Chicago mourns organ legend

The death is reported of Thomas Wikman, founder of Music of the Baroque and organist of Hyde Park’s Church of St. Paul and the Redeemer. He was 81.

After working as a music director in the Chicago suburbs, in 1968, Wikman was offered the position of music director at the Church of St. Paul & the Redeemer in Hyde Park. Although the salary was less than what he was making, the move to the thriving arts community would pay off in other ways. “This neighborhood was so rich in resources,” Wikman said. “I knew what I could do here.” He offered free voice lessons to help build the choir, and word spread throughout the Chicago singing community. Next, he needed an orchestra. Composer Ralph Shapey’s avant-garde concerts at the University of Chicago led Wikman to violinists Elliott Golub and Everett Zlatoff-Mirsky, who agreed to lead the ensemble.

Music of the Baroque’s first official concert took place in 1972 at the Church of St. Paul & the Redeemer. Wikman led a chorus, a quartet of vocal soloists, and an orchestra of 28 in two Bach cantatas, drawing capacity audiences and paving the way for the ensemble to flourish in the decades ahead. Wikman took Music of the Baroque to New York in 1987, performing Bach’s Christmas Oratorio to critical acclaim. In the mid-90s, Wikman led Music of the Baroque in a performance inaugurating the newly restored Library of Congress in front of an audience of cardinals as they opened the Vatican’s “Rome Reborn” exhibit. (The Library of Congress now houses The Mintel Archive, a comprehensive collection of Dick and Judy Mintel’s recordings that includes most of Music of the Baroque’s early performances.) Music of the Baroque also appeared at the Ravinia Music Festival and the White House during his tenure…

Music of the Baroque’s music director, Dame Jane Glover, commented:

As a principal legatee of the organization that Tom Wikman founded, I cannot adequately express my gratitude for his vision, his knowledge, and his leadership. Music of the Baroque was built on all of those, and, like the rest of Chicago’s musical community, I mourn his loss while continuing to celebrate his mighty and lasting achievements. I send profound condolences to his family and friends. Requiem aeternam et lux perpetua luceat eis.