MorningStar Music

MorningStar Music Music publisher focusing on liturgical music, part of ECS Publishing Group. MorningStar Music Publishers was founded in 1986 in St. Lee Scott.

Louis by Rodney Schrank and Ruth Lewis, both experienced in sacred music publishing from their time at Concordia Publishing House. From the beginning, MorningStar has functioned as a non-denominational publishing house offering music for churches whose worship focuses mainly within the liturgical tradition. The first publication list included composers such as Paul Manz, Charles Callahan, Hal Hops

on, and K. Later, composers such as Michael Burkhardt, Robert Hobby, David Cherwien, and John Ferguson were added to create an extensive catalog of music that has been well received over the years. The composer list has grown significantly, and new composers are added each year. In 1997, Rod Schrank sold the company to Mark and Ginny Lawson. MorningStar’s ASCAP affiliate is Birnamwood Publications.

Kevin Siegfried's new album, Songs for the Journey, has been picking up real momentum since its June release — three tra...
07/29/2026

Kevin Siegfried's new album, Songs for the Journey, has been picking up real momentum since its June release — three tracks are now featured on Spotify's New Classical playlist.

If you're building repertoire that moves between concert and worship settings, Songs for the Journey (SKU 8784) is worth a listen.

Listen: https://f.mtr.cool/uvaefkugnx

07/28/2026

"Vocal lines that overlap and intensify to stunning effect." — The Wall Street Journal, on the Sanctus from Taylor Scott Davis's Requiem.

Hear it here, performed by VOCES8 Choir & Orchestra under Barnaby Smith. The work received its United States premiere on July 19 through Quintessence — if you're new to this Requiem and weighing it for a memorial service or special concert, notice like this is a good place to start trusting an unfamiliar new work.

07/26/2026

Sanctus — the text you know from the Mass — set anew by Taylor Scott Davis, performed here by VOCES8 Choir & Orchestra under Barnaby Smith.

This movement from Davis's Requiem just received its United States premiere through Quintessence, Matthew Greer conducting. Worth hearing if you're considering this Requiem for a memorial service or sacred-concert occasion this season.

Summer is the perfect time to invest in your craft, not just your repertoire folder.Three new titles worth adding to you...
07/24/2026

Summer is the perfect time to invest in your craft, not just your repertoire folder.

Three new titles worth adding to your reading list before the fall season begins: Paul Westermeyer's Reflections, a collection of essays on the scholarly, musical, and educational facets of church music and worship, including new material on the challenges facing church musicians today. Dale Warland's Choral Conducting: A Life of Building, sixty years of wisdom on listening, leadership, and building the ensemble as an instrument. And Eileen Guenther's In Their Own Words, drawing on slave narratives and firsthand accounts to illuminate how spirituals emerged from lived experience.

Start with Reflections: https://www.morningstarmusic.com/catalog/product/view/sku/90-68?utm_source=SM&utm_medium=social

What's on your summer reading list this year?

07/23/2026

Requiem by Taylor Scott Davis — the VOCES8 Decca Classics recording that's now become a real concert program: on July 19, Quintessence gave the work its United States premiere, Matthew Greer conducting.

If you're weighing a new setting of the Requiem text for a memorial service or special sacred-concert occasion, that trajectory — recording to concert stage within months — is a meaningful signal. The full score is available now through E. C. Schirmer.

Ten short pieces. Minimal pedal. Inspired by the small organs of Vermont's own towns and villages.Charles Callahan spent...
07/22/2026

Ten short pieces. Minimal pedal. Inspired by the small organs of Vermont's own towns and villages.

Charles Callahan spent his career writing for the organist who's actually in the room — not a cathedral console, but whatever instrument the parish has. The Green Mountain Organ Book, published posthumously, continues that instinct: ten moderately easy pieces built to work with limited or no pedal, playable across a wide range of skill levels.

It's a practical addition for preludes, offertories, or quiet moments in the service — accessible without sounding thin.

Link to preview and order details in the comments.

If you're bringing in players for Christmas Eve or a Lessons & Carols service, the clock is already running.Orchestra pa...
07/17/2026

If you're bringing in players for Christmas Eve or a Lessons & Carols service, the clock is already running.

Orchestra parts have to be ordered or rented, licensing confirmed, and rehearsal materials in your musicians' hands well before a typical octavo would need to ship. The earlier you lock in your selections, the more breathing room you'll have this fall.

A few bestselling anthems with orchestral accompaniment worth putting on your shortlist now: Taylor Scott Davis's Magnificat, Randol Alan Bass's Fanfare: Joy to the World, René Clausen's The Sussex Carol, Tom Trenney's We Sing with Choirs of Angels, and Kirke Mechem's The Seven Joys of Christmas.

Browse the full collection: https://www.morningstarmusic.com/choral/sacred-choral.html?instrument_group=14420&liturgical_year=45&product_list_order=bestseller&utm_source=SM&utm_medium=social

What's on your Christmas Eve list this year?

07/15/2026

Mark Lawson has spent almost thirty years making sure church musicians have the tools they need to do good work in worship — as a publisher first, and as a colleague to church musicians for even longer.

On July 8, the American Guild of Organists recognized that work with its President's Award for lifetime service, presented at the national level.

Mark has led MorningStar Music and ECS Publishing Group since 1997, building both around a simple idea: church musicians deserve music that's faithful, practical, and genuinely useful on a Sunday morning. This honor reflects that whole mission — and the directors, organists, and choirs who've trusted MorningStar with their programming for decades.

Congratulations, Mark. We're grateful to serve alongside you. 🎉

The full liturgical year, mapped Sunday by Sunday. Scripture, anthem picks by voicing, and hymn tunes — browse our Sunda...
07/13/2026

The full liturgical year, mapped Sunday by Sunday. Scripture, anthem picks by voicing, and hymn tunes — browse our Sunday Planning page anytime:
http://bit.ly/3RCuZWG

Ten new organ titles just arrived — hymn settings, festival preludes, and service voluntaries from composers many of you...
07/10/2026

Ten new organ titles just arrived — hymn settings, festival preludes, and service voluntaries from composers many of you already know.

David Cherwien. Gwyneth Walker. Michael Burkhardt. Charles Callahan. Familiar names, alongside a few newer voices building their own place in the literature.

Whether you're filling out a prelude list for late summer or getting an early start on fall planning, there's likely something here worth a read-through — available for print order or instant download.

New organ releases — link in the comments below.

Address

1727 Larkin Williams Rd
Fenton, MO
63026

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

Telephone

(636) 305-0100

Website

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