Calvin Hampton

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(George) Calvin Hampton (December 31, 1938 – August 5, 1984) was a leading American organist and sacred music composer. Hampton was born in Kittanning, Pennsylvania and raised in Ravenna, Ohio. He graduated from Oberlin Conservatory in 1960 and from Syracuse University in 1963. From September 1963 through June 1983, he was organist and choirmaster at Calvary Episcopal Church in the Gramercy Park neighborhood of Manhattan. His “Fridays at Midnight” organ recital series, which ran from 1974 to 1983, was among the most well-known and popular organ recital series in American history. Hampton also composed music for the church and the concert stage. In 1974, he composed music for Walter Leyden Brown's production of Herman Melville's Pierre, or the Ambiguities, which was produced at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in the East Village of Manhattan. Before Hampton's death, Erik Routley, an authority on church music, called Hampton "the greatest living composer of hymn tunes." His settings of the Episcopal liturgy are also used in Catholic churches, and his choral works are innovative and challenging pieces of sacred music. Hampton also transcribed music from other sources for the organ. His versions of Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and César Franck's Symphony in D minor for organ are particularly noteworthy. Hampton's views on the proper design and function of the organ, particularly in the orchestral context, were controversial because they conflicted with neo-

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Digital Pipes: The Splendor of the Organ

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Digital Pipes: The Splendor of the Organ (Organ of Calvary Episcopal Church)

New Music in Quarter-Tones

The Music of Calvin Hampton (1938-1984)

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Hymns Through the Ages

In Praise of Humanity

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Opus 76

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Higgs & Wilson: Double Forte!

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Be Still, My Soul

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New Music In Quarter Tones

Everyone Dance

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Gerald Busby: Old World / Stars / Court Dances / Parallel / Camera

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