Holy Cross Chapel Artists Series Performance Dedicated to Late College President Fr. Brooks

Four artists—Ann Hobson Pilot, harpist; Carol Lieberman, violinist; Michael Calmès, tenor; and James David Christie, organist— will collaborate for a performance as part of the Holy Cross Chapel Artists Series on Sunday, Oct. 28 at 3 p.m. in St. Joseph Memorial Chapel.  The performance is free, open to the public, and handicap accessible. 

The program will include 19th - and 20th- century French music for harp, violin, tenor and organ and compositions by Büsser, Tournemire, Saint-Saëns, Grandjany, Langlais, Alain and Franck. 

The concert will be dedicated to the late Rev. John E. Brooks, S.J., the longest serving president of the College.  “Father Brooks was responsible for the installation of the monumental Taylor & Boody organ in St. Joseph Memorial Chapel,” says Christie, distinguished artist-in-residence and College organist. “The arts flourished at Holy Cross under his presidency.”

Fr. Brooks commissioned the College’s award-winning Taylor and Boody Organ, designed in the tradition of 16th- and 17th-century Dutch and north German organs, which was completed and dedicated in 1985. The Rev. John E. Brooks, S.J. Concert Hall was named for him, and the full-tuition Brooks Music Scholarship was established in his honor.

About the performers:

Ann Hobson Pilot: After 40 years with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Symphony Pops Orchestra, the  legendary principal harpist retired at the end of the Tanglewood 2009 season.  She has an extensive career as both a soloist and recording artist and holds honorary doctorates from Bridgewater State College and Tufts University.  She is the recipient of the 1993 Distinguished Alumni Award from the Cleveland institute of Music and the 2010 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Boston Musicians’ Association.  Pilot serves on the faculties of Boston University, New England Conservatory, the Tanglewood Music Center and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute.   Carol Lieberman: An associate professor of music at College of the Holy Cross and the co-director of the Holy Cross Chamber Players, she is recognized as one of America’s leading exponents of Baroque violin performance and violin repertoire from the 19th to the 21st centuries.  She has performed and recorded extensively.  She frequently lectures on violin performance practice, including vibrato and bow technique.  She has given master classes in Poland, Israel, France and England and recently gave a lecture-recital titled “Vibrato in the Franco-Belgian School from G. B. Viotti to E. Ysaye” in La Spezia, Italy.

Michael Calmès: Since making his debut in 1982 with the Boston Lyric Opera Company in Puccini’s Madame Butterfly, Calmès has been acclaimed in operas and operettas from Ariadne auf Naxos to Die Fledermaus.  He has performed throughout North America and Europe and has given many first performances of works by the late Boston composer Daniel Pinkham, who dedicated several works to him. Calmès has achieved a distinguished record of performances and maintains an active schedule of concerts, recitals, oratorio and opera with numerous choruses, orchestras and other ensembles.    James David Christie: Distinguished Artist-in-Residence at College of the Holy Cross since 1984, he is internationally acclaimed as one of the finest organists of his generation. He has performed around the world with symphony orchestras and period instrument ensembles as well as in solo recitals. Christie has served as organist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1978 and has performed and recorded with major orchestras and period instrument ensembles internationally. He has served on over 40 international organ competition juries in North America, Europe, Russia, Kazakhstan and Japan.

Future performances of the 2012-13 concert series include:

• Sunday, Nov. 4 – Sylvie Mallet and Marie-Louise Langlais, both organ professors at the Paris Conservatory

For more information about any of the performances in the Chapel Artists Series, please call the music department at (508) 793-2296, or visit the department’s website.