Developing and Maintaining a Music Program has never been more challenging than during the changing landscape of the COVID pandemic. We will assess where our programs are starting and envision our dream programs. We will share strategies for building programs that support our congregations’ missions, incorporate technology to expand our worship outreach, engage in the vital work of anti-racism, and create authentic relationships that foster an inclusive community.
The course will meet online for six 2-hour sessions and include music-making, short writing assignments, information and resource sharing, small-group conversations, a congregational survey, and a capstone assignment to create a roadmap for your program.
This training is sponsored by the UUA’s Music Leadership Certification Program and is open to all music professionals. Please contact mlcertification@uua.org for more information regarding the certification program.
Time to complete: approximately 1.5 – 2 hours per module. Participants must complete the first module and pre-class assignments prior to the first class meeting.
The instructors are Susan Peck and Natasha Steinmacher.
Susan Peck
Susan Peck has been a UU musician since 1997, serving a mid-sized congregation in Corvallis, OR, and a small congregation in Hillsboro, OR, as well as working 4 years in a small UCC congregation. She served twice on the UUMN board of directors and filled a handful of musical leadership roles at UUA General Assembly, including Pianist (2006), Choir Director (2008), and Music Coordinator (2015-16). Susan is currently Director of Music at First Unitarian Church of Albuquerque, a church of about 800 members. She completed the Music Leadership Certification Program in 2020.
Alongside church work, Susan taught piano and voice lessons, accompanied singers and dance classes, taught a variety of classes at Oregon State University and Linn-Benton Community College, did community theater, hiked the trails of the Columbia Gorge and Sandia Ridge, and learned rock climbing on the crags of New Mexico. Susan is at the beck and call of a torbie named Auntie Grizelda and a black kitty named Isli.
Natasha Steinmacher
Natasha Steinmacher has been a professional church musician since 1998 and has served the music ministry at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Cherry Hill for 20 years. UUCCH is a small-mid-sized congregation with a vibrant music program that boasts an adult choir, children’s choir, handbell choir, and a UUkulele Band. In her role as Director of Music Ministry, the pandemic has pushed Natasha to become more tech-savvy than she ever wanted to be. Natasha served the wider UU denomination at General Assembly as Pianist/Choir Accompanist in 2009 and 2019. She facilitated the music for the UU Women’s Retreat weekend in Murray Grove from 2015-2019. Natasha completed the Music Leadership Certification Program in 2020.
In addition to her work as a UU musician, Natasha teaches piano, voice, and ukulele and is a preschool music teacher. The stresses of 2020-2021 inspired an interest in mindfulness and meditation, and she started running again. Natasha has a 24-year-old son, an 11-year-old daughter, and a rescued black cat who sabotages her sleep, recordings, and Zoom calls.
