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Contact: Vickie Hamilton-Smith, School of Fine Arts, (785) 864-9742.

KU's Bales organ recital hall celebrates 5th anniversary with 2 gala concerts

LAWRENCE--The University of Kansas Department of Music & Dance celebrates the five-year anniversary of the spectacular Bales Recital Hall with two nights of organ concerts at 7:30 p.m.,Tuesday and Wednesday, Oct. 9 and 10 in the Bales Recital Hall at the Lied Center. Admission is free.

James Higdon, the Dane and Polly Bales Professor of Organ and director of the division of organ and church music, celebrates American organ music with the concert on Oct. 9. Susan Landale, winner of the first International Organ Playing Competition at the St. Albans' International Festival in England, performs the second evening.

"What makes this hall so unusual is that we hired the organ builder first," Higdon said sof the unique Bales construction, which dictated the organ and acoustics take precedence over the architecture of the building. "This five-year celebration is as much a tribute to the space as the educators and students who bring it to life."

Bales Recital Hall is named for its primary benefactors, Dane and Polly Bales, who together with the Dane Hansen Foundation and numerous private donors, provided the resources necessary to build both the hall and the Hellmuth Wolff & AssociŽs Opus 40 organ.

The magnificent Wolff Opus 40 was commissioned specifically for the Bales Recital Hall and was included as part of the space's original design. Everything from the instrument and how it was voiced to the stained glass decorations are the result of an intense collaboration between architects, artists, musicians, acousticians and organ craftspeople. It stands as one of the most remarkable organ recital halls in North America.

"This is the finest hall anywhere that is dedicated specifically to the study and performance of organ music," says Higdon. "It's turned out even better than we'd ever hoped, with students using the facility nearly 24 hours a day."

The organ and church music study program in the KU Department of Music and Dance has enjoyed a long and distinguished reputation, and is currently one of the most visible in the country. Degrees are offered in the bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree levels, backed by an unparalleled commitment to faculty, instruments, equipment and students. Visiting artists from around the world regularly conduct master classes and give performances in Bales Recital Hall.

On the first evening of the anniversary celebration, Higdon offers four works, including "Three Temperaments" by Stephen Paulus (b. 1949), which he performed during the Bales Recital Hall dedication festival. His program also includes "Resurrection" by Larry King (1932-1990), "Critical Mass for Organ and Electronic Tape" by James Mobberley (b. 1954), and "Symphony in G Major" by Leo Sowerby (1895-1968).

Landale's program opens with "Improvisation sur le 'Te Deum'" by Charles Tournemire (1870-1939), followed by "Trois Pi�ces (1878)" by CŽsar Franck (1822-1890). After a brief break, her concert continues with another work by the same composer, "Deuxi�me Choral," and "Dix Pi�ces (1892)" by Eugene Gigout (1844-1925). Two more compositions by Charles Tournemire, "XIIe Dimanche apr�s la Pentec™te (L'Orgue Mystique, Nr. 38)" and "Choral-Improvisation sur le 'Victimae paschali," conclude her performance.

Recording artist Susan Landale has firmly established a worldwide reputation as a brilliant performer in solo recitals, broadcasts, concerts with orchestra, chamber music, and instrumental and voice ensembles. For 18 years, she was titular organist of St. George's Anglican Church in Paris. She has appeared as a guest at many festivals, from Melbourne, Australia to Edinburgh, Scotland. Her organ class at the Conservatoire National de RŽgion in Rueil-Malmaison, near Paris, where she taught from 1977-2000, enjoyed international recognition.

Last spring, Higdon was named the Dane and Polly Bales Professor of Organ, giving him the first endowed chair in the Department of Music and Dance. He has received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Eastman School of Music and studied with Edmund Ladouceur, Robert Kendall, Karel Paukert, David Craighead, Catharine Crozier, and Marie-Claire Alain. Often recorded, Higdon's most recent CD is Music from Bales Organ Recital Hall (DCD Records). Six of his students have received Fulbright Awards during his tenure at KU, while he has won a W.T. Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence. Admission to the anniversary concerts at Bales Recital Hall in the Lied Center is free. For more information, contact the KU Department of Music & Dance at (785) 864-3436.