Felix Hell to bring organ flair to Music, Gettysburg!
The German-born musician performs Sunday, February 5, at 4 p.m. at the United Lutheran Seminary chapel.
United Lutheran Seminary's Artist in Residence Felix Hell will perform a lineup of classical organ pieces for the next iteration of the 2022-23 season of Music, Gettysburg! concert series.
The concert will be held in the seminary's chapel at 147 Seminary Ridge, Gettysburg, and is free and open to the public. The program will include compositions by Jacques Lemmens, J. S. Bach, Vincent Lübeck, D. Buxtehude, J. Pachelbel, and C. M. Widor.
"Mr. Hell has been a favorite of Music, Gettysburg! audiences since he began performing here at age 14," according to a press release.
Hell, a native of Germany, is an internationally renowned organist, having been featured as a recitalist and soloist in more than 1,000 concerts throughout North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Hell's concerto soloist performances include those with the Baltimore Symphony, New England Conservatory, National Academy Orchestra of Canada, and the Deutsche Streicherphilharmonie, among others.
He also performs across the country with a touring organ as part of his "Music Across America" project. The touring organ allows him to perform in spaces that do not house original pipe organs, thus bringing the art form to previously inaccessible spaces.
The organist's "diverse and innovative" repertoire features five centuries of compositions. He's particularly famous for his marathon performances of the entire organ works of J.S. Bach, which encompass about 250 compositions and close to 20 hours of performance time, according to the press release. He most recently performed the feat in 2013 in Seoul, South Korea.
Hell boasts a robust discography and his most recent recording, "Poetic Visions," features works by Romantic German composers, including Mendelssohn, Brahms and Liszt. The entire album was recorded on the historic 1902 E.F. Walcker Organ in Lüdenscheid, Germany. The album can be purchased, along with his entire collection, at www.felixhell.com
Hell studied at the Juilliard School in New York, the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, and the Peabody Institute in Baltimore.
For more information on Music, Gettysburg! and a list of upcoming concerts, visit www.musicgettysburg.org.
