Ten Years of Training Teachers and Musicians in Music Literacy

The 2026 Chenaniah Summer Music Institute marked a decade of work, concluding its tenth summer on the campus of New Saint Andrews College. This year was the largest in the institute's history, welcoming 55 participants from 18 states for two weeks of intensive music teacher training. As in years past, the cohort included classroom teachers, private instructors, church musicians, homeschool parents, current NSA students, and alumni. For some, it was a return for further study. For others, it marked the beginning of their calling as music educators.

Reaching ten years is no small milestone for an institute of this kind. Since its founding, CSMI has served 166 teachers and musicians. The 141 participants from its first nine summers were joined this year by 25 new Level 1 students. Of those who have attended, 55 have completed the full three-summer certification sequence, carrying a singing-based, literacy-driven approach into classrooms, studios, churches, and homes across the country. While many comparable music teacher training programs struggle to offer all certification levels each summer due to insufficient enrollment, CSMI has successfully offered all three certification levels every year since its third summer, when the full sequence was first established. Each graduate represents not only a personal accomplishment but also the continued growth of a community of educators shaped by a shared vision for joyful music literacy.

At its heart, the institute remains what it has always been. Participants progressed through Levels 1, 2, and 3 of the three-year certification program, with each year deepening their study of musicianship, pedagogy, and the philosophy of music literacy. Daily instruction included solfege, conducting, score and form analysis, demonstration teaching, choir, and sight-reading, immersing participants in an approach informed by Kodály (pronounced CODE-eye) and similar pedagogies. Alongside this core instruction, special topics in Classical and Christian education connected music teaching to broader conversations about theology, aesthetics, and formation, exploring how a biblical worldview shapes not only what we sing, but also how and why we teach.

The name Chenaniah comes from 1 Chronicles 15, where King David appointed Chenaniah to lead and instruct in singing because he was skillful. Ten years later, that same purpose continues to animate the institute: equipping music teachers to lead with both skill and understanding. Through folk and classical music, singing games, choir, sight reading, and music instruction rooted in a Christian worldview, CSMI continues to prepare teachers to serve their communities and churches with clarity and faithfulness. As the Chenaniah Summer Music Institute begins its second decade, it looks forward to raising up another generation of educators who pursue excellence through truth, beauty, and joyful learning, strengthening Christ's Church in both her worship and her work.

Watch the CSMI Summer Concert by clicking here.