by Aryn Henning Nichols | photos courtesty Kat Singer

When you think of the Midwest, the word that comes to mind is not usually “diverse.” More often it’s “farm” or even more exact, “corn.” So it is a rare find indeed when a truly diverse group of students and staff from all corners of the country – even the world – actually choose to spend four weeks in some relatively small Lutheran college in the Midwest.
The fact that the purpose of their trip is to study the connection between music and faith makes it an even bigger anomaly. But the Minneapolis-based Lutheran Music Program takes on this rare bird of a task with ease, recruiting upwards of 150 students each summer for the Lutheran Summer Music Acadamy and Festival (LSM).

“Students come from Japan, Alaska, New York City, Florida, Texas…” LSM executive director Beth Burns says, trailing off. “Really all over the place. 12 from California, nine from Iowa, 21 from Minnesota. It’s great because the students get exposed to such diversity while they’re at LSM – some of them come from such homogenous communities that this is the first time they’ve been in an environment like this.”

Leaders in the Lutheran Church founded LSM in Minneapolis in 1982. They were concerned that the younger generation was losing interest in church music and wanted to develop a program that could “pass the guard” essentially, and keep alive this tradition that is so intrinsically tied to Lutheran worship. For the past 27 years, LSM has moved from Lutheran college to Lutheran College around the Midwest in a “program without walls.” The idea is to both expose students to music connected to faith, but also places they could potentially attend college.

LSM will spend the next three summer sessions at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. From June 21 to July 19, students will spend work-packed days immersed in lessons, ensembles, recitals, and study. They’re the hard-working sorts of kids you’d want to have if you were a teacher.

“They’re all pretty serious students,” LSM faculty and Luther professor Spencer Martin says. “They’re bright, talented, and really interested in relating music and church. Exactly the type we’d want to recruit to Luther.”

The students of LSM might have a different story though: they claim no sainthood.

“We’re a pretty rag-tag bunch of kids,” says two-year LSM participant Jaci Wilkinson. “We still need to be whupped into shape.”

But just as Jaci jokes, she’s preparing to finish her sophomore year at Luther College. At age 19, she’s pretty much a year ahead. She’s a music major focusing on cello with a full summer scheduled – you get the feeling she’s pretty “whupped” into shape already. Jaci, originally from Decorah, credits LSM for a lot of her dedication to the cello and music in general.

“I wouldn’t be a music major if it wasn’t for LSM. I can say that pretty confidently,” she says.

One of the reasons Jaci chose LSM – there are a lot of programs out there – was the talented and committed faculty.

“We have 34 faculty members drawn from the best music programs across the county: University of Texas, University of Minnesota, Luther, Ithaca, University of Louisiana… and we retain a lot them. We’ve also retained 40 percent of our students this summer. They enjoy working with the same teachers each year,” says Beth. “Spencer, for example, has practically a fan club of violas across the United States.”

In total, 60 faculty and staff members in addition to the 150 students will be making Luther College their four-week summer home. While the program does rotate semi-regularly – it’s been at St. Olaf, Valparaiso University, Wittenberg University, Augustana in Rock Island and Sioux Falls, Concordia, Augsburg, and Gustavus – Luther has been host more than any other campus. And Decorah is a town LSM staff looks forward to.

“I can say that many of the faculty tell me this is their favorite place to come,” says Spencer. “They think Decorah is such a charming town, and love what the downtown has to offer.”

The feeling really should be mutual. LSM has faculty or student recitals practically every night. From solos to string quartets to jazz ensembles, these are going to be some great hour-long concerts. There is even a proper Bach cantata performed during a worship service. And all these events are free and open to the public. (See sidebar for recital and festival details.)

“We were always so excited when someone came to a recital. It was like, ‘Oh thank goodness, someone is taking advantage of this great music,’” says Jaci.
“You don’t get music like this around here.”

The entire program culminates with festival week July 12 through 19, full of “non-stop music” according to Beth.

“It’s a celebration of the musical gifts of these young people,” says Beth. “And not only are the people from LSM in attendance, but 800 parents come to see their kids perform. There will definitely be some new people around Decorah.”

While the Midwest isn’t known for its diversity, it is known for its hospitality. The faculty and staff look forward to getting involved in life in Decorah and hope the community will do the same.

“We’re always looking for more engagement with our host city,” Beth says. “We’d really like to become part of the Decorah community.”

Aryn Henning Nichols looks forward to a new influx of people in Decorah and lots of great, free music. This is what summer is all about!