Dr. Matthew Christopher Shepard
Choirmaster and Director of Music
Choirmaster and Director of Music
Dr. Matthew Christopher Shepard is a conductor, scholar, and church musician whose career bridges concert performance, academic research, and sacred liturgy. He is the founder and conductor of Te Deum, one of the Midwest’s premier professional choral ensembles, and serves as Director of Music at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Kansas City. A committed liturgical musician, he believes sacred music is not ornament but prayer, proclamation, and theological witness.
Dr. Shepard’s doctoral work focused on Renaissance polyphony, and he continues to lecture on chant, sacred music history, and historical performance practice. His work has twice been featured in Early Music America and he is known for programming that pairs scholarly insight with spiritual depth.
With Te Deum, he has led acclaimed performances of early masterworks such as Buxtehude’s Membra Jesu Nostri, Bach’s St. John Passion, and the Mass in B Minor, alongside dozens of premieres by living composers. He has also led worship music in a wide variety of Christian traditions.
In addition to his choral work, Dr. Shepard has conducted collegiate, professional, and community orchestras. He recently served as Interim Director of Orchestras at Illinois State University and has led ensembles including the University of Illinois Philharmonia and the Kansas City Civic Orchestra.
He holds degrees from William Jewell College, the UMKC Conservatory (M.M. in choral conducting and M.A. with an orchestral conducting emphasis), and the University of Illinois (D.M.A.).
Dr. Shepard can be reached by clicking here.
Dr. Shepard’s doctoral work focused on Renaissance polyphony, and he continues to lecture on chant, sacred music history, and historical performance practice. His work has twice been featured in Early Music America and he is known for programming that pairs scholarly insight with spiritual depth.
With Te Deum, he has led acclaimed performances of early masterworks such as Buxtehude’s Membra Jesu Nostri, Bach’s St. John Passion, and the Mass in B Minor, alongside dozens of premieres by living composers. He has also led worship music in a wide variety of Christian traditions.
In addition to his choral work, Dr. Shepard has conducted collegiate, professional, and community orchestras. He recently served as Interim Director of Orchestras at Illinois State University and has led ensembles including the University of Illinois Philharmonia and the Kansas City Civic Orchestra.
He holds degrees from William Jewell College, the UMKC Conservatory (M.M. in choral conducting and M.A. with an orchestral conducting emphasis), and the University of Illinois (D.M.A.).
Dr. Shepard can be reached by clicking here.