The organ recital series at the First Congregational Church of Marion will continue on Sunday, May 12at 4:00 pm with a program of music chosen by soloist Daniel Ficarri to show off the church’s historic 1883 George S. Hutchings mechanical-action organ.
A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Daniel Ficarri currently works as Organ Scholar at the Church of St. Paul the Apostle in Manhattan while pursuing a Master of Music degree at The Juilliard School. In 2015, he founded “Sacred Sounds at St. Paul’s,” a concert series promoting organ music in the Lincoln Center neighborhood and providing performance opportunities to young artists. Known as both a recitalist and composer, Ficarri has performed in Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall with the Juilliard Orchestra, and he has given solo performances at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine and St. Thomas Episcopal Church in New York City. Last year, his “Exultation” was commissioned by Choir & Organ magazine for the dedication of the pipe organ at the St. Thomas church.
In addition to two towering works of J. S. Bach—Prelude and Fugue in A Minor, BWV 543, and Prelude and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 539—Ficarri’s program will include César Franck’s Prélude, Fugue, and Variation, Op. 18, and Mozart’s Andante in F Major, K. 616, as well as Prelude on an Evening Melody by Alexander Pattavina and Ronde Française, Op. 37, by Léon Boëllmann, an Alsatian organist active in Paris during the time when Hutchings organs were among the most distinguished in America.
The First Congregational Church in Marion was built in 1841. In early 1884, a new organ by noted builder George S. Hutchings was installed with the help of a gift from local philanthropist Elizabeth Taber. Since 2015, the church has presented recitals on this organ by outstanding organists, including Christa Rakich, Stephen Young, Carson Cooman, Jeremy Bruns, Robert Jan August, and Frederick Jodry. The Rev. Mary Ann Purtill is the pastor of the church and Beverly Peduzzi is organist and choirmaster.
Admission to the recital is $12 and may be purchased at the door or online with Pay Pal or credit or debit card at www.marionfirstchurch.org/musical-events. For more information, call 508-748-1053. The First Congregational Church, located at 28 Main St. at the corner of Front and Main in Marion, is handicapped accessible.