Jonathan Rudy, the 2014 First Prize Winner in the American Guild of Organists' National Young Artists Competition in Organ Performance, plays the Fisk Organ in Alumni Hall and the Fisk Organ in Auer Hall at Indiana University, Bloomington. Jonathan D. Rudy is recognized by colleagues and audiences for excellence as a performer, church musician, improviser, educator, and conductor. A native of Batavia, Illinois, Mr. Rudy’s recent concert appearances, including recitals, master classes, competitions, and dedicatory/commemorative events, have included locations all across the United States. Recent performances include an appearance at the 2016 AGO National Convention in Houston TX. Jonathan D. Rudy currently serves as Director of Musical Arts and Administration at St. John Cantius Catholic Church in Chicago, where he lives with his beautiful wife, Katie. He tutors students privately in Aural Skills, Music Theory, Piano, and Voice, and maintains an amateur recording studio. Mr. Rudy has served as Music Director at First Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Cookeville, TN, Organist at Central Presbyterian Church, Terre Haute, IN, as Associate Instructor of Music Theory and Aural Skills at Indiana University, and as Dean and Member-At-Large of the American Guild of Organists Bloomington Chapter (Region V).

Classical Music

Christopher Wells plays a program of original new organ music by American composer Craig Phillips on the Casavant Organ of Christ Church in Bronxville, New York. Christopher Wells is from Annapolis, Maryland, where he began his organ studies with James Dale at the United States Naval Academy. Mr. Wells received his undergraduate degree in organ performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music on the Dean’s Talent Grant. During these years, he absorbed elements of the Anglican tradition serving as Organ Scholar at Saint Paul’s in Washington, D.C, and taking lessons at Washington National Cathedral. Mr. Wells took his master’s in organ from the University of Michigan as a student of Robert Glasgow. While in Michigan, Mr. Wells also served as Assistant Organist at Christ Church, Cranbrook, in Bloomfield Hills. In addition to accompanying Christ Church’s four choirs, he was soloist for Poulenc’s Concerto for Organ, Timpani and Strings as well as the premieres of Enid Sutherland’s ‘Alpha’ and Emma Lou Diemer’s ‘In Hope We Sing, Alleluia!’

On this new release Simon Nieminski plays all 3 volumes of Eugene Reuchsel's Promenades en Provence and 2 selections from the Bouquet de France upon the Kilgen Organ of the Cathedral of St. Louis the King, Saint Louis, Missouri. Simon Nieminski studied at the Royal College of Music where he gained their Associate diploma. He was then awarded the Organ Scholarship of Pembroke College, Cambridge. After graduating with honors, he was appointed Organ Scholar of York Minster for two years, during which time he became a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists. He is currently assistant organist at St. Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh, which is unique in Scotland in maintaining daily choral services, with the trebles drawn from its own choir school; his duties at St. Mary’s include playing the organ for all of the seven weekly choral services, and other services and concerts. He also writes reviews and articles on church and organ music, which have been published in Organists’ Review and the Musical Times.

The Grace Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys, San Francisco, under the direction of conductor Benjamin Bachmann, present a program spotlighting 20th century composers and choral arrangers in the Anglican choral tradition. The voice of a cathedral choir soaring upward like the great building it fills is a thrill and an inspiration to even the most unmusical listener. Grace Cathedral has had a men’s choir since its founding in 1906, but it was not until 1913 that boy’s voices were added. The centuries-old Anglican tradition of a men and boys choir has since blossomed here, as one of a handful of such choirs in the US. The Cathedral music staff oversees an extensive program of choir rehearsals (including mixed-voice volunteer choirs), music classroom work with the choristers, education for the cathedral congregation, concerts, choir tours, and a wide variety of other musical activities in the life of this cathedral and beyond. The choir tradition continues to flourish into Grace Cathedral’s second hundred years, inspiring those who are privileged to hear it, and bringing back fond memories to old choristers.

Classical Music

On this new release, Charles Callahan plays a program of short, tuneful original organ works spanning the baroque to the 20th century on the great Kilgen organ of the Cathedra Basilica of St. Louis, Missouri USA. Charles Callahan, born 1951, is a native of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Callahan is well-known as an award-winning composer, organist, choral conductor, pianist, and teacher. He is a graduate of The Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, Pa., and The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC. Additional study has been in England, France, Germany and Belgium. He holds the Associate and Choirmaster certificates of the American Guild of Organists. An active church musician and concert organist, Callahan has conducted many of the major choral works with orchestra and has performed on many of the great organs of the world. He has a dozen solo organ recordings to his credit. Callahan is an award-winning member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. He has most recently been honored by the American Guild of Organists with its 2014 Distinguished Artist award, "for his illustrious career as composer, performer, teacher and consultant, and his lifelong service to the sacred music profession."

Organist Mark Williams and the men of Cantores in Ecclesia, conducted by Dean Applegate, present a sacred music program alternating choir with organ, featuring the Bond organ of Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Portland, Oregon. Mark Williams was born in Lancashire in England and sang as a boy at Manchester Cathedral before going on to hold the Organ Scholarship and an academic scholarship at Trinity College Cambridge. In 2000 at the age of 21, he was appointed Assistant Sub-Organist of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London and Director of Music at St. Paul’s Cathedral School. He relinquished both posts in April of 2006 in order to pursue his rapidly growing freelance career. Described as ‘the shooting star of the international organ scene’ by the international press, he has appeared in the UK, Europe and America with ensembles such as The Sixteen, The King’s Consort, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the City of London Sinfonia and the Gabrieli Consort and Players.

Jeremy S. Bruns is the Organist-Choirmaster at St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral in Buffalo, New York. At St. Paul’s, he will prepare four choirs to sing five weekly choral services, as well as additional services, concerts and guest appearances. Before this, he served as Associate Organist at Saint Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue in New York City where, under the leadership of John Scott, he trained and conducted the Junior Choristers, coordinated the Sunday Organ Recital Series, and held primary responsibility for service playing. He studied with David Higgs at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, earning his M.Mus in Performance and Literature and the Performer’s Certificate. He has won prizes in major competitions, including the 2003 Dallas International Organ Competition. He was also one of four North American finalists chosen to compete in the 1998 Calgary International Organ Festival and Competition and was second prize winner in the 1993 International JS Bach Organ Competition held at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC. On this release he plays the music of Nicolas deGrigny, Charles-Marie Widor and Olivier Messiaen.

On this new release, Scott Dettra plays the 325-rank, 20,142-pipe organ of the Cadet Chapel at West Point United States Military Academy. Scott Dettra is Organist of Washington National Cathedral, where is the principal organist and assists Music Director Michael McCarthy with the direction of the Cathedral choirs. In addition to his work at the Cathedral, Mr. Dettra is also Keyboard Artist for both the Washington Bach Consort and the Cathedral Choral Society. He has previously held positions at St. Paul’s Parish, K Street in Washington; St. Mark’s Church, Philadelphia; and Trinity Church Princeton. Additionally, he was principal accompanist of the American Boychoir for many years. A prize-winning organist, he has performed at national conventions of the American Guild of Organists and the Association of Anglican Musicians and has appeared at many notable venues throughout the world. In his work with the Cathedral Choral Society, Mr. Dettra has prepared the ensemble for performances with the National Symphony Orchestra, the Juilliard Orchestra, and the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Mr. Dettra holds two degrees from Westminster Choir College and has also studied jazz piano at the Manhattan School of Music.

American organist James D. Hicks continues his exploration of organ music by Nordic composers, with performances upon the 1980 Virtanen pipe organ of Turku Cathedral, and the 2002 Gronlund's organ of St. Michael's Church, Turku, Finland. This installment features works by Fridthjov Anderssen, Peter Askergren, Juhani Pohjanmies, Arild Sandvold, and more. James D. Hicks lives and works in Bernardsville, New Jersey, and holds degrees in music from the Peabody Institute of Music, Yale University, and the University of Cincinnati. Other studies include instruction at the Royal School of Church Music in England. He is an associate of the American Guild of Organists. Hicks held liturgical positions throughout the eastern United States, and in 2011 retired after 26 years of service at The Presbyterian Church in Morristown, New Jersey. He has recorded seven collections of music on the Pro Organo label.

For this new album, Frederick Hohman plays original concert organ pieces by the Victorian Organ Virtuoso Edwin Henry Lemare, upon the Aeolian-Skinner organ of the Church of the Epiphany, Washington, D.C. Since his St. Louis concert debut in 1973, where a critic with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch heralded his pedal technique as “the best you’ll ever hear,” Frederick Hohman has excelled in many facets of the organ trade: as a concert organist, as a composer, as a creator of organ transcriptions, as a classical music audio-video media producer, and most recently as an instrument designer and an on-line music instructor. Concert organist Frederick Hohman is also recognized as a composer of organ and choral music, a creator of organ transcriptions, a modern on-line educator, a musical instrument designer, and a classical music audio-video producer.

On this album, Frederick Hohman plays a virtuosic program of his own symphonic organ transcriptions, transcriptions of Edwin Lemare, and standard organ literature upon the Great Organ of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, New York City. Frederick Hohman is one of the best-known American organists, primarily through the frequent worldwide broadcasts of his concert excerpts and recordings through the radio series Pipedreams, through his popular YouTube videos, and on internet radio where in 2015 he was the most highly rated and most frequently rated organist on the OrganLive! internet channel. In addition to his career as a concert organist, he is also a sought-after classical music audio-video producer-director and engineer. He is also gaining regard a s a composer and arranger of organ and choral music, with over a dozen published scores now distributed under the Wayne Leupold Editions and Zarex Scores insignias.

Classical Music

In ORGAN PLUS WITH W J, Wilma Jensen is heard in a variety of music recordings spanning a long and successful career, as a concerto soloist, as a choral conductor and accompanist, as a concert organ soloist and organist in combination with various instrumentalists and vocal soloists.

The Vocal Arts Ensemble of Cincinnati, under the direction of Earl Rivers, present a program of choral music for the Christmas season, spotlighting American and European 20th-century composers. Founded in 1979, for over 30 years VAE has brought the power of spectacular, powerful and thrilling choral performances to audiences of all generations. Their mission: Vocal Arts Ensemble is greater Cincinnati’s premier professional vocal ensemble dedicated to presenting passionate and innovative performances of choral music that raise and nurture the public’s appreciation of the life-enriching qualities of the choral arts. Because of the small size of the choir, as well as the distinctive venues chosen each year across the area, VAE is uniquely able to present diverse performances that engage and enchant a range of music lovers. Works presented each season range from emerging composers to the well-loved pieces of the choral canon, and it is this intimate balance of traditional yet innovative programming, as well as the creativity and passion brought to the stage by Johnson that makes VAE so unique. VAE is committed to the presentation and development of modern chamber music, and new works by internationally-known composers are annually premiered through the “Meet the Composer” series. Additional community engagements throughout the year include appearances with the May Festival and collaborations with area arts organizations.

On this new release, Frederick Hohman plays music of Bach and 19th and 20th century French organ masterworks on the Reuter organ of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Springfield, Illinois USA. Since his St. Louis concert debut in 1973, where a critic with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch heralded his pedal technique as "the best you'll ever hear," Frederick Hohman has excelled in many facets of the organ trade: as a concert organist, as a composer, as a creator of organ transcriptions, as a classical music audio-video media producer, and most recently as an instrument designer and an on-line music instructor. Frederick founded the Pro Organo recording label in 1985. Frederick produced over 300 organ and choral music titles under the Pro Organo insignia, with 15 of it's titles featuring his own performances. This is his sixteenth album.

When Kent Tritle and Nina Stern first devised this recording project of music from the Four Quarters of the Old City their aim was to create a soundscape that reflected Jerusalem's reality as well as it's role in the dreams and ideals of the great Abrahamic religions. Our program offers music one might hear in walking through Jerusalem today, but it also interposes visionary works from other times and places. Both remind us of what Jerusalem has meant to generation after generation of believers. Some gritty historical truths reveal themselves at once, while others may be glimpsed as through a haze of memory and desire. The Choir of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, Kent Tritle, director, and the ensemble Rose of the Compass, Nina Stern, director, combine musical talents to present a program that speaks of common ground and unity among the various faiths found in the four quarters of the city of Jerusalem. This album is modeled after a concert performance given by the ensembles at the New York City Cathedral of St. John the Divine in 2015.

In volume 19 of James D. Hicks' Nordic Journey series, Dr. Hicks has commissioned and premieres a new (2024), 50-plus-minute, 24-movement collection of contemporary miniatures for pipe organ, penned by the rising composer Fredrik Sixten, entitled A Nordic Organ Book. Performed upon the historic 1871 �kerman organ of the Cathedral in Uppsala, Sweden.

James D. Hicks takes a musical voyage with organ music of today, from the USA, to Iceland and Norway and back again, in Volume 17 - a double-CD - of his Nordic Journey series. Recorded in Bodo Cathedral, Norway, and in Hallgrimskirkje in Reykjavik, Iceland.

American organist James D. Hicks continues his exploration of organ classics as well as newly-composed, commissioined organ works from Nordic composers in Volume 18 of his Nordic Journey series. In this double-CD release, James is joined in three of the album's 28 tracks by a violinist, a violist and a kantele player. Recorded on the Paschen-Kiel pipe organ in Central Pori Church in Pori, Finland.

Australian organist Simon Nieminski showcases the restored 1877 Hill & Son Grand Organ, located in the Barossa Regional Gallery in Tanunda, South Australia, with a program that is autobiographical for the artist.

Ryan Chan, the First Prize Winner in the 2024 National Young Artists Competition in Organ Performance, sponsored by the American Guild of Organists, is featured on his debut release on the Pro Organo label, entitled "Paris Milieu." His all French program spans 3 centuries, with standard organ literature and virtuosic organ transcriptions, performed upon the new Juget-Sinclair pipe organ in the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, Richmond, Virginia USA.

Jerrick Cavagnaro, the First Prize Winner in the 2024 American Guild of Organists' (AGO) National Competition in Organ Improvisation (NCOI), releases his debut solo album with Pro Organo, performing upon the historic, renovated pipe organ of Trinity Church, Copley Square, Boston. The program contains both repertoire selections and several of Mr. Cavagnaro's organ improvisations in a variety of musical styles.

American organist James D. Hicks continues his exploration and rediscovery of pipe organ literature from Nordic and Baltic nations with Volume 15 in his Nordic Journey series, sub-titled"Baltic Sojourn." Recorded in the Pauluskirche of Ulm, Germany.