If you go
› What: Ethan McGrath: Cathedral Music for Choir and Organ› Where: First Baptist Church, 401 Gateway Ave.› When: 5 p.m. Sunday, July 1› Admission: $10› For more information: 423-265-2257
The first public performance of a piece commissioned of Ethan McGrath by the local chapter of the American Guild of Organists will be presented Sunday, July 1, during a concert at First Baptist Church in the Golden Gateway.
McGrath says “Pastorale” is a solo organ piece that was commissioned as a going-away present for Keith Reas, former organist-choir director at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, who has moved to Rochester, New York. McGrath says the work was first performed at an AGO event, but this will be the first opportunity for the public to hear it.
“It’s based on a hymn tune called ‘General Seminary’ written by David Charles Walker. It’s Keith’s favorite hymn tune, which is why I chose it,” says McGrath. “I called it ‘Pastorale’ because it’s a pastoral mood somewhat in the style of Vaughan Williams, fairly meditative.”
McGrath received a bachelor’s degree in composition from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where he studied with Jonathan McNair and Roland Carter. He earned a master’s degree in choral studies, with a focus on conducting, from the University of Cambridge. He also spent a year studying German at Friedensau Adventist University.