Director of Music, Organist,
and Master of the Choir...
From the January 2005 issue of The Eagle
“It is with great joy that we announce that Dr. Huw Lewis has been appointed Organist and Master of the Choir at St. John’s Episcopal Church of Detroit! After serving as the interim at St. John’s since September,
Fr. Steven J. Kelly, SSC, Rector of St. John’s offered the position on a permanent basis to Dr. Lewis, and he has agreed to take on this responsibility. This is Dr. Lewis’ second tenure at St. John’s, having served in the same position from 1974 to 1990.
Dr. Lewis will continue to commute from the western side of the state, where he continues to teach at
Hope College. We are grateful that he feels that the position here is worth the mileage he puts on his car each week!
Below is some background information from his
Phillip Truckenbrod Concert Artists Biography page, to re-introduce Huw to you if you have not already read about his many accomplishments. Already his hiring is causing a ‘buzz’ in the local music community, and it is considered a real coup for St. John’s to have had him join us!”
From his biography...
“Huw Lewis was born into a musical family in Wales, and received much of his formal training in the British Isles, studying at the
Royal College of Music in London and at
Cambridge University. His earliest experiences as a performing artist were gained in his native Wales, where he made his choral conducting ‘debut’ at age 10. It was after extensive studies as a violinist, pianist and organist, that he won the organ scholarship to
Emmanuel College, Cambridge.
In 1972, he came to the United States to study organ at the
University of Michigan, where he earned his Master’s and Doctorate degrees in organ performance, studying with
Robert Glasgow, Robert Clark and
Marilyn Mason. He has also studied privately with
Catharine Crozier.
Dr. Lewis was appointed College Organist at Hope College in 1990 and Chair of the Music Department in the autumn of 1994. Before that, he spent sixteen years as Director of Music at historic St. John’s Episcopal Church in Detroit where he also founded and directed the St. John’s Bach Society. He also served as choirmaster at
Temple Israel, West Bloomfield. At Hope College, in addition to playing for all formal College functions, he teaches organ and theory, and is responsible for coordinating the music theory program. Dr. Lewis is an active member of the
American Guild of Organists and has served as the Dean of the Detroit Chapter as well as the Michigan District Convener.”
You may read
Dr. Lewis’ complete biography at
Phillip Truckenbrod Concert Artists.
