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Why Study at Chenaniah?

In the Old Testament days of King David, Chenaniah was in charge of the singing; he instructed in singing because he was skillful (1 Chron. 15:22;27). Similarly, the Chenaniah Summer Music Institute aims to equip music teachers with the skills needed to better teach singing and music literacy to those in the communities and churches where they labor. We offer all instruction through the lens of a Christian worldview. In this two-week intensive training session, participants will receive an education in singing-based music training emphasizing music literacy-driven pedagogy. 

This comprehensive approach to music education uses a sequential curriculum of games, folk music, and singing to inspire students of all ages to love music and develop musical literacy skills. The unique part of this course of study is its integration of Christianity with the Kodály and Suzuki methods. This pairing will entail classes that examine music and theology and how a biblical worldview can affect and permeate music teaching.

Music Literacy Approach

Learn distinctions for teaching students complete music literacy–reading, writing, singing/thinking in music.

Two Weeks Each Summer

The two-week course is designed for the working music teacher or church leader seeking further training in music. 

New Saint Andrews

Hosted by New Saint Andrews Conservatory of Music the middle two weeks of July each summer in Moscow, Idaho.

Music Connections

Come train with folks who are like-minded and also teaching in other classical and Christian music environments.

CHENANIAH SUMMER MUSIC INSTITUTE (CSMI)

JULY 6 - 17, 2026

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN

David Erb and Jarrod Richey founded the Chenaniah Summer Music Institute in 2017 with a vision to help musicians and music educators train a generation of musicians in our schools and churches. The Chenaniah Summer Music Institute offers three tracks each summer: Kodály Music, String Pedagogy, and Advanced Conducting Tracks.

2026 CHENANIAH SUMMER MUSIC INSTITUTE

TRACKS TO CHOOSE FROM IN 2026:

KODÁLY MUSIC TRACK

This Kodály certification is for those vocal, choir, and general music teachers who want to train students of all ages in music literacy. It is a three-summer certification.

STRING PEDAGOGY TRACK

This track is for those instrumental string teachers focused on music literacy but more instrumental than vocal/choral. This program mixes Kodály with Suzuki-inspired pedagogy.

CONDUCTING TRACK

This track is for conductors who want advanced instruction in their choral craft. Participants must audition and be accepted. A limited number of seats are available. This is a one-summer program of study with Dr. David Erb.

CSMI KODÁLY COURSE COMPONENTS:

All tracks will have these elements components built into their coursework.

1.
Pedagogy/Literature

Learn how to sequential teach in the various methods from master teachers in Kodály, Suzuki, and Choral Conducting pedagogies.

2.
Musicianship

Build upon your personal musicianship through sight-singing, dictation, memorization, solfege, and more in an effort to better equip the music educator. 

3.
Conducting/Choir

All participants sing in a course choir with rehearsals each day of the week. They also practice the fundamentals of choral and instrumental conducting.

4.
Special Topics

A variety of classes are designed to help the classical and Christian educator better be equipped to teach. Past special topics have included: folk dancing, psalm-singing, & more.

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Participants begin arriving Saturday evening or Sunday afternoon for our Sunday evening orientation. Classes go from Monday, July 6, through Friday, July 17, 2026, with no official class meetings over the weekend. Students typically have individual/group projects and homework during the weekend. CSMI Kodály certification can be obtained upon the successful completion of all three levels of instruction over three summers.

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Who Should Attend CSMI?

The course is designed for the musician/music educator or those further desiring training and equipping in teaching and advancing music literacy in their churches, schools, and communities. Ordinarily, participants should have collegiate-level music instruction from an undergraduate or graduate degree in music. 

Our Distinctives:

  • Learn musical pedagogies from an integrated biblical worldview with application and tailoring for Classical Christian school music, choir, and/or orchestra teachers.
  • Our highly accomplished staff has years of classroom experience, particularly in classical schools and churches.
  • Undergraduate credit, graduate credit, and non-credit options are available for those who need them. 
  • The chance to visit the beautiful Northwest in the Summer and enjoy the fabulous culture of Moscow, Idaho and take classes in the downtown campus of New Saint Andrews College.

    CSMI INSTRUCTORS

    derb@nsa.edu

    208-882-1566

    David R. Erb, DMA

    Director of the Conservatory & Fellow of Music

    Dr. David Erb joined the New Saint Andrews College faculty as a Fellow of Music in 2008, leaving his posts at Trinity Church and Providence Classical Christian School in the Seattle area. Dr. Erb is also the Conducting Levels 1, 2, & 3 Instructor for the Chenaniah Summer Music Institute. He holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts and Choral Conducting from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Prior to moving to the Northwest, Dr. Erb taught and conducted choirs at the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and at Bucknell University. Dr. Erb earned a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from Westminster Choir College of Rider University in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1997. Dr. Erb is active in the Moscow choral community and work with local churches. He and his wife Gail and their children reside in Moscow.

    Contributing Author

    • Raise the Song: A Classical Christian Guide to Music Education (2019)
    • Teaching Beauty: A Vision for Music & Art in Christian Education (2016)

    Education

    University of Wisconsin-Madison

    2007

    DMA in Choral Conducting

    Westminster Choir College, Rider University

    1997

    MM in Choral Conducting

    University of Wisconsin-Madison

    1992

    BM in Music Education

    jrichey@nsa.edu

    Jarrod D. Richey, MM

    CSMI Administrator & Conservatory Consultant

    Mr. Richey resides in Monroe, Louisiana, where he continues to teach music and choir at Geneva Academy in West Monroe, LA. Mr. Richey is also the Musicianship Levels 1, 2, & 3 Instructor for the Chenaniah Summer Music Institute. He is the founder and director of the Delta Youth Chorale, a children’s community choir that promotes music literacy through singing, folk dance, and other activities. Previously, Mr. Richey directed the choir and taught voice and music appreciation classes at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. He received his bachelor’s degree from Louisiana Tech University before completing his Master of Music at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. He also completed his national Kodály music teacher certification from Wichita State University. Mr. Richey is currently a doctoral student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary working toward a Ph.D. in Church Music and Worship.

    Additionally, each summer, he teaches solfege musicianship, folk-dancing, and folk song research and analysis courses for their Kodály music teacher training program, the Chenaniah Summer Music Institute, which he oversees. He is also an active elementary and middle school choir clinician and serves on the executive board of the Louisiana chapter of the American Choral Directors Association. He is the founder of the Jubilate Deo Summer Music Camp, a week-long choir and music camp open to kindergarten through college freshmen each June. He is the author of BACH to the Future: Fostering Music Literacy Today (2016) and general editor and contributing author to Raise the Song: A Classical Christian Guide to Music Education (2019). He is also the general editor for a recent school and family hymna, Let Joy Resound: A Singing School Hymnal. Jarrod and his lovely wife, Sarah, have seven choristers in training ranging from ages three to seventeen.

    Publications

    Education

    Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, TX

    Current

    PhD in Church Music & Worship

    University of Louisiana Monroe

    2011

    MM in Choral Conducting

    Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, LA

    2008

    BA in Music

    Caleb Esmond, MM

    Lecturer of Music

    Caleb Esmond is Lecturer of Music at New Saint Andrews College, where he teaches and conducts the NSA Chorale. He is an active performer, experienced collaborator, skilled improviser, jazz pianist, and prize-winning composer. He is a current Doctoral Candidate (DMA) in Piano Performance at the University of North Texas has a field related to choral conducting.

    Mr. Esmond received his MM in Piano Performance and Pedagogy at Utah State University in 2023 and his BM in Piano Performance from Mercer University in 2021. He is a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music (NCTM).

    He lives in Moscow with his wife, Madeleine, and their daughter.

    Education

    Utah State University

    2023

    MM in Piano Performance and Pedagogy

    Mercer University

    2023

    BM in Piano Performance

    Sarah Davis

    Pedagogy & Research Level 1 Instructor

    Diane Engle

    Pedagogy & Research Level 2 Instructor

    Aaron Snell

    National Honor Choir Administrator, Music Camp Administrator, CSMI Level 3 Instructor

    Aaron Snell is the choir director and music teacher at Logos School in Moscow, Idaho, where he has taught music at all grade levels, PK-12. His choirs at Logos have received superior ratings, 1st place in competitions, and All-State honors. Prior to coming to Logos in 2018, he taught for fifteen years in California, where his choirs were recognized as being among the top high school performing groups in the state. He is passionate about training students to be musically literate and skillful singers, in order to raise a new generation of capable worshippers in the church. 

    At New Saint Andrews College, Mr. Snell serves as the administrator for both the ACCS National Honor Choir and the NSA Summer Music Camp, and teaches Level 3 Pedagogy and Research for the Chenaniah Summer Music Institute. Aaron earned his B.A. in Music Education from California State University, Fullerton, and his Kodaly Level III certification at the Chenaniah Summer Music Institute, New Saint Andrews College. He has been married to his best friend, Amy, since 1997 and has five children.

    Education

    California State University, Fullerton

    2002

    BA in Music Education

    Chapman University

    2003

    Single Subject Teaching Credential (Music

    Chenaniah Summer Music Institute, New Saint Andrews College Conservatory of Music

    2020

    Kodály Level III Certification

    ctutino@nsa.edu

    208-882-1566

    Cole Tutino, DM

    Cello Faculty

    Dr. Cole Tutino is Lecturer in Music and New Saint Andrews College, where he teaches cello, music theory, and orchestra. He was previously Visiting Assistant Professor of Cello at Miami University in Oxford, OH, and Visiting Instructor of Cello at Luther College in Decorah, IA.

    Dr. Tutino has performed extensively as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral player, and recording artist. He has been principal of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra (IN) and a member of the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic and the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra. As a chamber musician, he has been a member of the Oxford String Quartet, and the Luther College Piano Quartet. His solo appearances include performances with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, the Cedarville University Orchestra, the Miami University Symphony Orchestra, and the Luther College Philharmonia. He has spent summers playing at the New Hampshire Music Festival, the Utah Festival Opera, the National Orchestral Institute, the Brevard Music Festival, the Mendocino Music Festival, and the Las Vegas Music Festival.

    A proponent of a diverse array of musical genres, Dr. Tutino’s activities have included Baroque performance practice, new music, and folk and pop music. He has performed on Baroque cello with the Indiana University Baroque Orchestra, the Georgina Joshi Handel Project, and as part of the Bloomington Bach Cantata Project. At the conference of the Christian Fellowship of Art Music Composers, he premiered David Canfield’s Sonata for Cello and Piano, a composition that musically depicts the Christian tenets of salvation. He has also recorded with My Soul Among Lions and the Good Shepherd Band.

    Education

    Indiana University

    2016

    DM in Cello Performance

    Indiana University

    2011

    MM in Cello Performance

    San Jose State University

    2009

    BM in Cello Performance

    Tuition & Costs:

    CSMI tuition is the same for all three tracks in the program.

    • 2-week Course Tuition: $950.00 (does not include books, travel, or lodging)
    • Additionally, attendees will also need to purchase and have certain Textbooks/Materials for the class. Not all books used will be required each year and most books and materials will be used each subsequent summer. $250 is a general estimate of books, workbooks, and resource books that will be needed over the course. The New Saint Andrews College Bookstore offers most of the materials. Students can opt to purchase elsewhere if desirable, or some students have borrowed from others who have previously taken the course.
    • Any student wishing to transfer specifically into the Kodály Certification course from another similar course may be subject to the transfer credit and fees depending on the type of enrollment. Please inquire about this possibility.

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    Chenaniah Summer Music Institute | New Saint Andrews College Conservatory of Music