Organ Concert to Celebrate Fairfield's 375th Anniversary

Organ Concert Celebrating the 375th

Anniversary of First Church, Fairfield

On October 26 First Church will welcome noted Organist Kenneth Hamrick in a special concert, part of its yearlong celebration of 375 years at the heart of Fairfield. The 4:00 pm concert will present a musical excursion through the years specially arranged by Hamrick to include a piece originally published in 1639, followed by colonial American organ music composed by organists in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York, music by Louis Marchand, Simon Preston, Robert Schumann, Leon Boellmann, Samuel Barber, and culminating in a finale, the dazzling contemporary organ showpiece Dieu Parmi Nous(God Among Us) by Olivier Messiaen. A special adaptation of the Schumann Etudes will feature Hamrick on the organ along with Dr. Aymeric Dupre la Tour, Director of Music at First Church, on the piano.

Kenneth Hamrick is Organist and Music Director of St. Alban’s Church on Staten Island.

He also directs the Clerkes of Alban, a professional choral program there. Additionally,

he is founder and director of a period instrument and vocal ensemble American Virtuosi, in NY, producing a range of historical opera, theater and dance in modern renderings; in April 2014, American Virtuosi produced a special event with Paul Taylor Dance and live chamber music at Pace University which was praised by the New York Times. Kenneth Hamrick completed performance studies in organ and harpsichord as part of his doctoral program at the Eastman School of Music. He has received many top prizes at numerous international festivals and competitions. His debut performance in America, played in Mechanics Hall, Worcester, Massachusetts was broadcast live on NPR. He has played many of the world’s great pipe organs in churches and concert halls, and with symphonies around the world including Westminster Abbey, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and St. John the Divine.

This free concert, open to all, will be followed by a wine and cheese reception so that the audience may meet the organist, see the Jennings Tiffany Window (3 panels) which will be rededicated during morning worship, and view the historical display of artifacts pertaining to the church’s history curated by the Fairfield Museum and History Center. A tour of the church’s collection of Tiffany Windows will be held at 3:00 pm before the concert. First Church Congregational, 148 Beach Road, Fairfield, CT 06824.

Web site: www.firstchurchfairfeld.org.