Bicentennial Concerts Welcome Community to Trinity

Hundreds of listeners gathered to enjoy the sounds of Trinity College’s two distinctive public instruments at the Bicentennial Concerts and Picnic on July 12.

An organ recital inside the Trinity College Chapel by Christopher Houlihan ’09, John Rose College Organist-and-Directorship Distinguished Chair of Chapel Music and Artist-in-Residence, was followed by a carillon performance by Ellen Dickinson, college carillonist. Guests enjoyed a free picnic on the Main Quad provided by the College.

The concerts and picnic marked the start of Trinity’s 1823 Series—a yearlong slate of Bicentennial events that are free and open to the public.

“Showcasing Trinity’s two very fine instruments that are right there in the middle of campus—the organ and the carillon—is an important part of the Bicentennial celebration,” Dickinson said. “These are really integral instruments to the Trinity community.” The Chapel space is part of the pipe organ as an instrument and the Main Quad space is part of the carillon as an instrument, said Dickinson.

“These instruments were gifts to the College to share with the community,” Houlihan said. The carillon was installed so that community members would be able to hear it across campus and beyond, he added. The pipe organ was given to the College with the stipulation that it be built in Hartford by the Austin Organ Company and would be shared with the public in recitals.

Trinity’s organ contains 4,416 pipes; the largest are the size of trees and the smallest are the size of pencils. It was a gift from Mrs. Newton C. Brainard in memory of her husband, a former mayor of Hartford and a Trustee of the College for 41 years.

Of equal grandeur—though out of public view in the Chapel’s tower—is the 14.5-ton, 49-bell Plumb Memorial Carillon, one of approximately 200 such instruments in North America.

Of particular significance for the occasion, one piece that Houlihan selected for his recital was Concert Variations on ‘The Star-Spangled Banner,’ op. 23, by Trinity alumnus Dudley Buck, Class of 1859. “He went to Europe to study organ and composition, and became one of this country’s first organ virtuosos and a very important composer,” Houlihan said. Houlihan performs organ recitals nationally and internationally and serves as artistic director of the Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival Hartford, a national organ competition in residence at Trinity College.

Dickinson’s performance included Fanfare 1823, a new piece commissioned in honor of Trinity’s Bicentennial and debuted at the Bicentennial kickoff in May. “Fanfare 1823 opens and closes with the 1-8-2-3 theme [featuring the corresponding notes in the scale],” said Dickinson, who has been playing this carillon at Trinity for 14 years. “There are quotes from other pieces of music and other themes with various symbolism and meaning throughout the piece. I wrote it so that it doesn’t slow down or change tempo from start to finish.” It was designed for celebratory occasions and intended to be played into the future, she said.

“The marking of time has a special connection to the carillon, because the carillon originates historically from bells in a tower that were used in part for time-keeping,” said Dickinson, who also is director of bell programs at Yale University and artistic director of Music on the Hill, an independent music organization with five performing ensembles and music education opportunities. “The carillon is really connected to marking time—hours and minutes—and also larger time, so it extends naturally to anniversaries like the Bicentennial.”

Houlihan added that celebrating Trinity in this way was very special to him as an alumnus who returned to the College community. “Trinity has been a huge part of my life, my career, and my musical development,” he said. “I’m thrilled to celebrate Trinity’s Bicentennial and it’s wonderful to be part of all the festivities.”

These concerts were part of the annual Summer Music Series, a longstanding summer tradition in Hartford. The summer carillon concerts have been held every year since 1949, and even carried on virtually during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The chamber concerts in the Chapel are marking their 49th year this summer. “They’re always really popular,” Houlihan said. “Music is a part of how the community thinks of Trinity College.” Listeners are welcome every Wednesday evening in July and are invited to bring lawn chairs, blankets, and food.

More upcoming Chapel Music events at Trinity this fall include: Lunchtime Carillon and Organ Recital Series on Thursdays, Sept. 7, Oct. 5, and Nov. 2, at 12:10 p.m. and 12:40 p.m.; the 26th Annual Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival Hartford on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 22 and 23; a performance by Olivier Latry, organist of Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris, on Tuesday, Nov. 7, at 7:30 p.m.; and the 64th Annual Trinity College Christmas Festival of Lessons and Carols on Sunday, Dec. 10, at 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.