The historic Covenant-First Presbyterian Church, downtown, will host its second annual Organ Festival this weekend, March 8 & 9, 2020.

This year, the featured organist is Alan Morrison, of the Curtis Institute.  He will perform a free public recital at the church at 4 p.m. Sunday, March 8. On Monday March 9, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon, he’ll preside over a master class for CCM organ students, also hosted at the church.

The festival is a partnership between the church (which hosts the events and underwrites all the costs) and the CCM Organ Department, which is directed by Dr. Michael Unger.

“The goal of this now second annual Organ Festival continues to be twofold: To bring a top organist to Cincinnati in recital, but also and as importantly, to partner with CCM’s organ studio to provide support for the future generation of church musicians,” said Robert Heidenreich, church member and festival organizer. “Our partnering with CCM continues to grow, and this is one key part of that.”

Morrison’s Sunday afternoon program looks tempting:

J.S. Bach’s Concerto in A Minor, BWV 593; Maurice Duruflé’s Scherzo, Op. 2; César Franck’s Choral II in B Minor; “The Dancing Pipes” by Jonathan Dove (b. 1959); and Alexandre Guilmant’s Première Sonata pour l’Orgue.

I’ve never heard “The Dancing Pipes,” but perhaps it’s one reason that Morrison is praised for his “colorful and thrilling playing” (The American Organist). Morrison is Head of the Organ Department at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where he holds the Haas Charitable Trust Chair in Organ Studies. He also holds the McGehee Family Organist in Residence position at Spivey Hall in Morrow, GA, and is College Organist at Ursinus College in Collegeville, PA.

He is a regular performer in Philadelphia’s Verizon Hall (Kimmel Center) and also collaborates regularly with The Orlando Chamber Soloists.  In May 2003, he was selected to appear along with Itzhak Perlman and Yo-Yo Ma for the Fred Rogers Memorial Service, which was telecast live from Pittsburgh’s Heinz Hall. A champion of new music by American composers, he has recorded 12 albums.

Both events are free. Here are the details: