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Conan Castle

(1927-2025)

Conan Castle passed away at St. Luke’s Vocal Music Scholarship as a legacy to future
Hospital in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, on choral students. For many years, the two would
April 12, 2025. A graduate of Northwestern travel to Wales each summer, where Dr. Castle
University, he served at the University of served as a choral judge at the Llangollen
Central Missouri as director of choral International Musical Eisteddfod. Dr. Castle
activities from 1959 to 1989 and received was very active in the American Choral
the Byler Distinguished Faculty Award in Directors Association and encouraged all his
1986. The choral rehearsal room in the choral students to participate in the Missouri
Utt Music Building was named the “Conan ACDA Chapter. He served the Choral Journal
Castle Choral Room” in 2019. When asked to as a review editor and wrote several articles:
choose from various sites to be named for him, “The Motets of Johann Michael Bach”
Dr. Castle chose the rehearsal room because (June 1984), “ASIA CANTAT in Nagano:
that was where he “formed his music and An Observation” (December 1984), and
his relationships.” During his tenure, he was “Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod:
in charge of the summer music camps and An Adjudicator’s View” (April 1989).
produced many madrigal dinners. He and
his wife left the Conan and Patricia Castle

CHORAL JOURNAL August 2025 Volume 66 Number 1 35