Organists and Organ Playing

Six years ago today

April 27, 2014 was the day our business partner and friend of 38 years, composer and church musician Peter R. Hallock passed from this life to the next.

Jonathan Dimmock posted this photo of Peter Hallock on his Facebook page today.

I invite you to reread the posts I wrote six years ago to mourn his passing:

Peter Hallock (1924-2014)
Peter Hallock in our living room in Hawaii (1924-2014)

In paradisum, Peter Hallock: Announcement of his death on April 27, 2014.

Peter Hallock, at his kitchen table
Peter Hallock, at his kitchen table

Peter’s last moments: An account of Peter’s last day by Jason Anderson, his successor at the Compline Choir.

Carl Crosier conducts Hallock’s Psalm 23 from The Ionian Psalter. I’m playing the organ.

Tributes pour in: Comments by Peter’s colleagues.

The Hallock Legacy in Hawaii: How it is that Honolulu is one of the biggest repositories of Peter Hallock’s music.

Here are some of the comments which were posted pm Facebook today:

Jonathan Dimmock Remembering my great friend and mentor, Peter Hallock, who died on this day six years ago. Life would be poor, indeed, without that relationship.

George Emblom Deo Gratias for Peter Hallock and for his gifts of self, humor, and music.

Richard Sparks Absolutely! A brilliant, kind, and wickedly funny man. So many wonderful works composed, so many things accomplished at St. Mark’s Cathedral.

Margaret Hasselman Love his compositions.

Angela G. Saunders What a legacy he left!

Dana Marsh Missing Peter as well. My musical mentor when I was in high school. Requiescat…

William Turnipseed I am so grateful for the years I sung under his direction in the Compline Choir at St. Mark’s. It was a life changing experience.

Jean-Christophe Mackpayen Peace for his soul!

As I did last year on April 27th, I attended a board meeting of the Hallock Institute. This was the first time, though, that every single board member called in via Zoom videoconferencing. We were all asked to speak for a few minutes about how the music of Peter Hallock has influenced our lives.

The Hallock Institute has three primary functions: (1) to ensure that Peter Hallock’s music is more widely known through production of reliable performance editions; (2) to ensure that Peter’s music is performed regularly by offering grants to churches and non-profit performing organizations to help underwrite the cost of hiring musicians; and, (3) to ensure that the Compline Choir and its core values and principles—the Compline ethos—are identified, celebrated, and shared with others through workshops, symposia, and other educational opportunities.

L-R from top: Jason Anderson, Kathy Crosier, Joel Matter, Robin Ethridge, Ann Lukens, Maria Caldwell, Gerry Van Wesep, Steve Thomason, Roger Sherman and John Henson.

As many of you know, my late husband Carl and I were partners with Peter Hallock in the formation of Ionian Arts, a music publishing company. In discussion with Jason Anderson today, I have taken on the huge project of copyrights which will distract me from my mask-making production, for the moment!

Peter and Carl at the 100th Anniversary of the Lutheran Church of Honolulu.
Peter Hallock and Carl at the 100th Anniversary of the Lutheran Church of Honolulu. This is one of my favorite pictures.

Please visit Ionian Arts website to see the quality liturgical music which is still being offered, six years after the deaths of two of its principals, Peter Hallock and Carl Crosier.