NPC staff in focus: Joseph Agnew
Meet Joseph Agnew, the Director of Music at NPC, in his own words:
My professional biography includes my position as Music Director at Northminster. At first read, this might seem like an obvious thing to say, but what you need to realize is that I put my work at Northminster on a level with my work with the Chicago Symphony and university positions at UIC and Trinity International, as well as the many high profile credits that include Broadway and pop concerts with the likes of Michael Feinstein, Mark O’Connor, and Olivia Newton-John. I have had the privilege of performing with the finest conductors in the world and Northminster (a part time church position) is in my bio.
Like these other professional accomplishments, I feel less like I have achieved something at Northminster than I feel like I am a part of the whole. The long and accomplished history of the music of Northminster is far greater than I or anyone else that has contributed to it. For the life of this church, the musicians have been on the leading edge of the music and culture of Chicago and the country, and the staff that we have now is no exception.
The members of the music program—paid and volunteer alike—have a combined list of credits that includes the music schools of Northwestern, Juilliard, Eastman; and concert halls such as the Royal Concertgebouw, Orchestra Hall Chicago, Lyric Opera House, and Carnegie Hall.
The list of conductors that we have performed under is too long to begin to list; yet it includes the finest musicians in the world, such as Bernard Haitink, Leonard Slatkin, Sir Andrew Davis, Lorin Maazel, James Conlon, Pierre Boulez—and that was just this year! I think its clear to anyone who looks—and hears—that Northminster has one of the finest music programs of any church and any size.
So why is this important? The answer to that question is two-fold. The first answer is that we need the music ministry as part of the lifeblood of the church. A quick survey of the congregation demonstrates how important the program is to the worship experience of our congregation. It is also worth noting that the music ministry of Northminster involves about 100 volunteer participants each week. I once noted that in a single Sunday morning worship, there are 55 members of the music ministry participating and it wasn’t even Easter Sunday!
The second answer to why this is important is our mission and ministry to the community. The music at Northminster has always been an outreach for the church into the community and a vital part of the arts for the City of Evanston and the surrounding area. Since my appointment as Music Director, we have hosted and performed 20 public performances as well as several performances outside of the church, including a solo engagement for the Adult Handbell Choir with the Evanston Symphony. The NPC Music Department is an effective outreach to the community and vital to the life of the church.
The amazing thing about the music program that we all hold so dear at our church is the program is made up entirely of part time positions. The position of Music Director is part time with no benefits and, in fact, the professional quartet altogether does not equal the budgetary cost of one part time employee. Yet, each season we are able to perform on a world class level and raise music to the ministry of the church body and to the glory of God.
For this profile, I was asked to review my position and the role I have in the church, but this is something I cannot do. I am merely the head of a program that is far, far, far greater than the sum of its parts.