Sacred Winds Ministries

Founded in 1997 by Scott Bersaglia, the Sacred Winds Ensemble presents concerts focusing on the everlasting truth of God and His son, Jesus Christ.  The ensemble’s initial purpose was to provide an expansive musical compliment to the worship service of Petrey Memorial Baptist, the conductor’s home church.  Since then, the ensemble has unfolded into a ministering body spreading the Word of a sovereign and personal God.

The Sacred Winds Ensemble Commissioning Project was established in 2000 and encompasses works for wind, string, and choral ensembles as well as multi-media pieces.  In 2007, David Maslanka was commissioned to write a work commemorate the group’s ten-year anniversary.  The result was Unending Stream of Life. In 2015, the ensemble recorded their first album, In Christ Alone. The album was recorded over two days in Lexington, KY, with three-time Grammy-award winning recording engineer, David Lau, of Brookwood Studios in Plymouth, MI. The album features four works from the ensemble’s commissioning project. 

In 2004, the ensemble commissioned Libby Griffin of Austin, TX to design the ministry’s logo.  Regarding the logo, Mrs. Griffin writes:

“The design grew from the incorporation of the downbeat and movement of the baton as a conductor leads musicians.  It was my desire that life and energy be communicated in the logo.  It was also my desire that it convey the essence of the life of Jesus Christ that flows in those who know Him as Savior and Lord.  ‘JC’ moves from left to right in the design.”

Drawing her inspiration from Acts 17:24-28, Mrs. Griffin further states:

“It is the final portion of this passage that came to my heart as I designed the logo.  For without Him we are nothing.  Without His infusing life, anything we do is empty and meaningless.  It is His life that must play through us to praise Him before His body, and carry His life to the lost.”

The ensemble embarked on their first tour performing at the 2008 Baptist Music Conference National Convention in New Orleans, LA, with accompanying performances in Kentucky and Tennessee.  In 2010, the group performed at the Kentucky Music Educators Association State Conference and again in 2021. Additionally, the ensemble has been recognized by The House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Kentucky for “proving itself as an outstanding asset to the community.” Noted guest artists of the Sacred Winds Ensemble include Jerry Junkin, James Curnow, and Greg Detweiler, guest conductors; Teresa Alzadon, soprano; Judson Perry, tenor; Jody J. Nagel, J. Daniel Jenkins, Thomas Root, Craig Biondi, John Vander Gheynst, and the late David Maslanka.

The ensemble has garnered high praise from composers Donald Grantham, Jody Nagel, and David Maslanka, among others. Dr. Jody Nagel, whose work Voyage of Discovery is featured on the ensemble’s aforementioned album, writes, “Your recording of Voyage is brilliant! It is certainly THE definitive recording. I just listened to the CD in its entirety, and there’s no doubt you have added a serious gift of music to the musical world.” In commenting on the ensemble’s performance of his final movement from the Symphony No. 7, David Maslanka wrote, “Your performances of the Symphony No.7 movement [IV] are very touching and beautiful. You have done fine work under very restricted circumstances. It is quite clear that your players are deeply involved in the music.”

In 2018, Sacred Winds established a partnerships in Guayaquil, Ecuador with La Academia Musica Bautista del Ecuador for the training and teaching of music and worship to the church and the Conservatorio de Musica Cristiana Adoradores and the Universidad de las Artes to provide music instruction to students in Guayaquil.

The Sacred Winds Ensemble is comprised of volunteer musicians from across the United States and abroad.  The ensemble is under the governing body of Sacred Winds Ministries, Inc., a 501(c)3 non-profit public charity whose mission is to provide Christian outreach through the arts, music, and education.