Music Ministers
Melissa Brassard
Wilson Family Sacred Music Intern
Beginning her studies at the age of 5, Melissa is an accomplished soloist, accompanist, and chamber musician from the Los Angeles area. She graduated from Oberlin College and Conservatory with a Bachelor of Music degree, studying piano and organ performance. Melissa was the recipient of the Music Teachers' Association of California’s Memorial Music Scholarship, a finalist in the 2021 Rudolf Serkin Piano Competition, and a recipient of the Colburn Merit Scholarship. She has served as organist and accompanist at the Church of Saint Clarence, North Olmsted and First United Methodist Church, Pasadena. Melissa’s previous teachers include Jonathan Moyer and Alvin Chow.
Dr. Raymond Nagem
Minister of Music
Raymond Nagem is Minister of Music at The Brick Presbyterian Church in New York City, and a member of the organ faculty at Manhattan School of Music, where he teaches organ literature, service playing, and improvisation. He completed his D.M.A. at The Juilliard School in 2016, where he was a student of Paul Jacobs.
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A native of Medford, Massachusetts, Ray attended the Boston Archdiocesan Choir School and began organ lessons there with John Dunn. He earned his B.A. from Yale University in 2009, studying the organ with Thomas Murray, and his M.A. in 2011 from Juilliard. Prior to his appointment at Brick, he served for eleven years at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, where he was Associate Director of Music and Organist. His album Divine Splendor, recorded on the Great Organ of St. John the Divine, is available on the Pro Organo label.
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At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring of 2020, Ray started a weekly online recital series, “Tuesdays at 6,” featuring a diverse range of music spanning the entire organ repertoire. In his spare time, he enjoys running, cycling, and crossword puzzles.
Julianna Grabowski
Director of Children’s Music Ministries
Julianna Grabowski is a conductor, music educator, soprano, and pianist from Syracuse, New York. Her passion for teaching and performing drove her to obtain two Bachelor of Music degrees from the State University of New York at Fredonia in Music Education and Vocal Performance, studying both voice and piano. She earned a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Duquesne University, where she also served as the Graduate Assistant to Duquesne’s Choral Department.
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Julianna’s recent work includes the positions of Choral Assistant and Principal Accompanist at Duquesne University, Teaching Artist with New Groove Music Studio, Assistant Conductor and Soprano Section Leader of the Junior Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh, Managing Director of the Pittsburgh Girls Choir, and Conductor of Pittsburgh Girls Choir’s adult ensemble, Women of Song. In addition to her current work as the Director of Children's Music Ministries at the Brick Presbyterian Church, Julianna serves as a Conducting Teaching Artist at Brooklyn Youth Chorus. For more information, please visit https://www.juliannagrabowskimusic.com/
Wilson Family Sacred Music Internship
Thanks to the generosity of Don and Lynn Wilson and their steadfast devotion to music at Brick, Brick Church and the Yale University Institute of Sacred Music established the Wilson Family Sacred Music Internship in 2013. This internship provides an opportunity for a graduate student at the ISM to participate in our music ministry during the academic year. As part of an intensive, on-site learning experience, the intern shares in organ playing and choral conducting duties. The program also supports an undergraduate intern from the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music in Ohio during their winter break in January.