Elizabeth Christian ’11, is using the musical talent she honed while studying at Aquinas to teach and deepen the faith of those at St. Sebastian Parish in Byron Center, Michigan.

Christian, a liturgical music major, has always been passionate about her faith and singing, but never considered herself a pianist until taking classes at AQ.

“I took a little piano in high school, then realized when I got [to Aquinas] that I needed piano to be a musician,” said Christian. “That’s what was great about Aquinas, there wasn’t a lot of competing or needing to be great at the instrument from the beginning.”

After graduating, Christian became the music director at Holy Name of Jesus Church in Wyoming, Michigan, requiring her to be an accompanist, a choral director, an organist and pianist, but most importantly, she had to be a leader.

“In most corporate jobs, you get hired in and climb the ladder over the years,” she said. “But in liturgical music, you’re set at a parish and instantly in charge.”

The pressure hasn’t stopped Christian’s creative process. Since graduating from Aquinas, and under the mentorship of Grand Rapids composer and Aquinas adjunct professor Roger MacNaughton, Christian has created her first album of original songs, taking inspiration from her religion but not writing solely about Catholicism.

“They’re still all songs like you’d hear on the radio,” said Christian, “but I can’t write music without having it be in context of who I am. Because I’m writing it, and I’m Catholic, my music reflects that.”

Christian admits that at first, it was a little difficult to perform her own original music to a crowd, as opposed to singing and playing music written by others. However, she now sees it as a blessing.

“That’s the life of an artist, to expose the inner self where others aren’t able to,” said Christian. “There’s no art without that. Grand Rapids is very art-oriented, and I think that speaks volumes about the development of GR. When a culture is able to focus on the arts, we’re stable.”

Christian continued, saying, “There are people who aren’t able to prosper in the arts because other things have to come first. We’re all made to prosper, not survive.”

Fortunately, artists like Christian have been blessed with the capability to prosper in their environments, and to continue to grow in their talents. More information about Christian’s music is available through her website, lizchristianmusic.com.