Peter Rasmussen Hallock (November 19, 1924,

Kent, Washington Kent is a city in King County, Washington, United States. It is part of the Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue metropolitan area and had a population of 136,588 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest municipality in greater Seattle and t ...

– April 27, 2014,

Fall City, Washington Fall City is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in King County, Washington, United States, east of Seattle. The community lies along the Snoqualmie River and Raging River. The population was 1,993 at the 2010 census. ...

) was an American

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

choirmaster A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

, liturgist,

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a s ...

, and composer and arranger of

church music Church music is Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn. History Early Christian music The onl ...

(

anthems An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short s ...

hymns A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

psalm The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

settings, and music for the Episcopal

liturgy 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 ...

). Though he occasionally gave concerts, lectures, and seminars around the

United States 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 territorie ...

, his career was centered in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

. From 1951 to 1991 he served as organist and choirmaster at St. Mark's Cathedral, Seattle, during which he was conferred the title of

Canon Precentor According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...

, the first layperson in the

Episcopal Church (United States) The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop o ...

to be so honored. Later, he served as organist at St. Clements (Seattle) until 2013. He also founded the

Compline Choir The Compline Choir is a nationally acclaimed choral group that chants the Office of Compline every Sunday night, 9:30 P.M. Pacific time, at St. Mark's, Seattle in Seattle, Washington, US. The Office of Compline is made up of sacred music including ...

from its predecessor chant study group in 1956; he led the choir until 2009. He never married.

Biography

After WWII, when he was discharged from the Army, Hallock pursued organ studies at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

, and also studied at the

Royal School of Church Music The Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) is a Christian music education organisation dedicated to the promotion of music in Christian worship, in particular the repertoire and traditions of Anglican church music, largely through publications, tr ...

. In 1986, with Carl Crosier, he founded Ionian Arts, a music publishing business.

Selected Compositions

* Psalms 134 & 4 * Psalm 23 * Psalm 91 * Psalm 139 * Bring Us, O Lord God * Draw On Sweet Night * Easter Canticle * If We Could Shut the Gate * Ionian Psalter * Lamentations of Jeremiah 1: 1-2 * The Lord Is My Light * Peace * Phoenix * To the Supreme Being * Ye Choirs of New Jerusalem

Notes

References

''The Life and Works of Peter R. Hallock (b. 1924)''
Doctoral Dissertation by Jason Anderson, DMA, 2007
''Prayer As Night Falls''
Companion material to the book by long-time member of the

, Kenneth Peterson
''An interview with Peter Hallock''
Video interview conducted in August 2013 at Peter's home, with session footage of the Byrd Ensemble singing three of Peter's compositions

Biography

Selected Compositions

Notes

References

External links