Hello, and thanks for checking out our congregation! My name is Justin Colwell, and I serve as the Music Director. I began serving All Souls as their pianist starting in the summer of 2019. Since then, I have enjoyed making music with our wonderfully talented congregation, and found myself warmly embraced by this community. I assumed the role of Music Director in 2022.

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No matter your age or skillset, you are warmly invited to be a part of music at All Souls. Check out our Music and Choir page to learn more about our offerings.

Artist Bio: Justin Colwell, MM, NCTNM

Collaborative pianist, conductor, and music educator Justin Colwell began playing the piano at age four and has enjoyed making and sharing music ever since. Recent projects include a debut solo album The Fires & the River: Piano Music for Modern Dance (2021), performances of the Brahms and Mozart requiems in chamber orchestration with Grand Rapids Community College choirs (GRCC, 2023-24), a recital of piano trios by Higdon and Mendelssohn (2025), and music direction for performances of Kyle Pederson’s A Vision Unfolding by the choirs of All Souls Community Church of West Michigan (ASCC) and First (Park) Congregational Church (2026).

Today, Justin’s work revolves around performing and teaching music in community spaces in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He currently serves as the Collaborative Pianist at GRCC and Music Director at ASCC. His teaching specialties include collegiate group piano and private piano for intermediate and early-advanced students. He also serves as a board member of Piano Teachers’ Forum of Grand Rapids, a faculty member at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, and a frequent collaborator with VoxGR. With his wife Melia, he co-owns Joyful Sounds Music Studio, which offers the Music Together ® curriculum to young children and their families.

Justin holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance & Humanities from Indiana Wesleyan University (piano studies with Phoenix Park-Kim, conducting studies with Jason Thompson) and a Master of Music degree in Piano Performance from the University of Missouri Kansas-City Conservatory (piano studies with Robert Weirich). He lives with his wife, three children, and two cats in Grand Rapids’ West Side.