First Presbyterian Church will rededicate their Austin organ following an extensive update. The rededication will be marked by a three day Organ Rededication Festival featuring three concerts that are free and open to the public.
Due to Hurricane Milton, the Thursday and Friday evening concerts have been postponed. The Festival will continue Sunday with tours of the pipes, and a luncheon for donors. Updates on the Sunday events will be provided as we have additional information.
Stetson University Concert Choir
This concert has been postponed due to Hurricane Milton.
The Stetson University Concert Choir will perform at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 10 in the Sanctuary.
According to the Stetson University website, the Concert Choir is one of four choral ensembles in the Stetson University School of Music. This choir is a highly selective principal vocal touring ensemble comprised of approximately 52 vocalists.
They have performed concerts across the United States and Europe. The choir has been selected to competitive audition to perform for several prestigious national, regional, and state professional musical conferences.
Though the choir is composed mainly of music majors, numerous other academic areas are represented as well as the choir is open by audition to all students at the university. The group has performed with area professional orchestras such as the Orlando Philharmonic, the Florida Symphony, and the Jacksonville Symphony.
Jerrick Cavagnaro
This concert has been postponed due to Hurricane Milton.
Jerrick Cavagnaro, assistant director of music at Trinity Episcopal Church in Charlotte, NC, will be performing a solo concert Friday, Oct. 11 at 7 p.m. in the Sanctuary.
Cavagnaro is an active composer whose work has been performed by choirs around the globe. His work was recently featured in Oxford University Press’ latest edition of “Carols for Choirs 6.”
A graduate of the Yale School of Music and the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, he earned a master’s degree in organ performance studying under Jon Laukvik and Thomas Murray. He also holds a degree from Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ where he studied under Alan Morrison.
In 2022, Cavagnaro received second prize in the National Competition in Organ Accompaniment sponsored by the Washington, DC chapter of the American Guild of Organists (AGO). He has also received third prize in the Quebec Organ Competition in Quebec City, Canada, and he was a semifinalist in the 2022 Boston Bach International Organ Competition. In 2023, he competed as a quarter finalist in the St. Alban’s organ competition, and this year, he won first prize in the AGO National Competition of Improvisation in San Francisco, Calif.
Tom Ingui
FPC’s organist, Tom Ingui, will present a concert Sunday, Oct. 13 at 3 p.m. in the sanctuary. There will be a pre-concert lecture at 1:45 p.m. in the sanctuary as well.
In addition to being the FPC organist, Ingui is the accompanist for the Lakeland Choral Society. He also serves as an adjunct professor of piano and organ at Southeastern University (SEU) in Lakeland. Ingui also serves as a collaborator with the Harrison School for the Arts’ Choral Department. Ingui is a graduate of Stetson University and the Yale School of Music.
His program will feature a wide variety of music including Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries,” Holste’s “Jupiter from the Planets,” and Mendelssohn’s first organ sonata, a piece which was played at the original organ dedication recital in 1994.
All three concerts are free and open to the public.