Organist Gregory Hand to Perform at Heritage Center’s Summer Organ Sampler Concerts
Jul 16, 2021 | University Relations staff
DUBUQUE, Iowa – The University of Dubuque Heritage Center’s Summer Organ Sampler Concerts will continue with Gregory Hand at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 19, 2021, in John and Alice Butler Hall.
The new series presents 30-minute presentations that showcase the new custom-crafted John and Alice Butler Pipe Organ. Open to the public, the event is free to attend. No ticket is required.
Heritage Center will host an open house from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in conjunction with Hand’s presentation. Additional details will be announced later.
Hand is an associate professor of organ at the University of Iowa. Prior to this appointment, he was university chapel organist at Northwestern University and taught in the music theory department. He received the doctorate of musical arts degree from the University of Michigan, where he studied organ with James Kibbie and harpsichord with Edward Parmentier.
Hand is in high demand as a performer and pedagogue. He was recently appointed to a five-year term on the jury of the Internationale Orgelwoche Nürnberg (ION). Hand has given recitals and masterclasses in the United States, France, Spain, Germany, and Brazil.
His debut CD, “The Complete Gospel Preludes of William Bolcom,” on the Naxos label marked the world premiere recording of all 12 of these landmark pieces. Hand was also the first organist to play all 12 Gospel Preludes in one concert: first at the University of Michigan with the composer in attendance and later at Princeton University, University of Glasgow, St Giles Cathedral (Edinburgh), and the Twin Cities (Minnesota) chapter of the American Guild of Organists.
Hand has often collaborated with other instrumentalists to perform new music. With bassoonist Benjamin Coelho he premiered Adrian Vernon Fish’s Kassoq at the International Double Reed Society Conference in Redlands, California. With Amy Schendel he premiered Patrick Schulz’s Fanfare for Trumpet and Organ, which appears on a recently released CD.
Hand is also very active as a harpsichordist and continuo player. Recent engagements include The Four Seasons with the Des Moines Symphony and Anne Akiko Meyers; Giulio Cesare with the Lyric Opera of Chicago; Ritorno d’Ulisse with Chicago Opera Theater; and several concerts with Ars Antigua, a Chicago-based period ensemble. He also conducted from the harpsichord a concert performance of Jacopo Peri’s Euridice at the University of Iowa in 2011.
Hand has participated in several international organ competitions including the Grand Prix de Chartres (France), St. Albans (England), Prix Andre Marchal (France), and the Dublin International Organ Competition.
Heritage Center’s Summer Organ Sampler Concerts are held in cooperation with the 30th anniversary of Sinsinawa Mound Center’s Summer Organ Concert Series.
The University of Dubuque dedicated the John and Alice Butler Pipe Organ on May 15, 2021. Designed for teaching, solo recitals, and performances with other musical ensembles, the pipe organ will expand students’ musical horizons and enhance campus events for generations. UD Trustee John Butler (DHL’17) and his spouse, Alice (DHL’17), gifted the pipe organ. Dobson Pipe Organ Builders of Lake City, Iowa, built and installed the pipe organ – the 97th new organ built by the firm.
For more information, please visit www.dbq.edu/HeritageCenter.
