2012 Church Music Workshop Clinicians

Mark A. Miller- Worship

Mark Miller is well known throughout the United Methodist Church as a worship leader, teacher and performer of sacred music. He currently serves on the faculty at both Drew University and at Yale University where he teaches sacred music and worship. He is also the Minister of Music at Covenant United Methodist Church in Plainfield, New Jersey. Mark received his Bachelor of Arts in Music from Yale and his Master of Music in Organ Performance from Juilliard.

Composing is one of Mark’s passions. In 2002 Abingdon Press launched the Mark Miller Anthem Series which has since become some of the most popular music at the United Methodist Publishing House. Since 1997 he has performed concerts, led inspired worship, and directed conferences at churches both across the United States and internationally.

Dr. David N. Childs– Adult Choral

David N. Childs is the recently-appointed Director of Choral Music at Highland Park United Methodist Church in Dallas, Texas. Dr. Childs is also an active clinician and adjudicator in the United States, working at the grade school, college, and community levels. He has conducted All-State and honor choirs in Tennessee, Maryland, Virginia, Louisiana, Oregon, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. His compositions frequently appear at state festivals and workshops, and at ACDA state, regional, and national conventions. They are performed in many parts of the world, including Asia, Europe, the Americas and Australasia. He has received commissions from around the world, including Japan, New Zealand, and South Africa. Dr. Childs currently has over 50 choral works in print.

Cathy Moklebust– Handbells

Cathy Moklebust has developed and directed handbell music programs since 1983, and has played bells since childhood. With her dynamic, positive approach and skilled conducting, she is in national demand as a handbell clinician and festival conductor. As one of today's most popular handbell music composers, she has numerous published compositions and arrangements to her credit, many of them reaching bestseller status. She has been commissioned to write music for festivals and other events, as well as for many individual handbell ensembles, including seven for the Raleigh Ringers. Cathy has been the recipient of the Donald E. Allured Composition Award, the 2005 “Composer of the Year” award from Jeffers Handbell Supply, and has won an ASCAP Writer’s Award every year since 2001.

Rev. Tim Morrison– Youth Choirs/Musician as Minister

Rev. Morrison currently serves as Associate Minister and Director of Music and Worship at Custer Road United Methodist Church in Plano, Texas, where he has served since 1985. During that time, Tim has been nationally recognized for developing a vibrant and successful youth choir program, building the program to include well over 100 teenagers. Tim received his Bachelor of Music Education from Central Methodist College, his Master of Sacred Music from SMU’s Perkins School of Theology, and was consecrated a Deacon in 1997. Tim currently serves as an Adjunct Professor at Perkins, teaching a Church Youth Choir Course to divinity students. At Custer Road UMC, he directs Revelation and the Chancel Choir, supervises twenty-four other music ensembles. He and his wife, Lynda, have two children, Jenna and Mason.

Dr. Lynne Gackle– Working with the Adolescent Voice

Dr. Lynne Gackle currently serves as Associate Professor of Ensembles and Associate Director of Choral Activities at Baylor University where she conducts the Baylor Women's Choir and the Baylor Concert Choir. Lynne is an active clinician, conductor and adjudicator for choral clinics, honor choirs, workshops and festivals throughout the United States and abroad.

Dr. Gackle has conducted All-State choirs in 26 states, several divisional ACDA honor choirs and one previous ACDA national honor choir. Her choirs performed at American Choral Directors Association state, division, and national conferences and the Music Educators National Conference Biennial Convention. Her book, “Finding Ophelia's Voice, Opening Ophelia's Heart: Nurturing the Adolescent Female Voice,” has recently been published by Heritage Music Press. She is widely regarded as an expert in the field of the changing adolescent voice, and has authored numerous publications on the subject in both choral and academic journals.

Dr. Mark Patterson– Upper Elementary I/Youth Choirs

Dr. Mark Patterson is a nationally acclaimed composer, conductor and teacher. He is the Director of Music at Salisbury Presbyterian Church in Midlothian, Virginia, where he leads a comprehensive music program for adults, youth and children. Mark received his PhD in Music Education with an emphasis in Choral Conducting from Texas Tech University and Master of Music and Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of Texas at Austin.

He is frequently invited to conduct honor choirs and choral festivals across the United States and is often asked to lead workshops for choral directors. Dr. Patterson’s compositions comprise a rich variety of styles for the sanctuary and the concert hall. Currently he has over 200 choral works in print as well as a solo piano collection, various musicals and choral compilations, and several volumes of vocal solos. Mark has been a consistent winner of the ASCAP Award in Composition for over ten years.

Allen Pote– Musicals/Upper Elementary II

A nationally known composer of choral music and musicals, Mr. Allen Pote travels extensively throughout the United States, Canada, and abroad as a conductor for festivals and workshops. He has received numerous commissions and has published over 300 choral works, including 14 musicals for youth and children, many of which have been premiered and recorded by the Pensacola Children's Chorus, the renowned children’s choir he founded with his wife Susan. A former member of the National Board of Choristers Guild, Mr. Pote is a recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship and is a three-time winner of the Arts Council of Northwest Florida's Muriel Shugart Award recognizing outstanding accomplishments in music. He has also received an annual award from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers for a number of years.

Nina Revering– Lower Elementary

Nina Revering is the founding director of the acclaimed Conspirare Children’s Choir of Austin, Texas, now in its seventh concert season. She is a frequent clinician, guest conductor, and adjudicator across the United States, and recently served as the clinician for the elementary honor choir of the Georgia Music Educators Association. Ms. Revering has been a member and frequent soloist of the world-renowned choral ensemble Conspirare since 1995, and is a featured soloist on both the Grammy-nominated CD’s Requiem and Threshold of Night. She taught music in public schools from 1996-2003, and returned to the classroom in 2009. In May 2005, she was one of eight participants selected for the International Symposium for Children’s Choirs held in Toronto, Canada.

Betsy Henderson- Pre-school Music (Saturday only)

Betsy Henderson is a North Texas treasure, having served over 25 years as a public school music teacher, Children’s Music Ministry Coordinator, and Orff instructor. She is currently the coordinator of the Children’s music ministry at First United Methodist Church of Garland, Texas, where she also directs Wesley Choir. She was on the authorship team for two music textbook series, Share the Music and Spotlight on Music for Macmillian/ McGraw-Hill, as well as being the sole author of several teacher resource materials published by the Hal Leonard Corporation. Ms. Henderson has served as Elementary Chairman for both the Texas Music Educators Association and the Texas Choral Directors Association, and in 2006, received TCDA’s Choral Excellence Award. She is an in-demand clinician and conductor, having presented over 100 workshops for teachers/ choir directors. This will be her 8th appearance at Choristers Guild Mid-Winter Conference.