GERRE HANCOCK
Biography
Gerre Hancock, one of America’s most highly acclaimed
concert organists and choral directors, is Professor of Music at The University
of Texas at Austin where he teaches organ and is developing a curriculum
for the study of Sacred Music. Prior to
this appointment, Dr. Hancock held the position of Organist and Master of
Choristers at Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue in New York City, where, for more than
thirty years he set a new standard for church music in America. Previous to his time at Saint Thomas Church,
he held positions as Organist and Choirmaster of Christ Church Cathedral in
Cincinnati, where he also served on the Artist Faculty of the
College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati, and as Assistant
Organist at St. Bartholomew’s Church, New York City.
Dr. Hancock received his Bachelor of
Music degree from the University of Texas and his Master of Sacred
Music degree from Union Theological Seminary in New York from which he received the Unitas Distinguished Alumnus Award. A recipient of a Rotary Foundation
Fellowship, he also studied in Paris and during this time was a
finalist at the Munich International Music Competitions. His organ study has been with E. William
Doty, Robert Baker, Jean Langlais and Marie-Claire Alain.
A Fellow of the American Guild of
Organists, Gerre Hancock has been a member of its National Council and is a
founder and past president of the Association of Anglican Musicians. He has served on the faculty of The Juilliard
School in New York City and taught improvisation on
a visiting basis at the Institute of Sacred Music, Yale University in New Haven, CT, and The Eastman School of
Music in Rochester, NY. In 1981 he was appointed a Fellow of the
Royal School of Church Music and in 1995 was appointed a Fellow of the Royal
College of Organists. Gerre Hancock has
received honorary Doctor of Music degrees from the Nashotah House Seminary, and
The University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee. In May 2004 he was awarded
the Doctor of Divinity degree (Honoris causa) from The General Theological Seminary in New York. He is listed in “Who’s Who in America,” and his biography appears
in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2nd edition. In 2004 he was honored in a ceremony at Lambeth Palace in London where he was presented the
Medal of the Cross of St. Augustine by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Gerre Hancock’s consummate skill is
clearly apparent in his concert appearances.
Possessing a masterly interpretive ability, he is an artist of taste,
warmth, perception and style. A featured
recitalist and lecturer at numerous regional conventions of the American Guild
of Organists and at national conventions of the Guild in Philadelphia,
Cleveland, Boston, Washington DC, Detroit, Houston and New York City, he also
represented the AGO as recitalist at the Centenary Anniversary of the Royal
College of Organists in London. Considered the finest organ improviser in America, Dr. Hancock has been heard
in recital in many cities throughout the United States, Europe, South Africa, and Japan. On occasion he performs in
duo recitals with his wife, Judith Hancock.
Compositions by Dr. Hancock are
published by Oxford University Press.
His compositions for organ and chorus are widely performed and his textbook,
Improvising: How to Master the Art,
is used by musicians throughout the country.
He has recorded for Gothic Records, Decca/Argo, Koch International and
Priory Records, both as a conductor of The St. Thomas Choir and as a soloist.
Revised September
2006