We are excited to welcome Andrew Shelden as our new Music Director! Andy comes to us from the Charlottesville area and brings a wealth of experience as an organist and choir director and a fluency in several musical styles, including Celtic and Jazz. We are delighted to have him join us and to help lead us in worshipping the Lord!
Andy’s call to ministry through music is strong and has run virtually though his entire life. Born into a musical family in California, Andy began playing the organ in church when he was 11. By the age of 14, he was playing in two churches; at 16, three. He has been at the organ bench or in front of a choir ever since. To supplement his church jobs, Andy served as an Instructor at College of the Siskiyous (California), where he was also staff accompanist and Director of the Mt Shasta Vocal Jazz and Show Choir Clinic, a regional week-long residential music camp for middle- and high-school students. He has toured the Baltic, Scotland, and Ireland as accompanist for the COS Concert Choir, playing the great organs in churches and cathedrals across northern Europe. He comes to us most recently from the Charlottesville area, where he served as Director of Music Ministries at a medium-sized United Methodist church and then as Music Director at an Episcopal church. Andy plays about a dozen different instruments, composes music, writes prose and poetry, and has even managed to get published a few times.
Please introduce yourself to Andy after worship and welcome him to our congregation! Andy joined our staff on September 19, 2021.
