The Yale Institute of Sacred Music, an interdisciplinary graduate center, educates leaders who foster, explore, and study engagement with the sacred through music, worship, and the arts in Christian communities, diverse religious traditions, and public life. Partnering with Yale School of Music and Yale Divinity School, as well as other academic and professional units at Yale, the institute prepares its students for careers in church music and other sacred music, pastoral ministry, performance, and scholarship. The institute’s curriculum integrates the study and practice of religion with that of music and the arts. With a core focus on Christian sacred music, the ISM builds bridges among disciplines and vocations and makes creative space for scholarship, performance, and practice.
The Directors of the Institute
| 1973–1976 | Robert Baker |
| 1976–1982 | Jon Bailey |
| 1982–1983 | Aidan Kavanagh (Interim Director) |
| 1983–1984 | Harry B. Adams (Interim Director) |
| 1984–1992 | John W. Cook |
| 1992–1994 | Harry B. Adams (Interim Director) |
| 1994–2004 | Margot E. Fassler |
| 2005– | Martin D. Jean |
| Acting Directors: | Aidan Kavanagh, Paul V. Marshall, Harry B. Adams, Bryan D. Spinks |