(Saint Paul, Minn.) The Cathedral Heritage Foundation is thrilled to announce the upcoming performance by concert organist Adam J. Brakel, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, October 10, 2019 at the Cathedral of Saint Paul, 239 Selby Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota. A suggested donation of $15 will be collected at the doors. Street parking is widely available as well as free parking in the Selby church lot. Handicapped entrances are at the Upper Selby doors, and lower Dayton doors. For more details, call the Cathedral Information Desk at 651-228-1766.
The spell-binding and artistically masterful performances of Brakel have led to his being compared to Liszt, Gould, Bernstein, and Paganini. National Public Radio hailed him as “an absolute organ prodigy, with the technique and virtuosity that most concert pianists could only dream of…He is the Franz Liszt of the organ.”
Brakel’s celebrated performances span the globe—from coast to coast in the United States to across Europe and Asia. His expansive repertoire includes the entire spectrum of styles. Brakel’s performance highlights include the complete works of César Franck, and, most notably, the fiendishly difficult Six Etudes of Jeanne Demessieux, of which Adam is one of the few organists in the world to have performed and recorded in its entirety. Adam’s program at the Cathedral will include the works of Demessieux, along with Widor, Sousa, James P. Johnson, Henry Martin, Sowerby, Bizet and Mendelssohn.
In addition to his concert career, Adam was most recently appointed Director of Music for St. James Cathedral and the Diocese of Orlando, Florida.
The Cathedral of Saint Paul has two pipe organs, an E.M. Skinner Organ, and Aeolian-Skinner Organ, both of which underwent a complete restoration and expansion between 2010-2013 by Quimby Pipe Organs, Inc. The two organs now have a combined 94 ranks of pipes for a total of 5,848 pipes ranging in size of over 32′ in length, to as small as a ballpoint pen.
The Cathedral Heritage Foundation is an independent volunteer 501 (c)3 community organization. Since its founding in 2007, the CHF’s stated mission has been “to preserve the Cathedral as an historic monument and a community treasure,” as well as to support the Cathedral as a venue for the arts and education.
The Cathedral is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the week and from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Visitors are welcome to join guided tours of the Cathedral, Tuesday—Friday at 1pm. Visitors may also take a private walking tour or a virtual tour at cathedralsaintpaul.org/visit-us.
