Tangled Blue: Sharing Their Faith Through Music

When Concordia music grads enter the workforce - as everything from parish music directors, music educators, music ministry, performers and more - their knowledge, ability and solid preparation all are practical proof of the strength of Concordia’s music program. Joel Pakan is one of hundreds of alumni making their mark in music.

Joel Pakan (’96) and Aimee Pakan, of the Christian folk-rock band Tangled Blue, did not originally envision careers in music. Aimée (who attended CSP for one year) planned a career teaching high school English, but a year in musical ministry changed her mind. “I recognized that music is my gift,” Aimee said. “God doesn’t give you gifts He doesn’t want you to use.”

Joel enrolled in the Director of Christian Education program, but soon immersed himself in music courses, Christus Choir and CSP musicals; he gave his first concert in the Concordia Student Union with classmates Kirk Shipler (’97) and Stan Thompson (’98). A macroeconomics class sparked Joel’s interest in business, which ultimately became his major. Combined with a Music minor, it was the perfect training for a career in musical performance.

Joel and Aimee played with the Christian rock band Crosseyed. They were married in 2001 and formed Tangled Blue. The duo has since logged nearly 200,000 miles touring the United States, and inspiring an enthusiastic following on contemporary Christian radio stations. Joel (vocals, guitar) and Aimee (vocals, percussion) describe their music as “a caffeinated blend of folk-rock music that incorporates Latin and electronic percussion, acoustic and electric guitars.” They have recorded two CDs: “Tangled Blue” and “Pray Where You Are,” and plan to release “The Advent Project” CD in late 2007. (See tangledblue.com for details).

“I value the time I had at CSP,” Joel said. “It was money well spent . . . and just recently paid off! A number of my CSP professors invested in me, and it’s an honor to be a part of their world now.”

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