A lifetime of music

Music is a gift.

After 48 years of sharing that gift, a reception to honor a man who retired quietly during the COVID-19 shutdown is scheduled 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday at the Peace Lutheran Church in Post Falls.

Dr. Stan McDaniel, a doctoral graduate of the University of Southern California, has conducted, performed and taught music across the U.S., most recently holding the position of artistic director and conductor of Chorale Coeur d’Alene.

“I’ll miss his friendship,” said Toni Chittester, alto section leader for the chorale. “He always emphasized that we all were part of something larger than the individual. The effort we made felt important.”

Since COVID-19 changed plans for a final concert for the conductor, Judith Horton, board chair, said the reception was planned to give the group an opportunity to thank McDaniel for all the work he did.

“(McDaniel) made it fun,” Chittester said. “He always selected really interesting, challenging and varied pieces of music for us to work on and perform.”

McDaniel said years of studying and working with music fine-tuned his ability to hear and direct, as well as evaluate the sound and make changes to improve it.

“Once you've spent a lifetime developing those things, and really are passionate about it, of course, you're gonna miss it,” McDaniel said. “It’s a part of my life and I miss it every day.”

McDaniel moved to Spokane from Alabama in 1988 after the longtime chorale director for the First Presbyterian Church was retiring and called McDaniel to see if he would take over the job. In 2015, McDaniel took over directing for Chorale Coeur d’Alene, completing 48 years of church music directing upon retirement.

“For me, that whole experience, I would call it a mission,” McDaniel said. “I think by the fifth grade I knew that what I wanted to do is to be a musician.”

Horton said she appreciated the skill and positive approach McDaniel brought to the chorale, as well as his academic grasp of music and historical anecdotes about composers, the time they lived and circumstances in which they were writing.

“It kind of makes the music come alive,” Horton said. “It makes it much more personal when you have an understanding of the background of the composer and perhaps what they were trying to accomplish.”

McDaniel said he wouldn’t be surprised if he continued to work with small ensembles. He also plans to complete his book, “Servanthood of Song; Music Ministry in the Church in the United States,” which covers church music and the theology and context in the time it was written.

Aside from that, McDaniel said he looks forward to woodworking, traveling with his wife and of course, fishing.

McDaniel said he enjoyed working with Chorale Coeur d’Alene and appreciates the difference it makes in the community.

“I think that our mix of great sacred music and secular music is meeting a need that no other large chorus in the region is even attempting to do,” McDaniel said. “You have a large group of really committed, enthusiastic singers that are just a joy to work with.”