CEDAR RAPIDS — Cedar Rapids First Lutheran Church continues its 2025-2026 Musical Arts concert season on Sunday, November 9, at 3 PM with “Great American Organistsâ€, featuring Iowa native Dr. Stephen Hamilton. The concert is free and open to the public.
Hamilton’s program will take listeners on a centuries-spanning musical journey from the Renaissance to the twentieth century with composers such as Antonio Valente, Bernardo Pasquini, Johann Sebastian Bach, Cèsar Franck, and Maurice Duruflé.
Hamilton has a 40-year reputation as an international touring concert organist. Highlights include recent concerts at Notre Dame in Paris, Westminster Abbey and St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, as well as Merton College-Oxford, St. Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh, Glasgow Cathedral, and St. Peter’s in Regensburg. Appearances at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C, and Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, Oregon, figure among hundreds of solo recitals presented throughout the United States.
Hamilton’s love affair with the pipe organ began at an extremely early age. At a recent concert, he shared the following story: “My piano teacher took me to her church to let the organ tuner in. She said, ‘would you like to hear it?’ and I said, ‘sure’. I can remember the profound thrill I received from hearing that instrument. When I got home I announced to my parents— in the second grade — that I was going to be a concert organist.â€
Young Stephen went on to private organ studies in the fourth grade at Drake University. He earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at Southern Illinois University and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the Manhattan School of Music. He also pursued private studies with famous organists Arthur Poister and Marie-Claire Alain.
Hamilton will perform on First Lutheran’s new Parsons Opus 50 organ. Built under the strict supervision of the church’s organist and cantor, Dr. Brett Wolgast, former organ instructor at the University of Iowa and Coe College, the instrument is capable of playing the wide range of musical styles Dr. Hamilton’s concert will demand.
First Lutheran Church is located at 1000 3rd Ave. SE in Cedar Rapids at the corner of 3rd Avenue and 10th St. SE. Details are at .
