Let the bright Seraphim in
burning row their loud uplifted
angel-trumpets blow.

Let the cherubic host, in tuneful
choir, touch their immortal
harps with golden wire.

Let the bright Seraphim in
burning row their loud uplifted
angel-trumpets blow…

(Handel, from Samson)

I’d like you to meet my husband, Tom Schlueter, who sometimes gets mentioned here but who has never been formally introduced in the time I’ve had a blog. Yesterday my sister-in-law was here so we all decided to accompany Tom on a music job at a church in downtown Milwaukee. The family paparazzi was in full swing as Kris hadn’t heard Tom play in a long time so she was snapping away with her camera. My patient husband put up with the unaccustomed fuss and the kids snapped a few shots and got some video I’ll put up later of his playing. He was playing in the balcony of a large church, but the balcony housed the choir, the timpani, two organs, one a pipe organ and one a ditigal, file cabinets of choir music, a piano and a lot more.

It was a wonderful morning. He began with Where ‘er You Walk by Handel, Prelude to the Te Deum by French composer Charpentier, Jeremiah Clark’s Prince of Denmark March, then Allegro Maestoso from Handel’s Water Music and then ending with Psalm 19 by Benedetto Marcello. Here’s a video clip. It was such joyful music, played for God’s glory. I often thank the Lord that despite all of the darkness in this world, He still grants us the beauty of music to lift our hearts to Him.

Tom has played trumpet since age 8, winning the Milwaukee Symphony Young Artist competition at 15, and has played professionally since the age of 17 when he began playing with the Milwaukee Symphony and other city groups. He played at the New York Brass Conference at 19 and was two time winner of the International Trumpet Guild Solo Competition. (They made a rule soon after that you could only win once.) After graduating from University of Wisconsin with a music performance degree, he studied with Arnold Jacobs and Reynold Schilke of the Chicago Symphony and accompanied the MSO on its European tour. Over the years he has been principal with the Milwaukee Ballet Orchestra, the Waukesha Symphony, Festival City Symphony, Skylight Opera, Milwaukee Chamber Brass and has played with sacred choral groups like the Bel Canto Chorus, Bach Chamber Choir, Lutheran Chorale and a bunch of others. He is also a studio musician for various companies. This is a minute of Tom playing the Lovelock Concerto. Click here: lovelock-schlueter4 He lives and breathes music of all kinds as long as it has brass well played. His favorite composer is Anton Bruckner with Mahler coming in a close second and one of his favorite Bruckner Symphonies is the 6th. In his “spare time” he also dismantles trumpets and rebuilds them to his own specs or sometimes someone elses. Every aspect of a trumpet affects its sound so he tweaks his now 30 trumpets a lot. You’ll find him hunkered over a blue flame on his work table with bits of trumpet here or there.

Tom is a wonderful husband and a rare, old-fashioned Christian gentleman. He has a heart of pure gold. A moment that will always stay in my heart goes back to when we were thinking of adopting again. I had found the photo of a 12-year-old in Bulgaria in need of a family through an adoption agency online. He had brittle bones and wanted very badly to have a family. We had just adopted a toddler from Romania 6 months before and already had 4 children to raise. Tom watched the video, didn’t say much, and I just let it rest. The next morning he was eating breakfast and he looked at me with a sort of funny smile. “How much did you say those fees were again for Georgi?” Six months later, he was on a plane for Sofia, Bulgaria with a suitcase bulging with clothes, goodies and a new Bulgarian Bible for his new son, Jonathan George Schlueter. Jonathan is now 22 and working towards being a pharmacist. His life is a testimony to God’s grace. (See his story in his own words here.)

I am thankful for men of integrity and kindness. They’re still out there and for each and every one, we should be grateful. They are ministers of God’s grace to their wives and families. And by the way, Tom is entering a new decade with his birthday this weekend. I won’t tell you which…

Here are a few shots from the church trip yesterday.

Going in…

Tom, sister Kris and Jonathan in the background.


Job done!


He’s staring at the wall at the back of the choir loft where the gazillion pipes from the organ are roaring out “Toccata Festiva” by Pervis. On the last note, the entire church shakes, no lie. The organist threw that in at the end as a “bonus”.

One last shot that shows Gesu on the campus of Marquette University.

+Soli Deo Gloria+