Bethany Magazine - August 2021

BY LANCE SCHWARTZ • CHIEF COMMUNICATION OFFICER

Bethany Lutheran College alumnus Jacob Weber ('07) is the 2021 recipient of the Raabe Prize for Excellence in Sacred Composition presented by the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians. Weber received the award for his choral composition "Festival Gloria."

The Raabe Prize is awarded every two years for a single musical work, published or unpublished and written within the last five years, that reflects a larger history of excellence on the part of the composer. Dr. William and Rev. Nancy Raabe of Madison, Wisconsin, endowed this prize to recognize and encourage significant accomplishments in composition contributing to the body of sacred music for the church in the Lutheran heritage.

The winner of the annual prize is able to direct a monetary award of $1,000 to the musical or ecclesiastical organization chosen by the composer. Weber chose to direct his award to the Bethany Lutheran College Music Department.

Weber is the associate editor of music/worship at Concordia Publishing House (CPH). At CPH, he assists with the editing and development of all handbell, keyboard, and choral publications, as well as other worship resources, including CPH's children's hymnal, One and All Rejoice (2020), of which he was the editor. Prior to this, he was the kantor at Emmanuel Lutheran Church and School (LCMS) in Dearborn, Michigan, where he oversaw and directed the church and school music programs and served as organist.

Weber earned a bachelor of arts degree in church music from Bethany. After graduating from Bethany he continued his studies at Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, Michigan; and a earned a master of church music degree from Concordia University Wisconsin.

While at Bethany, Weber participated in the annual All-Student Organ Recital sponsored by the Sioux Trails Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. He also competed in the American Guild of Organists/Twin Cities Chapter Student Scholarship Competition. He was a featured organist at Bethany's recent celebration of the 30th anniversary of the reinstallation of the Chapel Dobson Organ.

Weber said of his time at Bethany, "At Bethany, your professors aren't just your teachers, they're your friends. How incredibly unique a Bethany education is! The music degree prepares you for many areas of the music field, whether you're interested in theory, history, composition, performance, or pursuing higher education via masters and PhD. Bethany has the resources and the professors that will give you valuable information for your future to come which will ultimately allow you to succeed and accomplish great things.

"What I remember most about Bethany was the worship life. Chapel on a daily basis just could not be beat. What incredible opportunities for a school body to come together for worship each day and hear God's Word and soak in the essential nutrients us as Christians need on a daily basis. I was certainly blessed by this at Bethany, as the Holy Spirit worked faith in my heart during a very strong, yet a very weak time of my life."

Weber and his wife, Rachael, reside in St. Louis, Missouri, with their children. Together, they authored and composed a resource for children entitled Songs of the Church Year, a songbook and CD published by CPH that is designed to teach children the concepts of the Church Year through music.

"My goal is to inspire and teach young children to grow and become faithful musicians in their churches and communities. As I teach children the joy of music and hymnody in the lives of God's people, it is my hope that they will grab ahold of what they learn and take it with them throughout their lives and one day, teach their own children or classroom."

TO PREVIEW THE ARRANGEMENT AND PURCHASECOPIES VISIT: BIT.LY/WEBERMUSIC21

Jacob Weber