GERRE HANCOCK PRINCEPS MUSICI REQUIESCAT IN PACEM -
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,414

    Gerre Hancock, Organist, Magister Chori, Recitalist, Scholar and Teacher at St Thomas', Fifth Avenue, recently  developing a graduate sacred music program at UTAustin, and having been coming in on an interim basis to teach organ at Rice, has died at age LXXVII.


    He had America's premier Anglican school choral establishment at St Thomas', the influence of which reached far and wide.


    He will be missed as a teacher, professor, organist, choirmaster, scholar, recitalist, improviser summa cum laude, and, ... and, ...


    May his, and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace, and may light perpetual shine upon them.


    Church music, Catholic as well as Anglican and others has lost a great light, but we yet may, nay, must, carry that light on!


     

  • BruceL
    Posts: 1,072
    MJO, thanks for posting this.  I came here to do the same.  I was one of the first five or ten graduates of his MM program at UT, and my brother is now the Hancock's teaching assistant there.  Needless to say, he had a tremendous influence on us as musicians, teachers, and people.  It is all the more bittersweet since he was to be here in St. Louis this weekend to play on the cathedral series: I had looked forward to seeing him as one of the highlights of my year! 

    I've always thought it indicative of the poor state of Catholic liturgical music that I learned the beginnings of chant and how to read four-line notation from this giant of a musician...who wasn't even Catholic!  His gifts were manifold, not least of which was his great love of his friends and students...he will be sorely missed! 

    In your charity, say prayers for Dr. Judith, and for the program there: it received a wonderful start with him and was very friendly toward traditional Catholic music and its derivatives.  I hope they find a worthy successor! 

    Also, everyone should at least YouTube "gerre hancock" and listen to a few of his improvisations...so inspired...and how many of us can improvise five-voice fugues and still make them sound musical, anyway?
  • ralvarez
    Posts: 18
    I was at a Conspirare concert last night where the audience was told of Hancock's passing. They dedicated their premiere performance of Whitacre's Alleluia to him. It was quite moving.
  • BruceL
    Posts: 1,072
    I thought I would bump this since I was able to be there on Saturday. In fact, almost all of his students from UT and over 100 former choristers from St. Thomas were there as well.

    If you have any love of sacred music (and the Durufle Requiem!), you should listen to the webcast...all three hours of it! Link here, at the bottom of the page: http://www.saintthomaschurch.org/calendar/2012/02/04/worship/3721/ Don't skip the sermons...those were great, too. Also, Kent Tritle did a nice show on him on NYC public radio, link here: http://www.wqxr.org/#/programs/choral/2012/feb/05/
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