|
| image = Keith_Chapman_at_Wanamaker_Console.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Dr. Chapman at the 6 [[manual (music)|6-manual]] [[Wanamaker Organ]] console
| birth_date = 1945<refJuly name="MIM">16, 1945
|title=Music in the Marketplace the story of Philadelphia's historic Wanamaker Organ ▼ |publisher=The Friends of the Wanamaker Organ ▼ |location=Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania ▼| birth_place = [[San Mateo, California]]
| death_date = June{{death 29,date 1989and (age 43 or 44)|1989|6|29|1945|07|16|mf=yes}}
| death_place = The Colorado Rockies
| other_names =
| nationality = USAAmerican
| known_for = Wanamaker Organist, [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]]
}}
'''Keith Chapman''' (1945-19891945–1989) was an American concert [[organist]] known best for his flair at playing in the [[Symphonic organ|symphonic style of organ performance]], and particularly for his long and distinguished association (1966-19891966–1989) with the [[Wanamaker's]] Department StoresStore of [[Philadelphia]] as theirthe principal [[organist]] of the [[Wanamaker Organ]].
== Early history ==
Dr. Chapman was born on July 16, 1945<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/176484890/keith-ronald-chapman |title=Keith Ronald Chapman |publisher=Find A Grave |access-date=May 18, 2019}}</ref> in [[San MateoBruno, California]] and grew up in [[San FranciscoBruno, California]]. An organ prodigy, he began formal study at age 5 with S. Leslie Grow, a student of [[Marcel DupreDupré]]. Chapman was the accompanist to the [[Capuchino High School]] Concert Choir while it was directed by Otto Mielenz. Having studied with [[Richard Purvis]], the organist at the time of [[Grace Cathedral, San Francisco]], KeithChapman eventually took up post there as Assistant Organist.
Dr. Chapman came to Philadelphia where he attended the [[Curtis Institute of Music]], from 1964 to 1968, studying organ under [[Alexander McCurdy]] who washad also been Purvis's teacher. HeChapman received a master's degree from [[Temple University]] in 1971 and an honorary doctor of musical arts degree from [[Combs College of Music]] in Philadelphia in 1978. He also had several original compositions and arrangements published for organ solo.
In addition to his appointment at Wanamaker's, Dr. Chapman performed with the [[Philadelphia Orchestra]] and served as organist and choirmaster at Philadelphia's [[First Presbyterian Church (Philadelphia)|First Presbyterian Church]], Wayne United Methodist Church in suburban Philadelphia, and [[History of the Jews in Philadelphia#Temple Keneseth Israel|Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel]].<ref name=OBIT>{{cite news|last1=Costantinou|first1=Marianne|title=Organist Dies In Crash Wanamaker's Musician, Wife Killed On Plane|url=http://articles.philly.com/1989-07-05/news/26135037_1_pilot-error-organist-recitals|accessdatearchive-url=11https://web.archive.org/web/20140521202158/http://articles.philly.com/1989-07-05/news/26135037_1_pilot-error-organist-recitals|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 21, 2014|accessdate=April 11, 2015|website=Philadelphia Daily News|date=July 5, 1989}}</ref>
== Association with Wanamaker ==
Dr. Chapman was appointed principal organist at Wanamaker's in 1966 at age 20 while he was still a student at Curtis. He would preside over the largest fully playable organ in the Worldworld, and would remain at that position for the next 23 years until his untimely death in 1989.
At the time of Dr. Chapman's appointment, the Wanamaker Organ had been underused. As one of his first projects Dr., Chapman arranged for the broadcast of Wanamaker radio concerts which were heard over Philadelphia radio station WUHY (now [[WHYY-FM]]) and included his own commentaries about the performances and the organ.
Chapman regularly welcomed visitors into the loft containing the [[organ console]] and permitted them to sit during performances. He also allowed visitors to be photographed with him on the organ bench.<ref>{{cite web|title=Experience the Wanamaker Organ|url=http://www.nightscribe.com/Music/wanamaker_organ.htm|publisher=nightscribe.com|accessdate=22 August 22, 2015}}</ref> In addition to several known instances of Chapman playing practical jokes on customers at the store, he was also known for multitasking while performing by playing [[chess]], reading newspaper stories aloud, or bantering with listeners in the loft.<ref name="MIM"/> His overarching goal was to entertain and gratify his audiences through his music and commentary from the loft.
▲ |title=Music in the Marketplace the story of Philadelphia's historic Wanamaker Organ
▲ |publisher=The Friends of the Wanamaker Organ
▲ |location=Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
===Compositions===
Keith Chapman published a number of pieces, most of which are arrangements of hymns or well-known melodies set in his personal style. They emphasize accent and rhythm for the faster pieces and harmonic variation in all of them, reminiscent of [[Debussy]] and [[Ravel]]. It is thought likely that many of these works began as improvisations from his daily work at Wanamaker's, where standard numbers, particularly Christmas selections, could be explored through experiment in the daily repetition. Chapman was a practical composer who sought to captivate appreciative audiences and achieve commercial success, while supplying the polished detail and variation that serious musicians would appreciate. Some pieces, such as an improvisation on " [[We Gather Together ]]" or an arrangement of " [[Ding Dong Merrily on High !]]" made reference to other compositions (" [[All Creatures of Our God and King ]]" and " [[BWV 615|In Dir Estist Freude ,]]" , respectively here). His "Fanfare and Procession" is thought to be a totally original work. He tended to play some of his faster, livelier pieces slightly ahead of the beat, with rhythm invariably being a strong factor. He championed the beauty of the symphonic sound of the pipe organ during an era when it was aggressively criticized by the "musically correct " of the period. Chapman said that an unfulfilled ambition was to be an orchestra conductor. Rights to much of his music are held by the [[Sony Corporation ]], and attempts at republicationre-publication have not yet (2017) met with success, although performance rights have been granted. ▼
Keith Chapman published a number of pieces, most of which are arrangements of hymns or well-known melodies set in his personal style. They emphasize accent and rhythm for the faster pieces and harmonic variation in all of them, reminiscent of [[Debussy]] and [[Ravel]]. His best-known composition is an arrangment of the traditional [[Christmas]] carol "[[Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella]]."
▲It is thought likely that many of these works began as improvisations from his daily work at Wanamaker's, where standard numbers, particularly Christmas selections, could be explored through experiment in the daily repetition. Chapman was a practical composer who sought to captivate appreciative audiences and achieve commercial success, while supplying the polished detail and variation serious musicians would appreciate. Some pieces, such as an improvisation on "We Gather Together" or an arrangement of "Ding Dong Merrily on High!" made reference to other compositions ("All Creatures of Our God and King" and "In Dir Est Freude," respectively here). His "Fanfare and Procession" is thought to be a totally original work. He tended to play some of his faster, livelier pieces slightly ahead of the beat, with rhythm invariably being a strong factor. He championed the beauty of the symphonic sound of the pipe organ during an era when it was aggressively criticized by the musically correct of the period. Chapman said that an unfulfilled ambition was to be an orchestra conductor. Rights to much of his music are held by the Sony Corporation, and attempts at republication have not yet (2017) met with success, although performance rights have been granted.
===Recordings===
At the time of Dr. Chapman's death, it was thought that all copies of his historic broadcasts had been destroyed. Eventually it was discovered that two enthusiasts of the [[Wanamaker Organ]] had reproduced digitally remastered recordings of these radio broadcasts of very high quality. The Friends of the Wanamaker Organ organization was able to reissue on compact disk three of the half-hour performances. These recordings are of special significance because, shortly after Dr. Chapman's death, both the Echo and Ethereal divisions of the organ were damaged in separate accidents and notbecame availableunplayable for many years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wanamakerorgan.com/details.php?pid=22&class=all&cid= |title=Keith Chapman, the Lost Radio Broadcasts Volume 1|website=wanamakerorgan.com|access-date=2013-07-28|archive-date=2012-06-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120603225643/http://wanamakerorgan.com/details.php?pid=22&class=all&cid=|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wanamakerorgan.com/details.php?pid=226&class=all&cid= |title=Keith Chapman, the Lost Radio Broadcasts Volume 2|website=wanamakerorgan.com|access-date=2013-07-28|archive-date=2014-09-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903163517/http://www.wanamakerorgan.com/details.php?pid=226&class=all&cid=|url-status=dead}}</ref> Other recordings include:
* ''The Grand Court Organ'' (1973)
* [[Mussorgsky]]’s's ''[[Pictures at an Exhibition]]'' (1975)
* ''Airs & Arabesques'' (1976)
* Chapman/Wanamaker - The Memorial Release - Vantage VCD 6304
* The Complete Chapman/Wanamaker Recordings - Vantage V2CD 69-694-001<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.organlive.com/index.php?m=9&artist=Keith%20Chapman|title=Organlive.com|publisher=organlive.com|access-date=2014-09-01|archive-date=2016-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305143124/http://www.organlive.com/index.php?m=9&artist=Keith%20Chapman|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* Keith Chapman - The "Lost Radio Broadcasts" - Vantage V2CD-698-002<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ohscatalog.org/wanoronrad.html|title=The Wanamaker Organ on the Radio|publisher=ohscatalog.org}}</ref>
* Keith Chapman - The "Lost Radio Broadcasts, Vol. 2" - Vantage WanaRadio2<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ohscatalog.org/wanoronradvo.html|title=Wanamaker Organ on the Radio, Vol. 2|publisher=ohscatalog.org}}</ref>
===Diamond Anniversary Concert===
In 1986 Dr., Chapman was featured artist for the landmark concert at the Wanamaker Grand Court whichthat celebrated Dr. Chapman'shis 20th anniversary as Wanamaker Organist and the Organ's [[Diamond Anniversaryjubilee|75th anniversary]]. Sponsored by the Wayne Concert Series, this was the first after-hours public organ concert at Wanamaker's in some 50 years. The tradition has been continued into the present day, largely under the auspices of the non-profit organization, The Friends of the Wanamaker Organ.
The 1986 concert was recorded at the time, and has been released on [[DVD]] by the Friends of the Wanamaker Organ. Also included is a 2009 update on the restoration of the instrument.<ref>{{cite web|title=Wanamaker Organ Diamond Anniversary Concert DVD|url=http://www.wanamakerorgan.com/details.php?pid=204&class=all&cid=|website=Friends of the Wanamaker Organ|publisher=Friends of the Wanamaker Organ, Inc.|accessdate=April 11, April2015|archive-date=September 21, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150921223257/http://wanamakerorgan.com/details.php?pid=204&class=all&cid=|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Death==
Chapman and his wife, Sally, were killed when their twin-engine [[Cessna 310]] crashed into the [[Sangre de Cristo Mountains]] of the [[Southern Rocky Mountains|Colorado Rockies]] while they were returning from a performance in California.<ref name=OBIT/><ref>{{cite web|title=NTSB Report No. DEN89FA154|url=https://app.ntsb.gov/pdfgenerator/ReportGeneratorFile.ashx?EventID=20001213X28548&AKey=1&RType=HTML&IType=FA|website=Aviation Accident Database|publisher=National Transportation Safety Board|accessdate=3 December 3, 2017}}</ref> The Chapmans were reportedly en route to visit Sally's daughter (from a previous marriage) and new grandchild in [[Omaha]], [[Nebraska]] at the time of the crash.<ref name= "Collins">{{cite news|last1=Collins|first1=Huntly|title=Keith Chapman, 44, Organist At Wanamakers|url=http://articles.philly.com/1989-07-05/news/26134973_1_organ-concert-twin-engine-plane-richard-purvis|accessdatearchive-url=11https://web.archive.org/web/20140904104610/http://articles.philly.com/1989-07-05/news/26134973_1_organ-concert-twin-engine-plane-richard-purvis|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 4, 2014|accessdate=April 11, 2015|website=The Philadelphia Inquirer|date=July 5, 1989}}</ref> Chapman was succeeded at [[Wanamaker's]] later that year by Peter Richard Conte.<ref>{{cite web|title=Facts and Figures About the Wanamaker Organ|url=http://www.wanamakerorgan.com/about.php|publisher=Friends of the Wanamaker Organ, Inc.|accessdate=April 11, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150405000936/http://wanamakerorgan.com/about.php|archive-date=April 5, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==References==
[[Category:1944 births]]
[[Category:1989 deaths]]
[[Category:American male organists]]
[[Category:Musicians from Philadelphia]]
[[Category:Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States]]
[[Category:Temple University alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century American musicians]]
[[Category:20th-century American organists]]
[[Category:20th-century American male musicians]]
[[Category:Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1989]]
| 