On Sunday, May 18, the Yale Institute of Sacred Music honored its thirty newest graduates at a commencement dinner. Graduates were joined by family and friends, as well as by ISM Director Martin Jean and numerous faculty and staff. After certificates were presented, ISM faculty members announced this year’s prize and scholarship recipients. Read more about the graduates and prizewinners.
Music Commencement highlights
Thirteen ISM students received degrees in choral conducting, organ, and voice from Yale School of Music. Ten received the Master of Music (M.M.), and three the Master of Musical Arts (M.M.A.). View photos.
Divinity Commencement highlights
Seventeen students received degrees from Yale Divinity School. Nine received the Master of Arts in Religion (M.A.R.), two the Master of Sacred Theology (S.T.M.), and six the Master of Divinity (M.Div.). View photos.
Martin Jean shares remarks at ISM Commencement dinner
On Sunday, May 18, Professor Martin Jean shared remarks with the graduating students at the annual Commencement dinner. Read them here.
June's Sacred Music Academy to offer several free public events
Join us for choral evensong, Lutheran vespers, and a community hymn festival in New Haven churches, led by Yale and visiting faculty. Learn more.
ISM welcomes new long-term fellows
Six new long-term fellows will join the ISM for the 2025-26 academic year. Katie Anania, Cesar Favila, Joseph Hellweg, Su’ad Abdul Khabeer, Felipe Ledesma Núñez, and Payam Yousefi will pursue interdisciplinary projects and teach at Yale. Their diverse research topics include Andalusian religious song form saeta, queer and feminist art projects addressing ecological imbalances, N’ko healers in Guinea and Mali, the intersection of Islam and hip hop, Quechua songs of the Central Andes, and how musicians in Iran transcend authoritarian controls. Read more.
In case you missed it: Yale Schola Cantorum
On May 3 Stefan Parkman conducted Yale Schola Cantorum in a program that included Handel's "Dixit Dominus" and works by Nordic and Baltic composers. In case you missed it watch here.
Bridging performance and ethnomusicology
In April, ISM fellow Suhail Yusuf joined other artists in a mehfil that explored Hindustani classical performance. The event was co-sponsored by the ISM and Yale South Asian Studies Council. Read more.
Summer issue of LETTERS now online
The Summer 2025 issue of the ISM’s semi-annual literary magazine is now available. LETTERS publishes poetry and prose that explores matters of faith. Read more.
