Gerard Gillen
Dr. Gerard Gillen is Professor Emeritus in Music at the National University of Ireland,[1] Maynooth, having retired from the position of Professor and Head of the Music Department of that university at the end of September 2007. He came to NUI Maynooth in 1985, previously having been a lecturer in music for sixteen years at University College, Dublin. Professor Gillen has overseen the expansion of the Music Department in undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, for example, new diplomas in Music Technology and Church Music. He also directed the University Choral Society from October 1985 until April 2007.
Gillen is a first-class honours graduate of University College Dublin and Oxford.
Professor Gillen's interest lie in the areas of Catholic church music, organ building and performance practice. He was honoured as the John Betts Fellow in 1992 at the University of Oxford and since 1993 he has been chair of the Irish Episcopal Commission's Advisory Committee on Church Music.
He is also the general editor (with Harry White of UCD) of the bi-annual Irish Musical Studies.[2]
Publications
Books
- Gerard Gillen (with Harry White), ed. Irish Musical Studies I: Musicology in Ireland (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1990)
- Gerard Gillen (with Harry White), ed. Irish Musical Studies II: Music and the Church (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1992)
- Gerard Gillen (with Harry White), ed. Irish Musical Studies III: Music and Irish Cultural History (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1995)
- Gerard Gillen (with Andrew Johnstone), ed. Irish Musical Studies VI: A Historical Anthology of Irish Church Music (Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2001)
- ‘Contemporary Organ Building in Ireland’, The Organ – An Encyclopaedia, eds. D Bush & R. Kassel (New York: Routledge, 2006) pp. 271–273
- ‘An Instrument for Harmony: How should we think about Church Music?’ Religious Life Review, (March/April 2006), pp. 116–123
- ‘The Pipe Organ: a centuries-old heritage’, New Liturgy, Summer, 2006, pp. 15–16
- ‘Children in Irish Liturgical Life’, New Liturgy, Spring, 2005, pp. 11–17
- ‘Towards a Definition of ‘’Good’’ Liturgical Music’, Anail Dé: The Breath of God – Music, Ritual and Spirituality, ed. Helen Phelan (Veritas: Dublin, 2001) pp. 189–200
- ‘Irish Catholics and Hymns’, The Furrow (October 2000), pp. 548–556
- ‘Seoirse Bodley', 'Brian Boydell', 'Jerome de Bromhead', 'John Buckley', Edward Bunting', 'Charles Petrie', 'Roman Catholic Church Music', The Blackwell Companion to Modern Irish Culture, ed. W.J. McCormack (Basil Blackwell: Oxford, 1999)
- ‘Looking back, looking forward’, New Liturgy, Summer, 1998, pp. 5–11
- ‘William Telford and the Victorian Organ in Ireland’, Irish Musical Studies II: Music and the Church, ed. Gerard Gillen and Harry White (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1992), pp. 108–129
- ‘Church Music in Dublin, 1590–1900’, Four Centuries of Music in Ireland, ed. Brian Boydell (London: BBC, 1979), pp. 23–28
- ‘17th-century Organ Music: New Editions’, The Musical Times, cxvi (1975), pp. 172–173
- ‘New Organ Music”, The Musical Times, cxv (1974), pp. 981–982
- ‘The Organ Music of Franz Liszt, The Musical Times, cxiii (1972), pp. 182–183
- ‘Hassler and Contemporaries’, The Musical Times, cxiii (1972), pp. 1017–1018
- ‘New Organ Music”, The Musical Times, cxiii (1972), p. 711
- ‘The Rieger Organ in St. Michael's Church, Dún Laoghaire', Music and Liturgy, I ii (1975), pp. 98–100
- 'The Training of Organists and Choirmasters', The Furrow, (Music Supplement), (1969).
- 'The Organ in Bray, Co. Wicklow: an organist’s evaluation’, Journal of the British Institute of Organ Studies, v (1981), pp. 121–126
Performance
Gillen enjoys an international reputation as an organ recitalist and has given recitals at such prestigious international venues as the Royal Festival Hall, London, McEwan Hall, Edinburgh, Ulster Hall, Belfast, cathedrals of Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Canterbury, Notre Dame, Paris, St Stephen's, Vienna, Salzburg, Regensburg, Freiburg, Hamburg, Lübeck, St Bavo, Haarlem, Brussels, Antwerp, Bruges, Ghent, Copenhagen, Madrid, and Tallinn.
Gillen was founder-chairman of the Dublin International Organ & Choral Festival and was the festival's artistic director from 1990–2000. He was also consultant to the National Concert Hall in Dublin on the installation of the Hall's Kenneth Jones concert organ in 1991 and remains one of the Hall's honorary organ curators.
Gillen was the organist at the Statio Orbis mass of the 50th International Eucharistic Congress held in Croke Park, Dublin on 17 June 2012.
Broadcast Recordings and Discography
Gillen has had many recitals recorded and broadcast by various national radio networks: RTÉ, BBC, RTF (France), BRT (Belgium), Nord Deutsche Rundfunk, Mittel-Deutsche Rundfung, RAI, Estonian National Radio, and American Public Service Radio.
Gillen plays the 1869 Walker organ of St Audoen’s, Dublin, LP NIR, 1971. He also played Buxtehude and Walther on the Chapel Organ of Trinity College, Dublin, LP NIR, 1972. He has made many other recordings.[3][4][5][6][7][8]
Selected Public Recitals 2000–2010
2010
Dun Laoighre, St. Michael's Church
2009
Dun Laoighre, St. Michael's Church
2008 Dun Laoighre, St. Michael's Church 2007
Dun Laoighre, St. Michael's Church
2006
Dublin, Pro-Cathedral, 27 September
Spišska Nova Ves (Slovakia), Festival, 13 September
Kosice (Slovakia), Philharmonic Hall, 12 September
Dublin, National Concert Hall, recital as part of NCH’s 25th anniversary celebrations, 8 September
New York, St Patrick’s Cathedral, 29 August
Dublin, St Michael’s, Dun Laoghaire, 20 August
Carrick-on-Shannon, Water Music festival, 13 August
Castletownshend, Summer Music Festival, 3 August
Monasterevan, Hopkins Summer School, 28 July
Lyon, St Bonaventure Basilica, 7 May
Paris, La Madeleine, 30 April
Luxembourg, Dudelange Celtic Festival, 9 March
2005
Ruzamberak Catholic University, Slovakia, Conference Recital, 21 October
Dublin, Pro-Cathedral, 7 September
Wales, St Davids Cathedral, 24 August
Dublin, St Michael’s, Dun Laoghaire, 21 August
Graz, Cathedral, 14 August
Legnica (Polaqnd), Cathedral, 19 July
Wroclaw, University Church, 17 July
Swieta Lipka, Festival Recital, 15 July
Dublin, Christ Church Cathedral, 11 May
Waterford, Christ Church Cathedral, 10 March
Oxford, The Queen’s College, 23 February
2004
Dublin, National Concert Hall, 5 December (with Palestrina Choir)
Sardinia, Cagliari, S. Francesca de Paulo, 23 October
Dublin, Pro-Cathedral, 8 September
Hamburg, Wohltorf Kirche, 4 September
Schleswig Holstein, Neuenkirchen, 3 September
Copenhagen, Vor Frue Cathedral, 28 August
Denmark, Randers Church, 26 August
Dublin, St Michael’s, Dun Laoghaire, 15 August
Bratislava, St Martin’s Cathedral, 30 June
Tullamore, Church of the Assumption, 22 June
Bratislava Castle, official recital to mark the accession of Slovakia to the EU, 4 May
Dublin, St Patrick’s Cathedral, 28 April
London, St Lawrence Jewry (City), 16 March
Rome, S. Paulo entre la mura, 29 February
2003
Dublin, National Concert Hall, 10 December (with Palestrina Choir)
Dublin, Pro-Cathedral, 24 September
Zilina (Slovakia), S. Barbera, 4 September
Piestany (Slovakia), Concert Hall, 2 September
Trnava (Slovakia), Cathedral Festival, 28 August
Kosice, St Elizabeth Cathedral, 26 August
Leipzig, St Thomas’s Church, 23 August
Torgau, Schloss und Stadt Kirche, 22 August
Potsdam, Erlöserkirche, 20 August
Schleswig Holstein, Sieseby Kirche, 18 August
Limburg/Lahn, Cathedral Series, 16 August
Dublin, St Michael’s, Dun Laoghaire, 10 August
Tullamore, Church of the Assumption, 17 June
Dublin, St Agatha’s, North William Street, Inaugural Recital, 15 May
2002
Limerick, Redemptorist Church, 20 November
Turin, Basilica Santa Rita, 28 October
Fossano, Cathedral festival, 27 October
Dublin, Pro-Cathedral, 4 September
Dublin, St Michael’s, Dun Laoghaire, 18 August
Killaloe, Shannon Festival, 20 July
Dublin, Pro-Cathedral, International Organ festival Vesper, 28 June
Augusta, Georgia, Distinguished Artists’ series, 2 May
Hannibal, Missouri, First Presbyterian Church, 28 April
2001
Dublin, National Concert Hall, 27 September
Dublin, Pro-Cathedral, 19 September
Schleswig Holstein, St Peter-Ording, 9 September
Schleswig Holstein, Keitum/Sylt, 5 September
Hamburg, Harsefeld, Kirche, 3 September
Copenhagen, Garrison Church, 29 August
Schleswig Holstein, St Laurentius, Itzehoe, 25 August
Denmark, Randers Church, 21 August
Galway, Cathedral of the Assumption, 16 August
Denmark, Bornholm, Rønne Church, 10 August
Strasbourg, St Pierre-le-Jeune, 15 July
Vienna, Stefansdom, 11 July
Sens (France), Cathedral, 8 July
Munich, University Church, 26 June
Cork, St Finbarr's Cathedral, 22 May
Frankfurt/Main, St Nikolai (Bergen-Enkheim), 23 March
2000
Dublin, National Concert Hall, 12 December (with Palestrina Choir)
Dublin, Pro-Cathedral, 6 September
Wexford, Rowe Street Church, 6 August
Mühlhausen, Divi Blasii Church, 1 June
Limerick, Mary Immaculate College, 3 May
Kilrush, St Senan's Church, Inaugural recital, 28 April
Copenhagen, St David's Church, 27 February
Copenhagen, Kastrup Church, 26 February
References
- ↑ National University of Ireland, Maynooth
- ↑ (Dublin: Irish Academic Press/ Four Courts Press)
- ↑ Bach at Bray, Audio Tape, KLJ, 1976
- ↑ Bach's Toccata in C, BWV 564, KLJ, 1978
- ↑ Messe pour les Couvents on the Rieger organ of St Michael's Dun Laoghaire, SDG, 1990
- ↑ Baroque Highlights: Gerard Gillen at the organ of St Michael’s Church, Dun Laoghaire, SDG 1994
- ↑ Franck and Guilmant: Gerard Gillen Plays the Great Organ of St Mary’s Pro-Cathedral, Dublin, SDG110, 2002
- ↑ Best Loved Sacred Music: St. James's Choir with Niamh Murray, Soprano, Gerard Gillen, Organist & Fr. John O'Brien, Conductor, 1997