In the video below, Fred plays his transcription of Marche Characteristique from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite... a concert excerpt (1996) from his engagement at Stanford University's (Palo Alto, California) Memorial Church.
NEWScurrent to 26 December 2011
Fred is in the music studio now through February 15, 2012. Among new compositions in the works is Fred's Trio Fantasy on "All Glory Be to God on High ("Allein Gott") for solo organ. Also in January, Fred is completing post-production on Ken Cowan's forthcoming new organ solo CD from New York's Cathedral of St. John the Divine.
• FRED's ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS - Two newly-published works now available in SCORE and on audio CD. Fred's newest organ work - completed on 7 September 2011 and premiered on December 4, 2011 (see below) - entitled "VARIATIONS ON KIRKEN" is available in printed score from ZAREX SCORES (Item ZS 1007. USD $20). Each printed score is shipped with a CD audio disc containing Fred's recording of the work. Also just published, another original work dating from February, 1989, entitled"THE HOMECOMING,"is available inprinted scorefrom ZAREX SCORES (Item ZS 1008. USD $20). Each printed score is shipped with a CD audio disc containing Fred's recording of the work.
• FRED's LATEST AUDIO CD - SOAR ABOVE THE ALL-WIDOR ALBUM -RECEIVES HIGH MARKS from one of America's most experienced and discriminating of music critics in Jan / Feb 2012 issue of The American Record Guide. To see the entire review, link here. "This sampler is not only well played, but the instrument heard ... combines French and German qualities into a very pleasing sonority. ... Hohman plays with authority and ease ... High marks for this practical addition to the Widor collection." These good words follow even stronger praise from a critic writing of the new album in a recent issue of The Diapason.
• HALF A MILLION VIEWS AND STILL COUNTING!
FRED's YouTube VIDEO of the famous WIDOR TOCCATA has now well surpassed 500,000 VIEWS ON YouTube. Link here to see it! To purchase the CD audio disc containing the audio of the performance heard in the popular YouTube video, link here.
• A WARM WELCOME AND REUNION AT LYONS, NEW YORK. On December 4, Fred returned to the sanctuary of First Lutheran Church in Lyons, New York (about midway between Rochester and Syracuse), to play a solo organ recital including the premiere of his latest original work: Variations on Kirken. The new work is dedicated to Pastor Arthur C. Sziemeister (pictured below with Fred and the newly-published score of the work), in honor of Pastor's 53 years of continual service as pastor to the parish of First Lutheran Church of Lyons. Fred served as organist-choirmaster of First Lutheran Church in Lyons from 1975 to 1979. The December 4 program also included works by J. S. Bach, Felix Mendelssohn, Charles-Marie Widor, and a Tchaikovsky transcription. The encore was the Noel de Saintonge by Dandrieu.
• ORGAN DEDICATION: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. On December 18, Fred was the guest of the Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Melrose Park (greater Chicago), Illinois, its priests, Fr. Claudio and Fr. Fernando, and parish organist Ann Nabor, as he offered a Dedicatory Organ Recital celebrating the installation of the all-digital Royal Classic II organ by Wicks Organ Company. The instrument, manufactured to Wicks' specifications in Italy, is a two-manual and pedal instrument, with integrated digital voice synthesizer. The recital opened with two seasonal works, an Improvisation on God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, and Fred's extended arrangement of the classic Franz Schubert melody "Ave Maria." The program concluded with three movements of Fred's transcription of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite and the first and last movements (the Theme with Variations and the famous Toccata) from Widor's Fifth Organ Symphony.
• PORTLAND, HERE HE COMES... AGAIN! FRED has been selected along with a handful of other noted concert organists, including Fred Swann and John Weaver, to be featured in concert during the week-long 100th anniversary celebration of the Kotzschmar Organ, to be held in mid-August, 2012 at Portland, Maine's Merrill Auditorium (City Hall Auditorium). In his concert, Fred will be joined by two other virtuosos, sharing a program with Felix Hell and with Australian virtuoso Thomas Heywood. More details soon! The event will mark Fred's 13th appearance for the Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ (FOKO). The place to be next August is PORTLAND, MAINE. Mark your calendars now!• A FOND FAREWELL TO THE SCHWEITZER COMPETITION. This past September (2011), Fred concluded a remarkable 14-year term serving as the permanent juror and festival artist of the Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival and Competition / USA. Fred had been with the ASOF / USA since its inception, with annual sojourns to the First Church of Christ, Wethersfield, Connecticut, for the event, held the weekend after Labor Day weekend each year. The ASOF / USA is scheduled to continue in 2012, with a new permanent juror to be announced, and continuing under the leadership and direction of founding festival competition organizer, David Spicer.• PRODUCING FOR KEN COWAN In October (2011), Fred was the producer / engineer for the young and "in-demand" concert organist Ken Cowan, as he recorded a new organ solo album - for release on the Pro Organo label - on the recently restored organ of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, in New York City. More details on the new release coming by late January.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
PORTLAND, MAINE
100TH ANNIVERSARY - GALA CELEBRATION OF THE
KOTZSCHMAR MEMORIAL ORGAN
MERRILL AUDITORIUM (PORTLAND CITY HALL), PORTLAND, MAINE
WORKSHOP / LECTURE-RECITAL
"LEMARE REVISITED" by Frederick Hohman SATURDAY, 18 AUGUST at 1:30 p.m. REPEATED
WEDNESDAY, 22 AUGUST at 9:00 a.m. ST. LUKE'S CATHEDRAL, PORTLAND, MAINE
GALA TRIPLE-HEADER CONCERT
FREDERICK HOHMAN • FELIX HELL • THOMAS HEYWOOD MONDAY, 20 AUGUST at 7:30 p.m. MERRILL AUDITORIUM
This once-in-a-century celebration marks the 100th anniversary since the 1912 opening of one of the finest Municipal Pipe Organs in America: the Kotzschmar Memorial Organ. The organ was given originally by publishing giant Cyrus Curtis in honor of his musician friend Herman Kotzschmar. Organ legends from 3 generations have been invited to join Portland's municipal organist Ray Cornils and the Kotzschmar Brass. Organists invited and expected to participate include Fred Swann, John Weaver, Walt Strony, Peter Conte, Felix Hell, Tom Trenney, Thomas Heywood and of course, Frederick Hohman.
In addition to evening concerts, several workshops covering organ-playing technique, and a good deal of organ history, will be presented throughout the festival, which is to span a 6-day period in mid-August.
More details shall be posted here, just as soon as they are announced by the Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ organization in Spring, 2012.
Chris Nagorka of Kanawha Organ Works is pictured below with the console of his Opus 1, and with Frederick Hohman after the May 15 recital. The recital was played in recognition of the 20th year of Kanawha Organ Works and the 14th year since the dedication of the Opus 1 instrument at St. Mark's Episcopal Church in St. Albans, West Virginia. The recital, by Mr. Nagorka's request, was the exact same program as Fred played 14 years earlier at the original opening of the organ.
In early May, Frederick was at the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, just off Times Square in New York City, when he served as music producer for a new double-CD set of Organ Works of César Franck, as performed by organist David Enlow, entitled PATER SERAPHICUS. David Enlow is an associate professor of organ at the Juilliard School of Music in New York, and is gaining in popularity as a touring recitalist. His new double-CD of Franck will be released on the Pro Organo label later in 2011. A post-recording session celebration was enjoyed by all on the rooftop patio (atop the parish hall of the church) that adjoins the apartment of the organist and director of music of St. Mary the Virgin, James Kennerly. Pictured raising a celebratory toast in the photo below, from left to right, are David Enlow, James Kennerly, Larry Trupiano (organ technician), Frederick Hohman, and Leon Giannakeff (associate sound engineer).
A day of fine organ-playing, including organ classics from the baroque to the 20th-century, was experienced by Frederick Hohman and two co-jurors at the 2011 Arthur Poister Competition. Six contestants competed for two cash prizes during the day long event on April 9. Dr. Will Headlee who has been associated with the competition faithfully for over 30 years, served as competition host and moderator.
A fine time and standing ovation at Mahtomedi. For his March 27 concert at St. Andrew's Lutheran Church in Mahtomedi (Twin Cities), Minnesota, Fred was eloquently introduced by none other than the voice of "Pipedreams" (radio series from Minnesota Public Radio / American Public Media) Michael Barone; Mr. Barone was there to make a digital audio recording of the program for possible future broadcast. Fred's latest CD "SOAR ABOVE"was launched at the event, and Fred personalized CDs with autographs for fans after the performance. The organ was the 108-rank, 7310-pipe, Casavant (1927) / Schantz (2001). The program was: Finlandia (transcription) of Sibelius; Festive Trumpet Voluntary in E, Clarke-Hohman, Two Dances to Agni Yavishta / Litanies, by Alain, Allegro cantabile (Symphony 5) and Allegro (opening movement Symphony 6) by Widor; Concert Tarentella Op 90, by Lemare; Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 (transcribed by Hohman), by Franz Liszt; Let's Dance (Benny Goodman Band Theme), and Moonlight Serenade (Glenn Miller Band Theme), arranged by Hohman; and Toccata from Suite, Opus 5 by Duruflé.
