Christopher Herrick
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Christopher Herrick is an English
concert organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational h ...
best known for his interpretation of J.S.
Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...
’s organ music and for his many recordings on the finest pipe organs from around the world.


Early life

Born in
Bletchley Bletchley is a constituent town of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. It is situated in the south-west of Milton Keynes, and is split between the civil parishes of Bletchley and Fenny Stratford and West Bletchley. Bletchley is best know ...
, Buckinghamshire, Herrick was a boy chorister at St Paul's Cathedral and attended its choir school; aged 11, he sang at the
Coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of ot ...
of Queen Elizabeth II and later that year went with the choir on a three-month forty-concert tour of USA and Canada, which included a private concert in the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...
and a brief conversation with President
Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
. At the age of 12, he was inspired to learn the organ after Sir John Dykes Bower, organist of St Paul's, asked him to accompany him to the cathedral organ loft to turn pages for him for a
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
recording. He describes this as his “Damascus moment”. Herrick later, as a Music Scholar, attended
Cranleigh School Cranleigh School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) in the village of Cranleigh, Surrey. History It was opened on 29 September 1865 as a boys' school 'to provide a sound and plain education, on the principles o ...
, where he was able to pursue his organ studies.


Student days

From 1961 to 1964, Herrick held the Parry/Wood Organ
Scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholars ...
at
Exeter College, Oxford (Let Exeter Flourish) , old_names = ''Stapeldon Hall'' , named_for = Walter de Stapledon, Bishop of Exeter , established = , sister_college = Emmanuel College, Cambridge , rector = Sir Richard Trainor ...
, where he worked towards an Honours Degree in Music (MA), as well as being effectively
Director of Music A music(al) director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band, the di ...
of the Chapel Choir and conductor of the Exonian Singers and Orchestra. Following this, he obtained a Boult scholarship to study at the
Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including performanc ...
, where he studied conducting with Sir Adrian Boult, and where his interests expanded to the harpsichord, encouraged by his professor
Millicent Silver Millicent Irene Silver (17 November 19051 May 1986) was an English harpsichordist, who began her career as a pianist and violinist. Early life Born in South London, her father, James Brand Silver, was a violinist and oboist, and had been a b ...
. Herrick had studied organ privately with
Geraint Jones Geraint Owen Jones (born 14 July 1976) is a former cricketer who played for both England and Papua New Guinea. Born to Welsh parents in Papua New Guinea, between 2004 and 2006 he was the first-choice wicketkeeper for the England cricket team. ...
, who post-war had been sent to give organ concerts in Germany by the British Council and the BBC. As well as being an inspiring teacher, Geraint Jones described and passed on his experiences of playing the historic German organs with their mechanical actions, straight pedal boards and direct, clear sonority, particularly suited to the organ music of J.S.Bach.


Professional career


Organist

Until 1984, Herrick had held
liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. ''Liturgy'' can also be used to refer specifically to public worship by Christians. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and partic ...
posts in church, cathedral and abbey, first as Choirmaster and Organist of St Mary’s
Primrose Hill Primrose Hill is a Grade II listed public park located north of Regent's Park in London, England, first opened to the public in 1842.Mills, A., ''Dictionary of London Place Names'', (2001) It was named after the natural hill in the centre of ...
, North London from 1964 to 1967, then as Assistant Organist at St Paul's Cathedral from 1967 to 1974, and from 1974 to 1984 as an organist at
Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...
. While at Westminster Abbey, he played at royal and state occasions including Earl Mountbatten’s Ceremonial Funeral, gave over 200 solo recitals on the Abbey organ, and played at both Sir William Walton’s 80th Birthday Concert and his Funeral Service less than a year later. In his last year at Westminster Abbey Herrick met Ted Perry, the owner-director of
Hyperion Records Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label. History Hyperion is an independent British classical label that was established in 1980 with the goal of showcasing recordings of music in all genres and from all time period ...
, who proposed an album of “virtuosic repertoire”, on the Abbey's
Harrison & Harrison Harrison & Harrison Ltd is a British company that makes and restores pipe organs, based in Durham and established in Rochdale in 1861. It is well known for its work on instruments such as King's College, Cambridge, Westminster Abbey, and the ...
organ. Released in 1984, this CD entitled ''Organ Fireworks'' led to well over 40 solo organ Herrick/Hyperion CD recordings. On the strength of his new exclusive relationship with Hyperion Records and some planned BBC Radio 3 recording tours in Europe as well as healthy bookings for organ concerts, Herrick embarked in 1984 upon a solo career as an international concert organist, staging concerts over the years on a stunning range of organs in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, Australia and
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
;
USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
and
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
;
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...
, Sweden,
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...
,
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
and
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
;
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, Switzerland and
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, The
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
, the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
,
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
and
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
;
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
,
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
and Japan. Notably, he gave the solo organ concert during the 1994 centenary season of the BBC Henry Wood Proms, when he played a programme exclusively of English music including
Robin Holloway Robin Greville Holloway (born 19 October 1943) is an English composer, academic and writer. Early life Holloway was born in Leamington Spa. From 1953 to 1957, he was a chorister at St Paul's Cathedral and was educated at King's College School, ...
’s monumental ‘Organ Fantasy’ op. 65. Herrick is best known for his interpretation of Bach’s
organ music The organ repertoire is considered to be the largest and oldest repertory of all musical instruments. Because of the organ's (or pipe organ's) prominence in worship in Western Europe from the Middle Ages on, a significant portion of organ repert ...
, recording the complete organ works on seven
Metzler Metzler is a surname. It may refer to: * Alex Metzler (1903–1973), American baseball player *Brenton Metzler, American producer *Chris Metzler, American filmmaker * George Metzler (1912–1949), American racecar driver * Jan Metzler (bor ...
organs throughout Switzerland compiled between 1989 and 1999, recorded on 16 CDs for Hyperion. Bach's complete organ works were subsequently performed at two marathon events, firstly in 1998 at the
Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 milli ...
Festival in New York, when he played fourteen concerts on consecutive days on the Kuhn organ in
Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and philanthropist whose donations assist ...
, and again in 2014 at the Mariinsky Concert Hall, St Petersburg, this time twelve concerts performed over a more extended period of five months. Hyperion followed up the 1984 Organ Fireworks disc from Westminster Abbey with 13 more discs, culminating in Organ Fireworks 14 recorded in 2010 at the Town Hall,
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
, on the 1929 Hill, Norman & Beard organ - much enlarged and rebuilt by the American organ builder Schanz in 2001. As contrast to the more flamboyant Organ Fireworks CDs Hyperion also issued four discs entitled Organ Dreams. From the mid-nineties, Herrick made acclaimed recordings on European organs featuring other composers including
Louis-Claude Daquin Louis-Claude Daquin (or D'Aquino, d'Aquin, d'Acquin; July 4, 1694 – June 15, 1772) was a French composer, writing in the Baroque and Galant styles. He was a virtuoso organist and harpsichordist. Life Louis-Claude Daquin was born in Paris to a f ...
,
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck ( ; April or May, 1562 – 16 October 1621) was a Dutch composer, organist, and pedagogue whose work straddled the end of the Renaissance and beginning of the Baroque eras. He was among the first major keyboard compo ...
,
Josef Rheinberger Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (17 March 1839 – 25 November 1901) was a Liechtensteiner organist and composer, residing in Bavaria for most of his life. Life Josef Gabriel Rheinberger, whose father was the treasurer for Aloys II, Prince of Liech ...
, and in 2007, commenced work on a five-year project to record the complete organ works of
Dieterich Buxtehude Dieterich Buxtehude (; ; born Diderik Hansen Buxtehude; c. 1637 – 9 May 1707)  was a Danish organist and composer of the Baroque period, whose works are typical of the North German organ school. As a composer who worked in various vocal a ...
. Two more recent recordings for Hyperion have been ''Power of Life'' recorded in 2015 on the Metzler organ in
Poblet Monastery Poblet Abbey, otherwise the Royal Abbey of Santa Maria de Poblet ( ca, Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Poblet), is a Cistercian monastery, founded in 1151, located at the foot of the Prades Mountains, in the comarca of Conca de Barberà, in Ca ...
in
Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the nort ...
, and ''Northern Lights'', recorded in 2020 on the Steinmeyer organ in Nidaros Cathedral in
Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...
, Norway.


Other professional interests

In 1973, Herrick secured the loan of a rare
Dulcken The Dulcken family were Flemish harpsichord makers of German origin. Joannes Daniel Dulcken (21 April 1706 – 11 April 1757) was born in Wingeshausen, the son of Georg Ludwig Dulcken (died Wingeshausen, before 1752). In 1736 he was in Maastric ...
harpsichord, which led to the formation of the Taskin Trio (
violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...
,
viola da gamba The viol (), viola da gamba (), or informally gamba, is any one of a family of bowed, fretted, and stringed instruments with hollow wooden bodies and pegboxes where the tension on the strings can be increased or decreased to adjust the pitch ...
, harpsichord), performing baroque music on
period instruments In the historically informed performance movement, musicians perform classical music using restored or replicated versions of the instruments for which it was originally written. Often performances by such musicians are said to be "on authentic ...
, and gave solo recitals of
Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...
's complete
Well-Tempered Clavier ''The Well-Tempered Clavier'', BWV 846–893, consists of two sets of preludes and fugues in all 24 major and minor keys for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach. In the composer's time, ''clavier'', meaning keyboard, referred to a variety of in ...
on the Dulcken harpsichord at London's
Purcell Room The Purcell Room is a concert and performance venue which forms part of the Southbank Centre, one of central London's leading cultural complexes. It is named after the 17th century English composer Henry Purcell and has 370 seats. The Purcell Roo ...
. Herrick, who had previously conducted the Exonian Singers and Orchestra at Oxford, once again took up the baton in 1974, being appointed Conductor of Twickenham Choral, a position he still holds today. He was also conductor of Whitehall Choir from 1978 to 2000. Both choirs were substantial groups of up to 100 fully auditioned members, whom he occasionally combined in performances at Westminster Abbey, Guildford Cathedral and the Royal Albert Hall. Herrick lives in
Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable ...
where for many years he was able to play the Frobenius organ of Kingston Parish Church. He now rehearses on the Harrison & Harrison organ at St Mary’s Church, Twickenham and the Tickell organ at Betchworth Church.


Selected discography

By 2022, Herrick had recorded 45 albums with Hyperion, most notably: *Organ Fireworks World Tour (
Hyperion Records Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label. History Hyperion is an independent British classical label that was established in 1980 with the goal of showcasing recordings of music in all genres and from all time period ...


CDA68214, 2017) *Power of Life - Metzler organ of Poblet Monastery, Tarragona, Spain (
Hyperion Records Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label. History Hyperion is an independent British classical label that was established in 1980 with the goal of showcasing recordings of music in all genres and from all time period ...


CDA68129, 2015) *
Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...
: The Complete Organ Works (
Hyperion Records Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label. History Hyperion is an independent British classical label that was established in 1980 with the goal of showcasing recordings of music in all genres and from all time period ...


CDS44121/36, 2002) *Organ Fireworks, Vol. 14 (
Hyperion Records Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label. History Hyperion is an independent British classical label that was established in 1980 with the goal of showcasing recordings of music in all genres and from all time period ...


CDA67758, 2010)


Sources

* Stanley Webb: ''Herrick, Christopher'', Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 6 May 2007), * Malcolm Bruno: ''Interview with Christopher Herrick'', Choir & Organ (May/June 2002) * The Wall Street Journal, Personal Journal, Time Off/Backstage: ''Christopher Herrick'' (29 October 2004)


Notes


References


External links

* * Hyperion records: Christopher Herric

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herrick, Christopher 1942 births Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford British harpsichordists English classical organists British male organists Living people People educated at Cranleigh School People from Bletchley British performers of early music 21st-century organists 21st-century British male musicians Male classical organists