Versatility is key for organist
Ruth Stevens
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Princeton's new principal University organist, David Messineo, in front of a chamber organ that resides in the Chapel. |
Messineo (pronounced mehs-ih-NAY-oh) joined the Princeton community as principal University organist July 1. Two weeks before he started his new job, he found out that continuing his 29-year string of church organ performances might be put to the test here.
The Chapel is in the midst of a two-year restoration that began this past February. The project includes repointing and repairing the stonework and the masonry, and releading the stained glass windows. In order to protect the Mander organ from the damaging dust, the decision was made to cover the instrument and seal the chamber.
"The organ here is one of the best in this part of the country and the acoustics in the Chapel are tremendous," Messineo said. "It will be well worth the wait."
Penna Rose, director of Chapel music, and Messineo have worked together to develop a creative schedule that offers patrons the variety of music they seek (see related story below). Messineo will be performing on an organ in Proctor Hall at the Graduate College, as well as on an electronic digital organ that has been temporarily installed in the Chapel.
Although he's a classically trained musician, Messineo likes to extend beyond the confines of the traditional when it comes to his craft.
He started playing the piano at age 4, and took up organ at age 11. Only a few months after he began playing, he landed his first job in a Pennsylvania church with an organ that dated from the 1850s.
"My dad and I rebuilt that organ, and have continued to rebuild other organs since then," said Messineo, whose father was trained as an engineer. In fact, they are currently working on an organ that will be installed in the younger Messineo's home.
The organist earned his bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees from the Juilliard School in New York City. For eight years, he was the associate director of music/organist at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Newark. For the past 16 years, he served as minister of music at the Glen Ridge Congregational Church, where he played the organ and directed seven choirs. He also has been a professor of organ at Montclair State University for the past 12 years.
But a quick look at Messineo's biographical sketch reveals his wider interests. In 1979, he opened the new Christmas show at Radio City Music Hall and continued as organist there for several years, playing with such celebrities as Liberace and Frank Sinatra. In July 1996, he was invited to play a concert at the music hall for the National Centennial Convention of the American Guild of Organists by Peter Schickle of PDQ Bach fame. He has won the guild's New York City Chapter Competition three times and has twice been a finalist in the national competition.
Messineo's name might be familiar to Princeton audiences from another sidelight. He is a silent movie accompanist, and has performed on campus five times in the past. He'll present an encore of "The Phantom of the Opera" in the Chapel Friday, Oct. 20.
"I studied theater organ with a former silent movie accompanist," Messineo said, "and he wanted to pass the art on to me. I'm very interested in silent movies -- I love everything from that era of the teens into the 1920s.
"This is not something most classical organists would do," he continued. "I just like the variety and the versatility. It's fun to enjoy different kinds of music."
Related article
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September 25, 2000 Contents • Message
in a bottle • Officers
bond on beat (& crime stats) • Versatility
is key for organist • Faculty, staff invited to explore instant classics • Renovated
theater debuts
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