Classical friends in Eastern Massachusetts may be interested in a
harpsichord recital by keyboardist Joseph Payne on sunday November 14.
The program begins at 4:00p.m. and admission is free of charge. Part of
the Candlelight Concert Series, the performance is at Old Ship Church, 90
Main Street, in downtown Hingham.
A Program of Keyboard Works of J. S. Bach includes Prelude and Fugue No.
1 in C, BWV 846, French Suite No. 5 in G, BWV 816, Concerto after Marcello
in D Minor, BWV 974, and Prelude and Fugue No. 3 in C# Major, BWV 848.
>From the Notebook for Anna Magdelena we will hear March in D Major
Polonaise in G Minor and March in G Major and Polonaise in G Minor played
on the clavichord.
Joseph Payne will be playing a new instrument modeled after a harpsichord
of Bach's time presently in the Historical Museum at Copenhagen. The
double-keyboard instrument was recently built for Mr. Payne by Hubbard and
Broekman in Sudbury. It will be heard publicaly for the first time at this
concert.
Son of a British missionary and a Swiss mother, Payne was born in an
oxcart somewhere on the Chinese-Mongolian border. His earliest musical
training was as a cathedral chorister at Worcester and later piano studies
in Switzerland. After coming to the United States, he won a prestigious
competition of the American Guild of Organists and studied at Trinity
College and Hartt School of Music. He was closely associated with some
of the pioneers in the field of early music performance and was one of the
last and youngest pupils of the late great harpsichordist Wanda Landowska.
Payne made his New York debut in a recital of contemporary and new
old music at Carnegie Recital Hall. The New York Times described his
performance as "...harpsichord playing in the grandest manner." He toured
extensively throughout North America, as accompanist, solo organist and
harpsichordist, appearing at major venues such as New Yorks's Alice Tully
Hall. Mr. Payne regularly appears at many international music festivals
including numerous organ fests. He has made 50 solo recordings over a
career span. "Spaced Out Bach", an eminently successful "crossover"
phenomenon introduced thousands to music of the Baroque master. During
the tricentennial celebration of Bach's birth in 1985, Payne made the
world premier recording of 33 rediscovered organ chorales.
A versatile musician, Joseph Payne has given first performances of works
by important contemporary composers. He has received grants and awards
from the Lowell Institute, the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, and
the Peabody Mason Foundation.
Payne has appead in live broadcast performances on CBC, Voice of America,
and most major European radio networks. He appears frequently as a guest
on Robert J. Lurtsema's Morning Pro Musica and A Note to You on WGBH.
Still a British citizen, Payne is based in Boston where for many years
he was a member of the music faculty at Boston University and music
director/organist of Emmanuel Church. Payne performs as many as 40
concerts each season, giving harpsichord recitals and playing the great
historic organs in the cathedrals of Europe.
This program is supported by free-will donations from Friends of the
Candlelight Concerts and a grant from the Hingham Council on the Arts,
a local agency supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state
agency.
Bernard Gregoire
Hingham, MA
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