Are you a high school or college student in Albuquerque interested in being a St. Luke Choral Scholar?
In 2018, St Luke made a commitment to church music and music education by establishing a fund to support four St. Luke Choral Scholars. These Scholars sing with us and for us while continuing their education at UNM. Not all of our Scholars are music students, but all are active in the UNM music programs. In sharing their voices with us, we receive the blessings of their skills and time. In turn, they receive the blessings of a welcoming community and an opportunity to experience church music as a potential career choice.
The St. Luke Choral Scholars play an active role in the Sanctuary Choir, serving as section leaders and vocal role models. They assist by running warmups, rehearsing with the choir each week, and periodically conducting the choir. They also prepare solo repertoire to sing in worship 2-3 times per semester. They may also work with the Salt & Spark Multigenerational Ensemble. Each Scholar is compensated with a stipend for their work and dedication.
Faith communities have long been a fundamental part of music making and music education. The Book of Psalms is the first written hymnal. To this day, the Torah is chanted. Prayers and devotions throughout the world in many faith traditions are chanted or sung. Since the Middle Ages, faith communities were the first music schools, the first patrons of music compositions, the first repositories of music repertoire, the first to promote the art of making instruments, and much more.
We are part of a continuing heritage to sing the glory of God!
Psalm 96
1 Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Sing to the LORD, praise his name;
proclaim his salvation day after day.
Choral Scholars Biography
Austyn Knecht, St. Luke Soprano Choral Scholar
Austyn Knecht is a Sophomore in UNM’s Voice Department working towards a Bachelor in Music. She sings with UNM’s Concert Choir and is a member of the Opera Program. Originally from Las Vegas, Nevada, she enjoys learning about Albuquerque and college life. Before coming to New Mexico, Austyn attended Las Vegas Academy of the Arts High School and competed in local NATS and Solo and Ensemble competitions.
Besides singing classical and choral music, Austyn enjoys writing, learning new languages, escape rooms, and collecting whatever bobbles she can cram into her dorm room. With an interest in teaching and performing, she enjoys building and uplifting community through her music studies and is honored to spend her second year singing with St. Luke. Austyn will be the soprano soloist in St. Luke’s Good Friday performance of Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem.
Maria Bollinger, St. Luke Alto Choral Scholar
Maria Bollinger is in her sophomore year of studying Vocal Performance at the University of New Mexico. She started singing classically in the Young Voices Program at the Santa Fe Opera. Since then, Maria has performed in various operas and opera scenes including A Midsummer’s Night Dream, Le Nozze Di Figaro, scenes from La Cenerentola and Lakmé. Maria will be performing as Cecelia March in UNM Opera Theatre’s production of Mark Adamo’s Little Women in Spring 2025. Maria will be a featured soloist for St. Luke’s Maundy Thursday service this spring.
Ryan Lopez, St. Luke Tenor Choral Scholar
Ryan Lopez was born and raised in Albuquerque, but he looks forward to going wherever a career in singing may take him. He has performed in operas since he was eight years old and find solace in the beauty and interconnections of music and nature.
“A striking moment I can remember was when I was ten and performing the premiere of The Thirteenth Child at the Santa Fe Opera; the sky was too dark to see the stormy clouds, but I could feel the rain gushing against my back as I stood still for the audience. It was the fight scene between the husband and the wife; tension grew as the music did, and when the husband slapped his wife, lightning struck down in the scenery behind the stage; the moment felt too perfect to be a coincidence; this was the moment I knew that nature performs alongside music and that I would spend the rest of my life performing.”
Other than music, Ryan enjoys the natural world: going on hikes, walks, biking, swimming, and traveling. Ryan is the newest and youngest Choral Scholar at St. Luke and will be a featured soloist for their Maundy Thursday service this spring.
Shane Hall, St. Luke Baritone Choral Scholar
Shane Hall is a baritone finishing up his Bachelor of Music with a concentration in Vocal Performance at the University of New Mexico. While at UNM, Shane studied and performed a myriad of art songs and, in 2023, performed a senior recital exclusively of works by composers whose backgrounds are underrepresented in the classical music canon. Shane hasalso been privileged to the perform with the UNM Opera theatre as Mr. Gedge in Benjamin Britten’s Albert Herring and Bartolo in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro, and looks forward to portraying Mr. Dashwood and Friedrich Bhaerin their April 2025 performance of Mark Adamo’s Little Women. Shane sings in many choirs in the Albuquerque area such as UNM’s Concert Choir and University Chorus, with whom he has performed as the featured bass soloist in the works of J.S. Bach, C.P.E. Bach, and Joseph Haydn. Shane will be the baritone soloist in St. Luke’s Easter performance of Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem.