Two leading musicians – organist Stefan Engels and conductor Earl Rivers - will visit Westminster in February.  The community is invited to attend several events presented by each at no charge.

Stefan Engels, a former member of Westminster’s organ faculty, will return to campus February 15 through 18, 2008.   On February 15, he will lead a discussion of the state of church music in Germany with sacred music students.  He will also conduct a series of master classes with Westminster organ students on February 16 and 18.  The public is invited to attend his recital on Sunday, February 17 at 7:30 p.m. in Miller Chapel on the campus of Princeton Theological Seminary, which is co-sponsoring his performance.  His program will include works by Weckmann, Tunder, Böhm, Bruhns and J.S. Bach.

An internationally acclaimed performer and teacher, Stefan Engels served as a member of Westminster’s organ faculty from 1999 through 2005, when he was appointed professor of organ at the Hochschule in Leipzig, Germany.

Earl Rivers, director of choral studies and head of the Division of Ensembles and Conducting at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, will be on campus February 25 and 26, 2008.  He will lead master classes and lectures preparing Westminster Choir and Westminster Kantorei for their March performances of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with the New York Philharmonic.  A schedule of public events featuring Dr. Rivers is on the Westminster Web site.

Music director and conductor since 1988 of the Vocal Arts Ensemble of Cincinnati (VAE), a professional chamber choir of 24 singers, Earl Rivers and the VAE have received two ASCAP-Chorus America Awards for “Adventuresome Programming of Contemporary Music.”