Friday, July 15, 2005

Calvert Davies Shenk, Dearborn Heights: Music took him around the country

By John Wisely / The Detroit News

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Ila Shenk had long heard that people appreciate the church music of her husband, Calvert Davies Shenk. But even she was awestruck to hear Pope John Paul II compliment him after he led a choir at St. Peter's Basilica on a 1987 trip to Rome.

"It was a really disarming experience," she said. "The pope was very kind and said so many kind things to Cal. I couldn't believe he spent so much time with Cal."

Mr. Shenk died from cancer Saturday, July 9, 2005, in his Dearborn Heights home. He was 64.

Mr. Shenk played the organ most of his life and loved the traditions of his Catholic faith, his wife said. He preferred the Latin Mass and loved Gregorian chant, a centuries-old song form that has had a revival in recent decades.

"He was rather well-known around the country for his expertise in chant," Mrs. Shenk said. "I got a call from a young man who wanted to thank Cal, first for his friendship, but also for passing on the torch (of chant music)."

For Mr. Shenk, faith and music were inseparable, his wife said.

Mr. Shenk was born Nov. 21, 1940, in Joplin, Mo., and grew up in Kansas. He earned a bachelor's and a master's degree in music and organ performance from Northwestern University.

Mr. Shenk's music career in teaching, leading choirs and composing took him to jobs across the country, including stints at the Armed Forces School of Music in Norfolk, Va., and the Cathedral of St. Paul in Birmingham, Ala. He taught for a time at Kellogg Co.munity College in Battle Creek and served as a music critic for the Battle Creek Enquirer.

More recently, Mr. Shenk served as assistant professor of music at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit. He also worked at Assumption Grotto Church in Detroit, where he assisted as organist, chant master and composer.

A Mass of Christian burial was celebrated Wednesday at Assumption Grotto Church, 13770 Gratiot in Detroit. Burial was at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield.

You can reach John Wisely at (313) 222-2035 or jwisely@detnews.com.