06/23/2015

Church music leaders John Ferguson and Anton Armstrong to lead hymn festival in August

Minneapolis (June 23, 2015)—Augsburg Fortress, the publishing ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, is hosting a hymn festival at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, August 3, 2015, at Gethsemane Lutheran Church, Columbus, Ohio, that is free and open to the public.

Hymn festivals are a way of promoting congregational song in churches, as well as bringing communities together through music and liturgy. “Let the Whole Creation Cry: A Hymn Festival” follows a pattern for worship that includes hymn introductions and accompaniments, readings, reflections, and prayers prepared by John Ferguson, retired professor of organ and church music and cantor to the student congregation at St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn. Congregational hymns and choral anthems will be led by Anton Armstrong, professor of music at St. Olaf College and conductor of the renowned St. Olaf Choir.

In addition to the hymn festival, individuals and choirs are invited to participate in the festival choir led by Armstrong and accompanied by Ferguson in a rehearsal prior to the hymn festival from 6 to 7:15 p.m. No registration is required to attend the hymn festival or rehearse and sing with the festival choir.

“Whether you sing in a choir or just love adding your voice to a strong singing assembly, you won’t want to miss this rare opportunity to make music with two of the world’s premier leaders of choral and congregational song,” says Martin Seltz, publisher, Augsburg Fortress.

The hymn festival is part of the Augsburg Fortress Summer 2015 Music Clinics, which annually draw hundreds of church musicians at six locations across the United States with the purpose of exploring fresh and innovative ways to enliven music in worship. For more information about the Augsburg Fortress Summer 2015 Music Clinics and to register, visit AugsburgMusic.org/music-clinics.