“Seeing students progress is the biggest joy.”

Kathryn Phillips is a 2020 Calvary alumna who has served as a graduate assistant for the music department, teaching multiple students. “I do private guitar lessons. Right now I have four students, and then I do a group guitar lesson and that has three students in it.” Phillips is also working alongside Brittany Hill in teaching an online praise band class. In the past, the online praise band class had been very similar to the in-person praise band. Phillips explained, “Dr. An asked us if we could do something with the class, and involve the students. So they changed it to separate people teaching it— me and Brittany. We can’t play together online, but everyone gets Pro Tools, a recording software, and records songs together and then mixes them together.”

Alongside being a graduate assistant and pursuing her master’s, Phillips has worked at PT’s (a local coffee shop), managed the Warrior Cafe on campus, and played in a band called Safari. Phillips said that after college she would like to pursue “something in the realm of teaching” but if that doesn’t work out “I have my band in Lawrence— Safari.” 

Phillips says that her favorite thing about being a graduate assistant has been “teaching the individual lessons. It’s really fun to see students progress. So I really like teaching intermediate students because there’s so much to learn, and seeing them learn new things and play new things really well.”

Phillips says her advice to undergraduate music students is to “pay attention in classes and do your homework really well, because you’re paying a lot for the classes. I just hear about a lot of students who sleep during this class or whatever and are not really paying attention. Especially for music classes— especially with Dr. An— it can be really engaging, and you can learn a lot. To learn in college, you have to apply yourself because you can go through and get a degree without learning very much. But I think it’s important to actually apply yourself, actually learn, and actually do the work well.”

Dr. An sings during Convocation.

Long-time Music Faculty Moves Into New Role

Dr. Haekyung An, who has taught at Calvary for ten years, transitioned to chair the Music Department this fall. An earned her Bachelor and Master of Music in Vocal Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music, a Master of Music in Opera and Musical Theater from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, and a Doctor of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. 

An said she pursued a music career because, “Music is my best friend… I didn’t need any choice, so it was very natural for me from a young age.” Her wide range of experience, from classical to musical theatre to opera, gives her an extensive body of training to teach from. An said Calvary’s students “all come from different places, dealing with different issues in singing,” and she enjoys getting to know them and helping them hone their skills.

As she steps into this new role, An said, “I want our students to get great training, to have a great experience so that they can go out there and do the things that they want to do.” She added, “There are many graduates out there doing work, especially worship arts degrees… It’s a huge compliment [to the department]. And also, it’s amazing to watch their journey glorifying God, that they’ve trained here and they’re doing it out there.”

Despite the challenges of teaching in a COVID-safe environment, An is excited for the semester’s opportunities. She said, “I love my colleagues; they’re the best people. We work closely together and going forward, even though we are dealing with the situation with COVID, whatever the circumstances our work is not going to stop.”

This summer, Calvary music student Martin Maharas released an EP album with his band, Blood and Hyssop. The album, titled First Fruits, has six songs all based in Scripture. Maharas described the mission of Blood and Hyssop, saying, “In a world where contemporary Christian music often follows culture more than Scripture, my music springs forth from the Bible and guides the hearts of believers for the glory of God.”

Maharas has been writing and performing music for years, playing in Calvary’s praise band and in Calvary’s music team, lux voces. He said his experience with lux voces especially developed his desire for excellence in the field of music. The work of being in a band, “it’s not like being on a praise and worship group… Lux voces made me crave the real thing.” He had wanted to produce an album for several years, but ran into obstacles of time, money, and opportunity. When he met Sean Lea of Shadow Scape Records, he decided to pursue it, and began the process of producing his first album.

The band name Blood and Hyssop comes from the hyssop used in the Old Testament for sprinkling with blood. Maharas said, “The hyssop was the applicator, and I want the band to be the applicator of truth.” Collaborators on the album include bassist Jacob Claxton and two Calvary alums: Chris Stolberg on piano and Jordan Hoffman on drums.

Maharas’ time at Calvary has given him a chance to hone in on the Scriptures behind his lyrics. He said, “[at Calvary], I got biblical classes to ground me in how you interpret the Scriptures… Scripture says what it says, and you discover its meaning.” Speaking at this year’s OnRamp event, Maharas described the role Calvary had played, both in his personal growth and in the production of this album. “I can’t say that it’s only because I came to Calvary, but I can say that it wouldn’t be what it is without Calvary.”

The EP, First Fruits, can be found on Spotify, Amazon, and iTunes, or physical copies can be bought through Blood and Hyssop’s Facebook page. As Maharas starts work on producing a full length album, he encouraged other Christian artists, “Make great Christian art. Just make it. Make something that Christ would be proud of, that really brings glory and honor to him. Don’t settle for anything less.”