WALDOBORO — Organist Kevin Birch returns to Waldoboro’s Broad Bay Congregational Church on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, at 7 p.m., 941 Main Street, Waldoboro, for a concert on the church’s historic 1875 E. & G. G. Hook & Hastings Organ, accompanied by violinist Anatole Wieck and cellist Sarah Hoskins.   

The program will feature Joseph Rheinberger’s Suite for Organ, Violin and Cello (1887) and works of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) and Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924).  

“Rheinberger’s Suite for Organ, Violin and Cello (Opus 149) is a major chamber work for a rarely-explored combination of instruments, said Kevin Birch, in a news release. “We are looking forward to performing it at Broad Bay Congregational Church!” 

Kevin Birch has performed solo recitals in the US, Canada, Europe and South America. He studied at the New England Conservatory and the University of Iowa, earning a Master of Music and a Doctor of Musical Arts. He is Director of Music at St. John’s Catholic Church in Bangor and is the Executive Director of St. John’s Organ Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and stewardship of E. & G. G. Hook’s Opus 288, built for St. John’s Church in 1860. He is especially devoted to the many historic fine organs in Maine.

Born in Latvia, Anatole Wieck studied violin and viola at the Juilliard School of Music in NYC where he earned his bachelor, master and doctorate degrees. Since 1986, Dr. Wieck has performed in Europe, and North and South America as well as teaching at the University of Maine.

Sarah Hoskins plays cello in the Bangor Symphony; collaborates with musicians, dancers and spoken word artists; and teaches music to K-8 students. She earned Cello Performance degrees at Wheaton College and DePaul University and was a prize winner in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition.  

The concert is free to the community with donations welcomed. It is part of the Broad Bay Church’s 40th anniversary series of events.  

Founded in a kitchen in North Waldoboro, then into a temporary space in Meenahga Grange, the Church purchased its present location in 2002. From 1984 to today, Broad Bay Church has served the community for 40 years.  

Broad Bay Congregational Church United Church of Christ is an open and affirming congregation.“No matter who you are, wherever you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.” United Church of Christ.