Bach Marathon

Bach Marathon

bach marathon flierOn Saturday, March 5, 2016, beginning at 10:00 a.m. in the Church, St. Philip’s Friends of Music presents the 25th Annual Bach Marathon, a celebration of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. The 10:00 a.m. concert features University of Arizona Fred Fox School of Music international touring performers — UA Musicians on Tour —performing Bach in some unusual combos, such as a bassoon quartet and a saxophone quartet, in addition to the more usual voice, strings, harpsichord, piano, organ, and oboe. Their programs will highlight not only music by J.S. Bach but also transcriptions of music by his contemporaries and other musicians that Bach influenced. These gifted musicians will articulate the immense diversity, texture and influence of the master with a variety of instruments, repertoire, and style.

The morning concert is followed by a “Bach’s lunch” — a box lunch for a modest fee available to order at the door prior to the morning performances. Join fellow concertgoers, friends and family for a light repast and stimulating conversation about the performances.

biggersContinuing at 2:00 p.m., acclaimed organist Jonathan Biggers will perform on the 1986 Holtkamp Organ Bach’s Sinfonia from Cantata 29; Two Chorale-Preludes: Allein Gott in der Höh sei ehr (“All Glory be to God on high”), BWV 662 and Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir (“Out of the depths I cry unto Thee”), BWV 686; Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C-major, BWV 564; concluding with Prelude and Fugue in E-major, BWV 566. Hailed by NPR as “one of the most outstanding concert organists in the United States,” Jonathan Biggers maintains an active career as both a professor of organ and harpsichord, and as a concert recitalist of the first order. He holds the prestigious Edwin Link Endowed Professorship in Organ and Harpsichord at Binghamton University (State University of New York) and has presented hundreds of concerts in music halls, church and university settings throughout the U.S.A., Canada, and Europe. He will bring incomparable flair, style and energy to the organ music of Bach.

The concert admission is $25 per person for either the morning session only or the afternoon session only; $40 for both; $10 Bach’s lunch on sale at the door prior to the morning performances. Student admission is $10 for both morning and afternoon sessions.

The mission of Friends of Music is to enrich the musical experience of the parish and community through events such as concerts, outreach, education, scholarships, commissions, and support of special musical events. Click here for more information or call 520.222.7277.

St. Philip’s is located at 4440 N. Campbell Avenue at River Road. Ample parking is available in the north parking lot or under our solar parking structure on the east side. The Friends of Music phone number is (520) 222-7277.

 

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION

UA Musicians on Tour is an outreach program sponsored by the Fred Fox School of Music that presents music majors in a variety of performance venues throughout corners of the Southwest. Students participate in organized tours, on concert series, for schools, and in a variety of community settings. The School believes that the hands-on experience gained through performance out in the real-world and through student interaction with presenters, teachers and diverse audiences is essential to the musical education of its students.

 

Jonathan Biggers, hailed by NPR as “one of the most outstanding concert organists in the United States,” maintains an active career as both a professor of organ and harpsichord, and as a concert organist of the first order. He holds the Edwin Link Endowed Professorship in Organ and Harpsichord at Binghamton University (State University of New York), and has presented hundreds of concerts in concert hall, church and university settings throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe, including solo and concerto performances for several regional and national conventions of the American Guild of Organists, including the opening solo concert for the 2010 AGO convention held in Washington D.C. He has appeared as a featured soloist with orchestras in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, including performances with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Binghamton Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, and has been featured frequently on NPR (“Pipedreams”), the Canadian Broadcast Corporation, and on Radio and Television Suisse Romande broadcasts in Geneva, Switzerland. Scott Cantrell of The Dallas Morning News, writes that Biggers’ performances demonstrate “authority and eloquence,” and adds: “were there more performers like this, the organ would be far less a minority interest.”

Advertisement

Bach Marathon

kangOn Saturday, February 28, 2015 starting at 10:00 a.m. in the Church, St. Philip’s Friends of Music presents the annual Bach Marathon, a celebration of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. At 10:00 a.m., organists Woosug Kang and Jeffrey Campbell present “Darkness and Light”, an exploration of major and minor key organ works. Woosug Kang will perform several prelude and fugue pieces in minor keys (“darkness”). Then Jeffrey Campbell will perform several prelude and fugue works in major keys to bring the “light” into this concert. The program will include the mentally and physically challenging Dorian, the giant “Wedge,” the dramatic Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, and many others to achieve the true feeling of “marathon” on the Holtkamp organ.

jeffrey campbell 2

 

The morning concert follows with “Bach’s lunch.” Lunches may be ordered before the morning concert.

 

marshallContinuing at 2:00 p.m., famed organist Dr. Kimberly Marshall will present “Handel and Bach, Cosmopolitans of the Organ”. The Largo from Handel’s Xerxes, two adaptations of Handel’s music by Alexandre Guilmant, and Bach’s Passacaglia in C Minor complement the program.

 

On Sunday morning, March 1, at the 9:00 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. services, the St. Philip’s Singers, soloists, and Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Woosug Kang will present Bach’s uplifting Cantata No. 4 “Christ lag in Todesbanden” in the context of the liturgy. Dr. Jeffrey Campbell will perform organ music of Bach. Because some of the music will be used as prelude, it is suggested that you arrive 10 minutes before the listed service time.

The suggested concert admission is $25 per person for either only morning session or only afternoon session; $40 for both; $10 Bach’s Lunch. The mission of Friends of Music is to enrich the musical experience of the parish and community through events such as concerts, outreach, education, scholarships, commissions, and support of special musical events. For more information click here or call 520.222.7277.

St. Philip’s is located at 4440 N. Campbell Avenue at River Road. Ample parking is available in the north parking lot or under our solar parking structure on the east side. The Friends of Music phone number is (520) 222-7277.

 

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Organist and choral conductor Woosug Kang is the Director of Music at St. Philip’s In The Hills Episcopal Church in Tucson where he leads a large and vibrant music program with six adult-, children’s- and mixed voice choral ensembles. He is responsible for all musical activities including the First Sunday Music Series, where major choral works with orchestra are performed within the liturgy monthly. Mr. Kang guides the largest Royal School of Church Music training program for young choristers in the Southwestern US. Originally from Auckland, New Zealand, Mr. Kang is a candidate for the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in organ performance at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. Mr. Kang received his Masters of Music Degree from Yale University and has also served as an adjunct faculty member at The University of Arizona School of Music, where he instructed students in organ performance.

Jeffrey Campbell has distinguished himself throughout North America as an organ recitalist, choral conductor, and clinician. A graduate of both the University of British Columbia and Northwestern University in Chicago, Dr. Campbell has specialized in the interpretation of Bach’s organ and choral music, as well as English and French romantic repertoire. Since August 2001, he has been associate music director and principal organist at the Episcopal Church of St. Philips in the Hills, Tucson. Recent engagements have included performances on the Fritts instrument at Arizona State University, and the Schoenstein organ at the University of Arizona.

Dr. Kimberly Marshall is a Full Professor at the Arizona State University School of Music where she oversees the graduate organ studio and presides over the Paul Fritts instrument. Dr. Marshall also maintains an active career as a concert organist, performing regularly in Europe, the US and Asia. Dr. Marshall’s compact disc recordings feature music of the Italian and Spanish Renaissance, French Classical and Romantic periods, and works by J.S. Bach. Her current CD celebrates the music of Arnolt Schlick on the 500th anniversary of its publication (2012).