Concerts at Saint Thomas Presents A Program of Organ Duets on June 16

Concerts at Saint Thomas closes their 2017-18 season with "Four Hands, Four Feet: Daniel Hyde and Benjamin Sheen in Recital" on June 16, 2018 at 2 pm.In their debut duo recital, showcasing the magnificent pipe organs of Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue, award-winning organists Daniel Hyde and Benjamin Sheen perform virtuosic transcriptions of works from the orchestral and operatic literature.

The pipe organ is one of the oldest instruments in the Western musical tradition. In the 19th century, before the advent of recording technology, transcriptions for organ of symphonic and opera works became a popular way for people to hear the masterworks of the repertoire - every area had a church with an organ.

Samuel Sebastian Wesley, whose Duet for Organ opens the program, was one of the leading English organists and church composers of the 19th century. Fittingly, his middle name was given as a direct homage to his father's favorite composer, Johann Sebastian Bach. George Frideric Handel was a master of the organ, and his Op. 4 organ concertos were composed during the height of his fame while living and working in London. HWV 292, No. 4, written in 1735, was intended to be played in between performances of Handel's oratorios Esther, Deborah, and Athalia. Edvard Grieg's Wedding Day at Troldhaugen was originally written for the piano, as part of his Op. 65 cycle of Lyric Pieces, composed for his and his wife's 25th anniversary. The two arrangements of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's operas, excerpts from Don Giovanni and The Marriage of Figaro, highlight the 19th century's tradition of organ transcriptions of beloved instrumental works. The program concludes with Max Reger's arrangement of Johann Sebastian Bach's BrandenburgConcerto No. 6, originally written for two solo violas, cellos, and continuo.

Listing Info

SATURDAY, JUNE 16TH | 2:00pm
Four Hands, Four Feet: Daniel Hyde and Benjamin Sheen in Recital
Saint Thomas Church, 5th Avenue at 53rd Street

Daniel Hyde and Benjamin Sheen, Organ

Duet for Organ - Samuel Sebastian Wesley
Wedding Day at Troldhaugen, Op. 65, no. 6 - Edvard Grieg,
Organ Concerto in F, Op. 4, no. 4 - George Frideric Handel
"March" (Act III), from The Marriage of Figaro, K. 492 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
"Serenade" (Act II), from Don Giovanni, K. 527 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Brandenburg Concerto no. 6 in B flat, BWV 1051 - Johann Sebastian Bach

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About Daniel Hyde
Daniel Hyde is Organist and Director of Music at Saint Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue, New York City, USA. Born in the UK, Daniel began his education as a chorister at Durham Cathedral. Whilst at school he was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists at the age of 17, and won the organ scholarship to King's College, Cambridge. Upon graduation with First Class Honours in Music, he was appointed as Director of Music at Jesus College, Cambridge, where he spent five very happy years.

Hailed for his "attention to inner detail and clear sense of architecture" (Gramophone, June 2015), Daniel has been in increasing demand as a choral and orchestral conductor, and has worked with the BBC Singers, the London Bach Choir, the Britten Sinfonia, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and the City of London Sinfonia. Since moving to New York in September 2016, he has directed the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys alongside the renowned Orchestra of St Luke's and New York Baroque Incorporated.

As an organist, Daniel has performed across the UK and the world. Recital engagements have taken him to Vienna, Finland, Germany, Holland and also Australia, where he has performed at all the major venues including the Sydney Opera House and Adelaide Town Hall. He has been a concerto soloist with the BBC Philharmonic, and was awarded Second Prize and the Audience Prize in the Royal College of Organists Performer of the Year 2002 competition. As an ensemble player he has appeared with Phantasm, the Britten Sinfonia, Aurora Orchestra, Gabrieli Consort, and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields amongst others.

About Benjamin Sheen
Benjamin Sheen, Associate Organist at Saint Thomas Church in New York City, is one of the UK's brightest young organists. Hailed as "brilliant" by The New York Times, he is the 2013 winner of the Pierre S. du Pont First Prize in the inaugural Longwood Gardens Organ Competition and received Second Prize and the Jon Laukvik prize at the St. Alban's International Organ Competition 2013. Ben began his musical career as a chorister for six years at St. Paul's Cathedral in London, under the direction of John Scott, during which time he gained a music scholarship to Eton College. He holds degrees from the University of Oxford and the Juilliard School and is also a prize-winning Fellow of the Royal College of Organists and the 2011 recipient of the Silver Medal from the Worshipful Company of Musicians. As a concert organist, Mr. Sheen has performed throughout the United States, Europe and further afield in Australia and New Zealand. He has performed with notable orchestras including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the City of London Sinfonia and appeared on BBC radio and television several times. After the untimely death of John Scott in 2015, Mr. Sheen took up the posts of Acting Organist and Acting Director of Music of Saint Thomas Church last season, directing the choir on a domestic tour of the USA and also for performances at the AAM Convention in Stamford and AGO National Convention in Houston. Future engagements include performances as a featured artist at the 2018 American Guild of Organists National Convention in Kansas City, Missouri in July, as well as summer recitals in the UK (Salisbury and Winchester Cathedrals) and his first solo recital tour to South Africa in August.

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