Stephen J. Tharp (born 12 April 1970) is an American organist and composer. [1]
Stephen J. Tharp (born 12 April 1970) is an American organist and composer. [1]
Tharp received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Illinois College and a Master of Music degree from Northwestern University, where he studied with Rudolf Zuiderveld and Wolfgang Rübsam, respectively. He also studied privately in Paris with Jean Guillou. [2]
From 1995 to 1997 Tharp served as organist at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, and from 1998 to 2002 he was associate organist at St. Bartholomew's Church in the same city. In 2008 he was selected as the official organist during Pope Benedict XVI's visit to New York, [3] playing at three major events that were attended by more than 60,000 people. [1]
Tharp was an artist-in-residence at Grace Church in New York for the 2013−2014 season, and since then has been an artist-in-residence at St. James's Church on Madison Avenue. [4]
Tharp has performed extensively as a concert organist, having played at over 1,600 concerts during 62 tours worldwide. [1] He has given masterclasses at venues such as Yale University, Westminster Choir College and Cleveland Institute of Music, and has served on juries for competitions at Juilliard School and Northwestern University. [3]
In addition to being a composer and transcriber in his own right, Tharp is a frequent performer of modern works, having premiered those of Philip Moore, Anthony Newman, Thierry Escaich and others. [5] He also plays the piano and harpsichord. [1]
Tharp has recorded numerous CDs, including works by Jeanne Demessieux, Marcel Dupré, Louis Vierne and Charles-Marie Widor. [6]
Thorp has been described as "one of the most brilliant concert organists around these days". [7] His recording of the complete organ works of Jeanne Demessieux won the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik in 2009. [5] In 2011 he was named International Performer of the Year by the New York City chapter of the American Guild of Organists, [3] and in 2015 he won the Paul Creston Award. [1]
Listed in Who's Who in America and Who's Who in the World , [8] Tharp has also featured in a number of programs on American Public Media's Pipedreams. [9]
Louis Victor Jules Vierne was a French organist and composer. As the organist of Notre-Dame de Paris from 1900 until his death, he focused on organ music, including six organ symphonies and a Messe solennelle for choir and two organs. He toured Europe and the United States as a concert organist. His students included Nadia Boulanger and Maurice Duruflé.
Marcel Jean-Jules Dupré was a French organist, composer, and pedagogue.
John Gavin Scott was an English organist and choirmaster who reached the highest levels of his profession on both sides of the Atlantic. He directed the Choir of St Paul's Cathedral in London from 1990 to 2004. He then directed the Choir of Men and Boys of Saint Thomas Church on Fifth Avenue in New York City until his death at age 59. Whilst training countless young musicians, he maintained an active career as an international concert performer and recording artist, and was acclaimed as "the premier English organist of his generation".
Pierre Eugène Charles Cochereau was a French organist, improviser, composer, and pedagogue.
Jeanne Marie-Madeleine Demessieux was a French organist, pianist, composer, and teacher. She was the chief organist at Saint-Esprit for 29 years and at La Madeleine in Paris starting in 1962. She performed internationally as a concert organist and was the first female organist to sign a record contract. She went on to record many organ works, including her own compositions.
Jean Marie Berveiller was a French composer and organist.
Pierre André Labric is a French organist, pedagogue and composer.
Todd Wilson is an American organist and teacher based in Ohio.
Michael Murray is an American-born organist and writer.
Wolfgang Friedrich Rübsam is a German-American organist, pianist, composer and pedagogue.
Edward Shippen Barnes was an American organist.
Jeremiah Daniel Filsell is an English pianist, organist and composer who currently serves as director of music at Saint Thomas Church, New York City.
Michael Matthes is a French organist.
Johann Vexo is a French organist. He is the organist for both the choir organ at Notre Dame de Paris and the great organ of Nancy Cathedral.
Diane Meredith Belcher is an American concert organist, teacher, and church musician. She has given a large number of solo recitals throughout the United States and abroad, is a teacher, and serves as Music Director at Saint Thomas Episcopal Church, and Lecturer in Music Theory & Organ at Dartmouth College, both in Hanover, New Hampshire. Her concert career is managed by Karen McFarlane Artists, Inc.
Marie-Louise Henriette Girod-Parrot was a French organist and composer. She studied organ with Henriette Puig-Roget and Marcel Dupré at the Paris Conservatory.
Jeanne Marie-Madeleine Duruflé was a French organist. Regarded as the last of the French school of organists, she played works by Widor, Vierne, Langlais, Dupré and her husband, Maurice Duruflé. She and her husband were both organists at Saint-Étienne-du-Mont in Paris, and toured internationally, especially in the U.S..
Lynnwood Farnam was a Canadian organist who became the preeminent organist in North America in the 1920s until his death. He was influential in promoting the music of Bach, and also championed French organ music contemporary to his day. He became acquainted with the most important American and European organists of his day, and upon his early death several major works were dedicated in to his memory. He was known for his superb technical ability and knowledge of organ registration, but he avoided performances intended to "show off" the organist, preferring the attention to be drawn to the music.
Martin Welzel is a German organist, musicologist, and pedagogue.
Odile Marie-Pascale Pierre was a French organist, composer and academic teacher. She was the organist at La Madeleine, Paris, and taught organ and improvisation at the Conservatoire de Paris. The last student of Marcel Dupré, she played around 2,000 recitals internationally and made recordings.
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