Musica Organi
Westminster Presbyterian Church, Knoxville, Tennessee
Friday, April 19, 2002, 8:00 p.m.
| Prelude in E Minor, BVW 548a | Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) | |
| Sonata II (1937) | Paul Hindemith (1895-1963) | |
| Lebhaft | ||
| Ruhig bewegt | ||
| Fuge: Mässig bewegt, heiter | ||
| Fugue in E Minor, BWV 548b ("The Wedge") |
J. S. Bach | |
| Intermission | ||
| Improvisation | ||
| Répons pour le Temps de Pâques | Jeanne Demessieux (1921-1968) | |
| From Twelve Chorale Preludes on Gregorian Themes, op. 8 |
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| Rorate Coeli (Ornamented Chorale) | ||
| Hosanna Filio David (Choral Fugue) | ||
| Domine Jesu (Berceuse) | ||
| Veni Creator Spiritus (Toccata) | ||
| Prelude and Fugue in G Minor, op. 7, no. 3 | Marcel Dupré (1886-1971) |
Independent Concert Artists
Christa Rakich teaches in the Organ Department at New England Conservatory in Boston. She also directs the music program at the Jesuit Urban Center, Church of the Immaculate Conception, in Boston, where she plays the renowned four-manual 18631902 E. & G. G. Hook & Hastings organ.
As a Fulbright Scholar, Rakich studied for two years with Anton Heiller at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna. She holds bachelor's degrees in organ and German from Oberlin College (Phi Beta Kappa).
After receiving her master's degree with honors from New England Conservatory, she was asked to join the faculty and taught there for several years. Before returning to teach at New England Conservatory, she served on the faculties of Westminster Choir College and the University of Connecticut, as Assistant University Organist at Harvard, and as Artist-in-Residence at the University of Pennsylvania.
Active in the American Guild of Organists, Rakich has served as Dean of the Northeast Connecticut Chapter and as a judge for competitions at both regional and national competitions. She has also been a member of the National Committee for Organ Improvisation, and she appears regularly as a performer and presenter at AGO conventions. She was a featured recitalist at the Year 2000 National AGO Convention in Seattle.
Rakich's performing career has taken her throughout the United States and Europe. A prizewinner at international organ competitions (notably Bruges 1976), she has received particular acclaim for her interpretations of the music of J. S. Bach. Also a harpsichordist and fortepianist, she is a founding member of Ensemble Duemila and performs regularly with the Fanfare Consort. As a soloist, she performs under the aegis of Independent Concert Artists.
Rakich's recordings include two CDs for AFKA Records, Deferred Voices: Organ Music by Women and Transcriptions from St. Justin's, both performed on the 1933 Kilgen organ at St. Justin's Church, Hartford, Connecticut. On the reZound label is Christa Rakich in Recital at St. Mark's Cathedral, a live recording of her performance, on the landmark 1965 Flentrop organ, for the national convention of the American Guild of Organists in Seattle in July 2000. She can also be heard on the four-CD set Historic Organs of Connecticut, released for the Organ Historical Society.