The Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival Hartford (ASOFH), founded in 1997, is an annual national festival and organ competition with the mission of encouraging and inspiring excellence in organ performance by young emerging artists. The festival has been in residence at Trinity College since 2016, and furthers the college’s legacy of educating undergraduate musicians in the art of organ performance and sacred music in the context of a world-class liberal arts education.
In addition to solo repertoire and hymn-playing competitions, the festival presents concerts in Hartford and the surrounding area, including solo organ recitals, concerto performances with orchestra, and choral presentations which feature the organ. The 2017 festival concluded with a Service of Holy Communion at the Trinity College Chapel, at which The Chapel Singers collaborated with the choir of St. James’s Church, West Hartford (Vaughn Mauren ’07, organist and choirmaster) and the choirs of St. John’s Church, West Hartford (Scot Lamlein, director of music and organist). The combined multi-generational choirs (featuring singers ages 7 through 82) gave the premiere performance of Philip J. Stopford’s setting of Psalm 150, commissioned by the ASOFH in memory of its founder, David Spicer.
In the spring of 2018, the groups reunited at Trinity College to record their collaboration. The audio recording of ‘Psalm 150’ is available at the Trinity College Soundcloud station. [LINK]
The 2018 ASOFH runs from September 28–29, and a complete list of festival events is at www.asofhartford.org. The choirs featured in this recording will collaborate again at the Trinity College Chapel on Saturday, September 29 at a service of Choral Evensong at 5:00 p.m.
About the performers:
The Chapel Singers
Trinity’s oldest student organization, founded in 1825, The Chapel Singers sing at major College occasions, Chapel services, and present concerts on campus as well as on domestic and international tours. The group is made up of undergraduates from a wide variety of academic disciplines who enjoy singing challenging choral music. www.trincoll.edu/chapelmusic.
The Choir of St. James’s Church, West Hartford
St. James’s Choir is a multi-generational ensemble of women, men, girls and boys, who are dedicated to offering great choral music each Sunday, and for special liturgies, concerts and events. In 2016, the choir traveled to England and sang daily Evensong at Hereford Cathedral and Sunday services at Bristol Cathedral. The choir returns to England in July of 2019 for a one-week residency at Worcester Cathedral. www.stjameswh.org
The Choirs of St. John’s Church, West Hartford
The St. John’s Choirs are well-known in the greater Hartford community and beyond as a center of excellence in vocal training and repertoire for children ages 7 1/2 and up. The youth choristers sing alongside volunteers and professionals in the adult choir. More information about must at St. John’s is available at www.reddoormusic.org.
Christopher Houlihan ’09, organist
The organist Christopher Houlihan has established an international reputation as an “intelligently virtuoso musician” (Gramophone), hailed for his “glowing, miraculously life-affirming performances” (Los Angeles Times). Houlihan was appointed to the John Rose College Organist-and-Directorship Distinguished Chair of Chapel Music at Trinity College in 2017, succeeding his former teacher John Rose.
Vaughn Mauren ’07, conductor
Vaughn Mauren was named Organist and Choirmaster at St. James’s in 2014, having previously served as Director of Music for Young at Arts and Associate Organist at Christ Church, Bronxville. Mauren is Artistic Director of the Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival Hartford and sub-dean of the Greater Hartford Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. This past July, he directed a Pipe Organ Encounter at Trinity College for teenage organists from around the country.
