Organ virtuoso, television host to be featured in Artist Series at Evangel

October 9, 2006
Contact: Elaine Tate 865-2815 Ext. 8640.

Springfield, Mo. — World-renowned organist Diane Bish will be featured in a service of music during Evangel’s chapel service on Tuesday, Nov. 7, at 10 a.m.

There is no charge for admission, and the public is invited to attend.

Bish will play a variety of organ favorites and original hymn arrangements to demonstrate the varied colors and sounds capable of Evangel’s 40-rank, 3-manual Schantz pipe organ. The recital will also feature the organ’s horizontal State Trumpet by Patterson Organworks.

The recital is co-sponsored by the Evangel University Artist Series and the June Kean Pipe Organ Endowment Series.

The June Kean Pipe Organ Endowment Series was established in honor of the late Dr. June Kean, a member of Evangel’s music faculty from 1955 until her death in 1998.

For additional information, contact Elaine Tate, (417) 865-2815 ext. 8640.

About the organist

Bish is known internationally through her many recordings, concerts and weekly television appearances.

She currently hosts “The Joy of Music” television series, which combines her organ performances with those of other musicians, narrative and world travel. The series, broadcast by Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), FamilyNet and VisionTV in Canada, has been taped more than 300 times in locations such as famous cathedrals and concert halls. It is available to more than 300 million viewers weekly.

Bish was a recipient of the Fulbright and French government grants for study in Amsterdam and Paris. She was the first organist to receive the National Citation by The National Federation of Music Clubs of America (1989), which has also been given to musicians such as Leonard Bernstein, Eugene Ormandy, Van Cliburn, Robert Shaw and Irving Berlin.

For additional information, contact Evangel University at (417) 865-2811 or www.jejartists.com.

For information on interviewing Diane Bish for the media, call Janet Jarriel at (478) 742-1162 or email janet@jejartists.com.