A couple of days ago, I was scrolling through Facebook and I saw it was the birthday of my friend from Paris, Bill F. McCoy. I promptly clicked the link to wish him a happy birthday, and was shocked to see the headline “A Celebration of the Life of William Franklin McCoy,” meaning that he had passed away just a few days before his birthday. Luckily someone had posted a link from the memorial service at Christ the Redeemer Anglican Church and I was able to see and hear the service. The video may be seen here.

Here is the published obituary:

Born in Norfolk, Virginia on February 21, 1942, he was the only son of the late Octavius Franklin and Mildred Lucille (Murphey) McCoy. Young “Billy” grew up in Norfolk after the war, when Park Place, Ocean View, and Ward’s Corner were thriving. He attended Granby High School, Class of 1961. He was a student of the arts, playing both the piano and pipe organ from an early age. He earned his bachelor’s degree in music from Asbury College in Wilmore, Kentucky. From there, he attended the University of Cincinnati where he played for the conservatory and earned his master’s in music. William was an outstanding musician and one of a few hand-picked students to study in Paris, France under the tutelage of Master Organist, Marcel Dupre. While in Cincinnati, he married and had two boys, Peter Franklin McCoy and Thomas Christopher McCoy. Returning to Norfolk, Virginia in 1973, William became the organist and choir director at Wesley Grace Methodist Church then St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church.

William taught piano to innumerable students over the years. He also played for other congregations when needed, including numerous weddings, funerals, and special events over the years – far too many to count. William moved to Manteo, North Carolina in 1989 and played for churches there. He then relocated to Fredericksburg/King George, Virginia in 1993 where he settled in as the organist and choirmaster for Fredericksburg United Methodist Church for 25 years, until retiring in 2018. Shortly thereafter, William found his way back to Norfolk and became part of the community at The Talbot on Granby and a member of Christ the Redeemer Anglican Church.

Bill enjoyed his bible studies and was proud of his Jewish lineage from his grandmother (MORDICAE). As proud as he was of his heritage, he was equally proud of his descendants. He is survived by his two sons and six grandchildren, Pete Jr., Emily, Ryan (Lindsey), Catrina, Tacita and Livy. He also enjoyed movies, especially anything to do with British/European history, documentaries, and the occasional “rom-com.” Bill relished good food; from lumpia provided by his Filipino students, to German and Italian dishes, to Southern food and seafood, and everything sweet. Most of all, he loved his music. Organ and choir music, in particular, gave him great pleasure and solitude. While in King George, Bill would drive 30 minutes almost every weekend to catch a PBS radio broadcast of “Pipe Dreams” and “With Heart and Voice.” He had a great ear for tonality and could find a missed note or slow entry of an instrument in the most complex of classical arrangements. He was a master of the music he arranged, producing many performances at his various churches. On February 14, 2025, William McCoy left us in this world. Without a doubt, his spirit is now directing the songs of angels with all accompaniments of Heaven. Thanks be to God.

The visitation will be held 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM Saturday, February 22, 2025 at Christ The Redeemer Anglican Church. The funeral will follow at 3:00 PM.

Bill and I met in Paris when I was 17 — both of us were students of Marcel Dupré and had lessons at Dupré’s house in Meudon. That summer I daresay I learned more from Bill than I did from Monsier Dupré because Bill was the one who taught me the basics — what a cornet was (a combination of 5 stops at 8′, 4′, 2-2/3′, 2′, 1-3/5′), a principal chorus, etc. —those basic tenets of organ registration and baroque articulation that my teacher should have told me but didn’t. We spent many hours walking into over 50 Paris churches and asking the office, “We’re students of Marcel Dupré, can we play the organ?” and every single time, the answer was yes!

One weekend we even rented a car and drove out to Chartres Cathedral.

At the end of the summer, we decided to give a little concert for the people we had met in Paris, and I played Bach’s “Prelude and Fugue in C minor, BWV 546,” but I distinctly remember that Bill played Marcel Dupré’s “Prelude and Fugue in B major, op. 7.” I had heard him practice it so often, that was the first piece I wanted to study when I got to graduate school — I had already memorized and fallen in love with the piece because of the fugue subject.

Of course, Bill was way more advanced in organ playing than I was, since I had only studied for four years before going to study in France with Dupré. Over the years we exchanged a few letters and Christmas cards.

I only met Bill once again after leaving Paris — and that was in RIchmond, Virginia, in 1999 where I attended a conference of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians. Bill only attended one day at the convention — And that time I was able to tell him about my husband, Carl Crosier, the church musician extraordinaire. Bill and I did have dinner together that night, but our time was very short, and there was so much more we could have talked about. At that time in my life, my days were filled with playing Japanese weddings all day long, and I think Bill was most impressed.

At his memorial service, they mentioned how much he loved music, and was an accomplished musician, but what was really sad was that there was no organ in the church, and only a piano instead. How disappointing.

I’m so grateful to you, Bill. You were an important part of my journey as an organist.