expertise of Mildred Andrews, Vernon de Tar, Gerre Hancock, Marilyn Mason, Sam Batt Owens, James Litton, Paul Manz, Alec Wyton, Jack Ossewarde, Marion Hatchett, Eric Greenwood, Dan Matthews, Keith Shafer, Raymond Glover, George Faxon, Larry King, Marilyn Keiser, Peter Hallock, Bruce Neswick, Huw Lewis, Ben Hutto, Judson Child, David Hurd, and Donald Pearson, to name but a few.
Having completed several terms as conference Director and sensing the need for a more formal structure of leadership, Keith Shafer of St. Paul’s, Augusta, encouraged the Committee on Arrangements to consider incorporation. This took place in 1993, with the establishment of the Sewanee Church Music Conference Board of Directors. The mailing list was expanded to include more Episcopal churches in the area surrounding Province IV and, the following year, the conference experienced its largest enrollment ever (167) straining the physical facilities of the Dubose Center. The Board also took steps to strengthen the financial future of the conference by raising the registration fee, permitting more equitable compensation for the faculty who served for decades without stipends. Commissioned organ and choral music were also added to the conference agenda. Another change which increased the conference attendance was the continued expansion of the mailing list to churches throughout most of the United States and providing promotional material on the conference to every diocesan news organ in the Episcopal Church. The conference also began sending its annual brochure via first class rather than fourth class mail. In 1999 the Sewanee Church Music Conference opened its official website www.sewaneeconf.com, enabling information on the conference to be provided on the internet.
With enrollment now limited to 150
conferees, many “veterans” return their registration forms immediately
so that they may be assured of a place at Dubose. Often noted for its “family
reunion” atmosphere, the Sewanee Conference has become a highpoint in the
lives of many who would enthusiastically affirm Bishop Barth’s words: “This
is a rare and valuable experience, cementing life-long friendships.” -
Jane Scharding Smedley