About
Polyphony aims to foster a thriving community of church musicians, offering them encouragement, support, and resources.
Polyphony began in 2007, when a small group of church musicians met in Atlanta looking for a place to call home musically, liturgically, and spiritually. That search led to our first conference at First Baptist Church of Asheville in 2008, and in the years since, members have gathered for inspiration and encouragement at Mercer University, in Atlanta, and in Nashville.
When the pandemic disrupted that rhythm, Kyle Damron and Doug Haney started bi-monthly Zoom calls to help members navigate everything from pre-recorded services to virtual choirs. Underneath the practical help was something simpler: musicians supporting one another through a season none of them had faced before. Those calls became the seed of a renaissance.
Polyphony is now a 501(c)(3), and we've launched a research initiative to find out what church musicians need to thrive in the 2020s. The conviction that carried us through the pandemic, that this work is best done in community rather than in isolation, still shapes everything we do.
That conviction comes from experience. Doug Haney, who now leads Polyphony as Executive Director, spent more than thirty years as a church musician before founding the organization, and most of our staff and board have spent their careers doing this same work, leading choirs on Sunday mornings much like the members they now serve.
Polyphony is in conversation with church music professors and industry leaders around the country. These relationships keep our experience grounded in the wider conversation about church music. We assume you are the expert in your own context. This network exists to surround that expertise with resources, mentorship, and people who understand what the work actually costs.
Member Testimonials
Suzanne Ringer
Associate Pastor for Music and Family Ministries
Augusta Road Baptist Church, Greenville, SC
