ALAN MORRISON

Program Biography

Alan Morrison is recognized as one of America's premier concert organists and his concert appearances in some of the most prestigious organ concert venues in North America emphasize his achievements as a performer and the respect Mr. Morrison has gained in the concert organ world: Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts’ Alice Tully Hall (NYC); Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center (Philadelphia, PA); Benaroya Hall (Seattle, WA); The Meyerson Symphony Center (Dallas, TX); Spivey Hall (Morrow, GA); Jack Singer Concert Hall (Calgary, Alberta, Canada); City Hall Auditorium (Portland, Maine); The Crystal Cathedral (Orange Grove, CA); Grace Cathedral (San Francisco, CA); First Congregational Church (Los Angeles, CA); Spreckels Organ Pavilion (San Diego, CA); St. Patrick's Cathedral (NYC); Ocean Grove Auditorium (Ocean Grove, NJ); The Cleveland Museum of Art (Cleveland, OH), and numerous others. His recent performance during the inaugural festival of the Dobson organ in Verizon Hall drew laudatory reviews from numerous national publications. A versatile artist, this season brings collaborations with The Curtis Symphony Orchestra in the premier of a new concerto for organ by Eric Sessler (Verizon Hall), concerts with trumpeter Rodney Mack and Philadelphia Big Brass (Verizon Hall), a concerto performance and adjudication in Denver, CO, duo concerts with his mother, pianist Jeannine Morrison, a radio broadcast from Philadelphia's famed Wanamaker Organ, along with numerous solo appearances across the country.

In addition to extensive solo and orchestral performances throughout the United States including Alaska, Mr. Morrison has also performed in Brazil, Canada, Germany and Italy. He has the distinct honor of having been chosen by his peers to perform for four national conventions of the American Guild of Organists (Atlanta '92, NYC '96, Philadelphia "02, Chicago '06)) and has won top prizes in numerous competitions, among them the Silver Medal at the Calgary International Organ Festival and First Prize in both the Mader and Poister National Organ Competitions. He has appeared in concert with The United States Army Chorus, and numerous Philadelphia ensembles including The Philadelphia Singers, Mendelssohn Club, Singing City and Choral Arts Society. In 1999 he was chosen to be the featured recitalist and clinician for the Montreat Conference on Worship & Music where he performed solo recitals and conducted 18 masterclasses. He regularly conducts numerous AGO sponsored masterclasses throughout the USA as well as in Canada. As a recording artist, Mr. Morrison has recorded eight critically acclaimed CD’s for Gothic Records, ACA Digital Recording and DTR. These and other concert performances are regularly featured on MPR's Pipedreams, Performance Today and on radio stations throughout many countries. On television he has been featured on two episodes of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood and on Georgia Public Television in a performance of the Shostakovich Piano Concerto #1. In May 2003, he was selected to appear along with Itzhak Perlman and Yo-Yo Ma for the Fred Rogers Memorial Service which was telecast live from Pittsburgh's Heinz Hall. A champion of twentieth/twenty-first century American composers, Mr. Morrison has premiered important new works by William Bolcom, Dan Locklair, Eric Sessler, Brent Weaver, Emily Maxson Porter, Jon Spong and Luis Prado as well as the American premier of Dances for Organ and Orchestra by British composer Bob Chilcott. His latest CD from Spivey Hall features all American composers.

As a pianist he has performed recitals with renowned mezzo soprano Rinat Shaham under the auspices of the Marilyn Horne Foundation and in a Gala performance at Alice Tully Hall. They have also performed together in Jack Singer Concert Hall (Calgary) and at the Skirball Center in Los Angeles. Mr. Morrison has also performed two Mozart concertos (Double Piano Concerto with his mother Jeannine Morrison, and the Triple Piano Concerto with his mother and father, Don Morrison) with members of The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in Spivey Hall. He has also performed the Beethoven Choral Fantasy with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia (Jeffrey Brillhart conducting), as well as the Florida premier of David Gillingham's Concerto for Piano and Percussion Orchestra. He has also performed on several occasions with acclaimed cellist Andres Diaz (a former Naumburg winner) including a recital at Spivey Hall and a featured performance at the Brevard Music Festival performing sonatas by Debussy, Martinu, Lutoslawski and Rachmaninoff. Mr. Morrison currently collaborates with the Orlando Chamber Soloists as a founding member with the Principal players of the Orlando Philharmonic.

At the age of 33, Mr. Morrison was appointed Head of the Organ Department at the world renowned conservatory, The Curtis Institute of Music (Philadelphia). He recently was honored with the Haas Charitable Trust Chair in Organ Studies at Curtis. He is in his twelfth year as College Organist at Ursinus College (Collegeville, PA.) and recently joined the faculty of Westminster Choir College. Born and raised in Atlanta, GA, Mr. Morrison has been inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. He is a graduate of both The Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School of Music receiving degrees in both organ and piano accompanying/chamber music. His teachers include John Weaver, Cherry Rhodes, Sarah Martin (organ), Robert Harvey, Vladimir Sokoloff and Susan Starr (piano). He is under the exclusive management of Karen McFarlane Artists, Inc. (Cleveland, Ohio).

Current as of August 2006