Two leaders in the organ world served as faculty for the 64th Sewanee Church Music Conference: Todd Wilson and Peter Conte. Wilson is director of music and worship at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Cleveland, Ohio, as well as head of the organ department at the Cleveland Institute of Music. In addition to his position as organist-choirmaster at St. Clement’s in Philadelphia, Conte is marking his 25th year as Wanamaker Grand Court Organist. Both have received numerous awards during their careers. Gifted in both organ and choral fields, they shared playing and conducting duties at the gathering of 122 musicians drawn from 29 states. Notable among the attendees were a number of young adults, including two scholarship recipients: David Heinze (student of Huw Lewis at Hope College) and Garrett Law (studying with Wilson). Dr. Robert Delcamp, organist and choirmaster at the University of the South at Sewanee and president of the board, served as conference director.
Tuesday evening’s organ recital in All Saints Chapel, named in memory of Gerre Hancock, capitalized on a special interest shared by this faculty: accompaniment of silent films. Wilson led off with Hancock’s Variations on ‘Coronation’ (commissioned for the Sewanee Conference in 2000), followed by variations with a French flavor—Marcel Dupré’s Variations on a Noël. (This melody later provided musical fodder for the Saturday evening Frolic, with clever lyrics by Joanne Cobb Brown.) Edwin Lemare’s Fantasy on ‘Carmen’ concluded the more ‘serious’ offerings before Wilson launched into his soundtrack for a Laurel and Hardy short. Peter Conte then took the bench and utilized possibly every pipe in the Casavant to accompany Charlie Chaplin’s classic, The Kid.
Masterclasses were offered for both organists and choral conductors. The Casavant organs in All Saints and the Chapel of the Apostles lent themselves to selections ranging from Bach to Vierne. Performers and listeners alike benefitted from the astute advice and guidance of Wilson and Conte. Board member Alvin Blount coordinated organists David Heinze, Chip Mays, Garrett Law, David Spring, Kirstin Smith, Parks Greene, Brian du Fresne, and Elvia Hammett Parson. Assistant director Kevin Simons coordinated the conductors: Kathy Will, Christin Barnhardt, Jennifer Stammers, Stan Workman, Dallas Bono, Josh Sumter, Liz Farr, and John Hawn, with Christopher Wallace accompanying.
The preparation and offering of music at the Friday Evensong and the Sunday Eucharist in All Saints Chapel is the highpoint of each conference. The hymn Give Thanks for Music-making Art by Brian Wren (tune and descant by Todd Wilson) began Evensong. With each stanza ending “to lead the people’s song,” it was most appropriate. Edward Bairstow’s monumental Lord, Thou Hast Been Our Refuge gave the choristers a nice challenge, which they delivered under Conte’s direction, supported by Wilson’s fine playing. Canticles by Charles Wood in E-flat Major were bracketed by Preces and Responses by Richard Lloyd, composed for Hereford Cathedral.
On Sunday, anthems included Thomas Aquinas’s text O Saving Victim in a new setting by Zachary Wadsworth. Also pairing older words with contemporary music was Valediction by David Conte. This beautiful text by the 16th-century English poet Philip Sidney began with unison lines expressively and cleanly rendered by the massed choir under Wilson’s precise direction, with Conte at the console. Building in both choral and keyboard intensity to the end, this work is within the reach of many choirs—with a skilled organist!
The conference chaplain was the Right Reverend J. Neil Alexander, Dean of the School of Theology at Sewanee and retired Bishop of Atlanta. He also holds degrees in music, apparent in his homilies and lectures; humorous quips enlivened the historical and liturgical tidbits. The careful intertwining of liturgy, music, and theology is one of the aspirations of this conference; this year’s presenters achieved it without question.
Besides providing packets for several reading sessions, Elizabeth Smith brought a generous supply of organ and choral repertoire and music-related books from Lois Fyfe Music, giving attendees an opportunity for consulting and shopping.
Todd Wilson will return as conference director in 2015. Faculty will be Bob Simpson, Christ Church Cathedral, Houston, and Kevin Kwan, Christ and St. Luke’s, Norfolk, Virginia. The Reverend Canon David B. Lowry, former dean of Christ Church Cathedral, New Orleans, will be chaplain. On-line registration will begin in February 2015 at www.sewaneeconference.org.
All photos: Jane Scharding Smedley.
