Jan H. Gregory

Piano, Voice, Guitar

 

Jan grew up in a musical family near Pittsburgh, PA, surrounded by singing, piano, violin, guitar and a weekly barbershop quartet rehearsal in the living room. She began studying piano at age 5, and has continued to play ever since. Through her public school years, she also studied violin, string bass and viola, in addition to participating as a singer and student director in her high school mixed chorus, traveling and concert choirs and girls octet.

When her family moved to Connecticut, Jan became a voice and piano major at Western Connecticut State University, earning a Bachelor of Science in Music Education. Upon graduation, she spent 3 years teaching public school music before returning to the University to earn a Master of Science in Music Education. It was during these college years that Jan began her study of organ playing and church music, eventually earning a Certificate in Church Music from Garrett Evangelical Seminary at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL.

While still teaching public school, Jan began her church music career as Director of Music Ministry at the Newtown Congregational Church. During her tenure there, she increased the adult choir to 35 singers, began a high school choir and handbell choir in addition to coordinating other handbell choirs and youth choirs. The adult choir performed many large works with orchestra, including Poulenc’s Gloria, as well as standard repertoire by Handel, Vivaldi, Bach, Beethoven and Mozart.

Jan has continued her church music career, currently serving as Director of Music Ministry at the Congregational Church of Easton, United Church of Christ, where she plays organ and piano at worship services, directs the adult choir and offers a children’s music program. She continues to compose anthems for choir and hymns for congregational use, and has introduced African hand drumming in the worship service.

Jan has directed a number of community groups, including the Newtown Choral Society and Heritage Singers and Summer Songsters in Southbury. Some of her favorite music is from the Medieval and Renaissance periods and she founded Rondelay, a Medieval/Renaissance quartet that sang together for many years.

More recently, Jan founded Femina Melodia, a women’s a cappella ensemble and the Femina Melodia Drummers. These two groups offer Winter and Spring Concerts each year.