St. John’s is the musical home of a number of artists and ensembles.
St. John’s Episcopal Church is both visually and sonically beautiful – the perfect venue for concerts of many types. In addition to the concerts of our Music at the Red Door series, St. John’s the musical home of a number of artists and ensembles.
Christa Rakich
Christa Rakich recently retired from a position as music director at St. Mark the Evangelist Church in West Hartford. She divides her time between her home in Connecticut and Oberlin, Ohio, where she is visiting professor of organ at Oberlin College. She maintains an active career as a performer and recording artist, and has served on the faculties of Westminster Choir College, Brandeis University, New England Conservatory, and the University of Connecticut, and as assistant university organist at Harvard. Previous artist-in-residencies have included the University of Pennsylvania and First Lutheran Church in Boston.
As a Fulbright Scholar, Christa studied for two years with Anton Heiller at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna, Austria. She holds bachelor’s degrees in organ and German from Oberlin College, where she was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. After receipt of her master’s degree with honors from New England Conservatory, she was asked to join the faculty there, serving ultimately as department co-chair.
A prizewinner at international organ competitions (notably Bruges 1976), Rakich has received particular acclaim for her interpretations of the music of J.S. Bach. With keyboardist Peter Sykes, she performed a complete cycle of Bach’s keyboard works in a series of 34 concerts aptly named Tuesdays With Sebastian. The concerts raised a total of $20,000 for Boston area charities.
With keyboardist Susan Ferré, Rakich is a founding performer of the Big Moose Bach Festival in Berlin, New Hampshire. The festival presents cantatas, chamber music and keyboard music of J.S. Bach in rural New Hampshire each summer. Rakich also pursues an active interest in the clavichord.
The New World Trio, Ensemble-in-Residence
For more than three decades, the New World Trio has brought the excitement and intimacy of chamber music to live audiences throughout New England. Founded in 1985 by violinist Anhared Stowe, New World provides a unique experience for music lovers with its mix of both standard repertoire and contemporary works. With each performance, New World brings new vitality to established masterworks; these are paired with contemporary pieces, with each complementing the other in depth and beauty.
“…New World has been (Hartford’s) one reliable source of chamber music since its founding…” says the Hartford Courant. The New World Trio has been in residence at St. John’s starting with their 2017-2018 season. Visit www.newworldtrio.org for details.