ORGAN PERFORMANCES

Peter Krasinski | Mechanics Hall Principal Organist

Peter Edwin Krasinski is broadly recognized as a motivating consultant for the pipe organ community, and as a conductor, organist and music educator, whose imaginative and energetic performances elevate and inform audiences. Along with regular concert appearances he specializes in live improvised silent film accompaniment, worldwide. He has premiered the art in major venues in North America, Europe and Asia. He is the recipient of a number of prizes including the First Prize in Improvisation from the American Guild of Organists National Competition.

House Organist of the Providence Performing Arts Center, Mr. Krasinski was past Dean of the Boston Chapter AGO. He is Organist at First Church of Christ, Scientist in Providence RI, accompanist at Beth El Temple Center in Belmont, MA and recently presented Master Classes at the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki, Finland. He holds both a Bachelor of Music Degree in Music Education and Organ Performance, and the Master of Sacred Music Degree from Boston University.

Alexander Richard Straus-Fausto

Completing his master’s degree in organ performance at the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, Alexander Richard Straus-Fausto from Kitchener, Ontario is studying under the direction of Dr. Martin Jean. He completed his Bachelor of Music at McGill University Schulich School of Music and his secondary school studies at Michigan’s Interlochen Arts Academy. He has also studied with Dr. Alcée Chriss, Hans-Ola Ericsson, Dr. Isabelle Demers, Dr. Jonathan Oldengarm, Christian Lane, Rachel Laurin, Tom Bara, Dr. Peter Nikiforuk, and Joe Carere. While still a teenager, Straus-Fausto undertook a Canada Council- funded summer 2019 concert tour of the UK, playing in historic churches and cathedrals, and in 2024 he anticipates returning for concerts at St. Paul’s Cathedral and Westminster Abbey. Straus-Fausto is a member of The Diapason’s “20 under 30 class of 2023,” which recognizes young artists under the age of 30 who have made significant contributions to the field of organ performance. Straus- Fausto was one of ten semi-finalists in the Longwood Gardens International Organ Competition 2023.

Cecily DeMarco

Labeled a "Rising Star" by the American Guild of Organists, Cecily DeMarco (b.2000) is Organ Scholar at Hitchcock Presbyterian Church in Scarsdale, NY. She is a graduate of The Juilliard School where she earned her Bachelor of Music Degree. Currently, Cecily is in the Master of Music program at Juilliard and will continue to study with world renowned, Grammy award winning artist, Paul Jacobs.

Cecily has performed on both the east and west coasts, but most frequently in New York and Florida, appearing at venues such as St. Patrick’s Cathedral (NYC), Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church (NYC), Columbia University (NYC), Bethesda by the Sea (Palm Beach), and Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church (Fort Lauderdale). In 2021, Miss DeMarco competed and won first prize in the New York City Chapter of the Regional Competition for Young Organists (RCYO), and proceeded to also win first prize in the Northeast Regional Competition. Because of this win, she participated as a “Rising Star” in a winner’s concert at the 2022 American Guild of Organists National Convention in Seattle, Washington.