Organ Recital: Ryan Dodge

Edward Elgar (1857-1934)
from Organ Sonata, Op. 28
   I. Allegro maestoso

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
“Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme”, BWV 645

Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992)
Apparition de l'Eglise éternelle

Ryan Dodge (b. 1993)
Variations on a Hymn Tune


Writing music that “resonates with edginess and modernity” (La Voz Latina Regional), composer, producer, and performer Ryan Dodge is committed to reinvigorating contemporary concert music through his unique synthesis of cutting edge modern classical composition and popular/world music. Through his work as a composer of both secular and sacred music, Ryan’s compositions have been heard in concert halls and houses of worship throughout the world including Lincoln Center, Disney Hall, and the Vatican.

Recordings of Ryan’s music have been heard across the country in media including radio and television. Michael Hey’s performance of Ryan’s Psalm 30 for organ was featured on NPR’s Pipedreams in both 2018 and 2020; and recently, the hip-hop track Gold-Bottom Rack by upcoming Portland artist MrMitchellHimself (produced by Ryan) received widespread airplay in the Pacific Northwest this summer. Ryan’s collaboration, USA: A Beacon of Hope (co-written with a team for BPM Productions), was featured across Arizona Public Television as a part of a “virtual parade” for Veterans Day 2020.

Through a joint-commission between the UK’s Choir and Organ Magazine and St. Thomas Church (5th Avenue), his Fanfare on “Ding, Dong Merrily on High” was published as a feature in the magazine and later performed live in the US.

A graduate of the Juilliard School in composition, Ryan’s teachers and mentors include composers Samuel Adler and Kenneth Frazelle, and Grammy-winning organist Paul Jacobs. In addition to his work as a composer, Ryan is a multi-instrumentalist who has played concerts and recitals across the country and has been seen on EWTN (Eternal Word Network), New York’s News 12—Brooklyn, and the Grenada Broadcasting Network in the Caribbean.

Ryan is currently the music director of St. Matthew Roman Catholic Church in Brooklyn and his music is published by Morningstar Press. For more information and samples of his work, visit: ryandodgemusic.com.