Romeri Duo to Present Organ-Flute Recital May 7

Performance Music at The University of Scranton will present a recital by the father-son duo of organist John A. Romeri and flautist John Romeri on Saturday, May 7.

The recital will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Houlihan-McLean Center, Mulberry Street and Jefferson Avenue.

Admission is free, with seating on a first-come, first-seated basis.

A church musician for nearly 50 years, John A. Romeri has served in Catholic churches and cathedrals across the country. Most recently, he served as the first director of music for the newest American cathedral, Christ Cathedral in Orange County, California. While there, he established the Cathedral choirs, Diocesan Choir and Diocesan Children’s Choir. In addition, he served as the host of “Music from the Tower,” a weekly radio program focused on sacred and classical music.

 “We are very excited to welcome this dynamic father-son duo, and to introduce them for the first time to our concert hall and its mighty Austin,” said Cheryl Y. Boga, director of Performance Music at The University of Scranton.

John A. Romeri’s choirs have toured the United States, Europe and Canada, and he has served in leadership positions with the American Guild of Organists, the National Association of Pastoral Musicians and Pueri Cantores.  Through the years, he has received a number of awards, including the Westminster Choir College Alumni Merit Award and the Paul Creston Award from St. Malachy, the Actor’s Chapel in New York City.

Meanwhile, his son, John Romeri, is the co-founder and artistic director of the Broadway Chamber Players, a group of Broadway pit musicians who play chamber music concerts in New York’s Theater District. In addition, he maintains an active teaching and performance schedule throughout the Northeast, often performing with the Stamford, Delaware, Harrisburg and Lancaster symphonies, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and Philadelphia Virtuosi and Black Pearl Chamber orchestras, as well as at St. Paul's Chapel of Trinity Wall Street and Central Park’s Shakespeare in the Park.

For many years, the younger Romeri has been a sought-after musician for numerous Broadway shows, among them “Carousel,” “Wicked,” “Miss Saigon,” “Sunset Boulevard,” “My Fair Lady,” “The King and I,” “She Loves Me,” “An American in Paris,” “On the Town,” “Les Misérables” and “Beauty and the Beast.” He has also performed music for such television shows as “Mildred Pierce,” “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” “The Sound of Music Live!” and “Peter Pan Live!”

The Houlihan-McLean Center’s Austin Opus 301 symphonic organ was built in 1910 by the Austin Organ Company of Hartford, Connecticut, for Scranton’s Immanuel Baptist Church. Restored and re-dedicated by the University in 2005, the organ is one of the few rare surviving original examples of early 20th-century organ building, possessing a total of 3,178 pipes, 45 ranks and four manuals. The instrument is maintained by artist/technicians from Emery Brothers/Dieffenbach organs.

For the performance, audience members are required to wear a higher-grade mask (N95, KN95, KF94 or double masking) at all times. Please check Performance Music’s website, scranton.edu/music, within 24 hours of the concert for the most current information on additional required audience COVID-19 mitigation measures (e.g., masking, vaccination, distancing, etc.).

For further information on the recital, call 570-941-7624, email music@scranton.edu or visit scranton.edu/music. For more info on John A. Romeri, visit johnromeri.com. For more on John Romeri, visit www.broadwaychamberplayers.org/about.