Brittenback-Meezan Presidential Award
Intended as a resource for small- and mid-sized congregations in the Episcopal Church, the Brittenback-Meezan Presidential Award is an annual $3,000 grant which demonstrates the value of continuing education as a means of enlivening worship and deepening Christian understanding through music. To that end, the grantee parish will commit an additional $1,000 to this award, for a total annual grant of $4,000.
Episcopal parishes with limited resources are encouraged to apply on behalf of their staff musician. Applications from rectors, in consultation with their church’s musician, will be accepted by AAM’s President. AAM’s portion of the grant will be paid directly to the awarded parish.
This program is intended to aid a musician who is inexperienced as an Episcopal church musician in developing the skills required to more successfully lead programs and worship that fully live into the Anglican tradition, including a deeper understanding of Episcopal liturgy, service playing on the organ, and training a choir to lead worship. Funds can be used for:
a) organ lessons and/or
b) choral conducting coaching and/or
c) the costs of attending AAM’s 2025 Cincinnati Conference and/or
d) any other ideas expressed in the successful application.
If the awarded musician is not already a member, the grant includes a one-year subscription to the Journal of AAM.
Applications should be received by March 15, 2025. The award will be granted by April 1, 2025.
This annual award is made possible by W. Michael Brittenback, in honor of his late husband, Bill Meezan.
Past Awardees
Mr. Sean Coughlin was awarded the 2024 Brittenback-Meezan Presidential Award. In addition to attending the 2024 Annual Conference of the Association of Anglican Musicians in Minnesota, Mr. Coughlin used the award to take organ lessons to develop greater facility with the breadth of the instrument as well as increase his familiarity with the Anglican musical tradition and Episcopal liturgy.
Dr. Matthew Hoch was awarded the inaugural Brittenback-Meezan Presidential Award in 2023. Dr. Hoch writes, “It has been an honor and privilege to be the first recipient of the Brittenback-Meezan Presidential Award. Over the past year, this generous grant had a significant impact enriching worship at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Auburn, Alabama. This funding gave me the opportunity to further my training on the organ and attend my first AAM Conference in Dallas, Texas. What an inspiring week that was! I am grateful to AAM for its investment, which will continue to make a lasting difference in the music programs of small parishes.”