At Saint Olaf, we are blessed to have a magnificent 67-rank pipe organ. It will be showcased in a series of recitals on Wednesday afternoons, immediately following the noon Mass. Come hear the organ thunder with might and whisper gently as talented organists showcase a variety of repertoire.
Wednesday Organ Recitals run monthly from October 21 through May 19, 2021 (no recital in January), and will be approx. 30-40 minutes long. Freewill donation.
Richard Gray - Wednesday, March 24, 24 at 12:30pm
REVISED PROGRAM - ST. OLAF CATHOLIC CHURCH
Phoenix Processional - Dan Locklair (b. 1949)
Two Chorale Preludes
Llanfair (Hail the day that sees him rise) - McNeil
Robinson (1945-2015)
Kremser (We Gather Together) - Craig Phillips (b. 1961)
Hommage à Messiaen (1980) - McNeil Robinson
Psalm Prelude (Psalm 40:1-8) - Craig Phillips
Fugue in G Major, BWV 576 - Johann Sebastian Bach
(1685-1750)
Richard Gray is an organist and church musician based in the Twin Cities. Since September 2018, he has served as the Director of Music for St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church in St. Paul, MN, where he directs two choral ensembles, serves as coordinator of the weekly compline services, and is Artistic Director of the Winifred Bean Sacred Music Series. He was the 2017-18 Inaugural Organ Scholar at St. George’s Episcopal Church in Nashville, TN, where he trained under the tutelage of Dr. Woosug Kang within all aspects of the strong Anglican choral tradition. Richard holds degrees in organ performance from Southern Methodist University and Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Additional studies have been at the McGill Summer Organ Academy in Montréal, the 2017 Atlanta Summer Conducting Institute as a Conducting Fellow, and at the Cambridge Choral Summer Course, where he is an alumnus of the class of 2019.
During his graduate studies at SMU in Dallas, he was engaged as
an organist at Highland Park Presbyterian Church, one of the flagship churches
of the denomination. Richard has served as Assistant Course Organist for the
2016 Royal School of Church Music Course in Raleigh, NC. He won the Prize for
Hymn Playing Excellence (Alamo AGO Award) in the 2016 William C. Hall Pipe Organ
Competition in San Antonio. He has sung with the Nashville Chamber Singers, the
Dallas Choral Festival Chorus and the Highland Park Chorale.
As a recitalist, Richard has performed concerts in notable
venues throughout the United States including Charlotte’s Myers Park Baptist
Church, Washington DC’s National City Christian Church, Cleveland’s The Church
of the Covenant, Beaufort’s St. Helena’s Episcopal Church, Boston’s Trinity
Church on Copley Square and Dallas’ Highland Park United Methodist Church. He has
twice been featured as a solo artist on the L'Organo Series of the Piccolo
Spoleto Festival in Charleston, SC.
Richard Gray, Director of Music
Saint John the Evangelist Episcopal Church, Saint Paul
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