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RICHARD J. CLARK is an eclectic musician — composer, conductor, organist, pianist, and songwriter. He is the Director of Music of the Archdiocese of Boston and the Cathedral of the Holy Cross where he plays the 101-rank 1875 E. & G. G. Hook & Hastings organ, Opus 801. He previously served for twenty-eight years at St. Cecilia Parish, Boston. At the age of twenty-three, he was appointed Director of Music in 1992 after serving as Organist since 1989. He has also served the Jesuit Community for decades as Chapel Organist (Saint Mary’s Chapel) at Boston College.
His integrated career as composer, performer, and conductor is characterized in the Boston Musical Intelligencer:
“Clark’s work embodies a level of artistic and liturgical integration we seldom encounter today—where the roles of composer, performer, and music director exist not separately, honoring a beautiful space, the great instrument within, and a pool of talented musicians giving soul to music.“
Over the years, he has served the Archdiocese of Boston and beyond in numerous liturgies, conferences, and liturgical projects, including directing the Office of Divine Worship Saint Cecilia Schola in recordings of the ICEL Chants from the Roman Missal, Third Edition.
The Boston Musical Intelligencer hails his “compelling,” and “emotionally committed” organ playing. The Boston Globe calls the music of the Cathedral Choir “stirring” and “profound.” The American Organist magazine praises “Gregorian Impressions” for its “engaging developments,” and Ministry & Liturgy Magazine has called his music “transformative” as well as “expertly arranged and prayerfully sung.”
The Boston Musical Intelligencer also praises his distinct compositional voice:
“Capturing a blend of sacred music traditions, with rich tonality, his music feels simultaneously canonical and fresh. His well-defined compositional voice invariably says ‘Clark’”.
Clark’s compositions have been performed worldwide including performances in Russia of his organ work “Ascent to Freedom” by American virtuoso Mark Husey, his “Triptych on ‘Lumen ad Revelationem'” by Jennifer Pascual, and various performances by the American Boychoir under the direction of GRAMMY-winning conductor Fernando Malvar-Ruiz. His “Te Deum” for Orchestra, soloists, and chorus was premiered in Paris in April of 2022. Ministry & Liturgy Magazine has called his music “transformative” as well as “expertly arranged and prayerfully sung.” His liturgical, choral, and organ works are published by World Library Publications, Lorenz/The Sacred Music Music Press, CanticaNOVA Publications, RJC Cecilia Music, and Corpus Christi Watershed.
As performer and composer his eclectic appearances include St. Patrick’s Cathedral (NY), Saint-Eustache (Paris), the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (D. C.), EWTN, the Celebrity Series of Boston, Fenway Park, and the New York Songwriters Circle at NYC’s historic “The Bitter End.”
His compositions have been broadcast on radio in New York, New England, and Europe. He appears with his wife, clarinetist Kara Gretschel Clark, on the Cathedral Encores CD featuring the 1875 E. & G.G. Hook, Opus 801, at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross (Boston). He also appears with trumpeter Richard Kelley on RJC Cecilia Records of his 2012 Requiem pour une américaine à Paris, and the 2022 release Fearfully and Wonderfully Made CD which includes a collaboration with GRAMMY-nominated poet E. Ethelbert Miller on the track “If My Blackness Turns to Fruit.” His 2021 release of the Boston Cathedral Singers From the Bell Tower has been featured on Rome Reports TV, and SIRIUS XM’s Sounds from the Spires with Dr. Jennifer Pascual. He has also been featured by the Organ Media Foundation (here and here.) He has also served as conductor for Pueri Cantores and on the faculty of the Sacred Music Symposium in Los Angeles, California. He has been a featured speaker and performer for National Pastoral Musicians (NPM) national meetings. He currently serves on the Executive Board of the National Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions (FDLC).
Born in Greenwich Village, New York City, he grew up in Long Island, New York. He currently lives with his wife and four children in Milton, Massachusetts.
Click here to contact Richard J. Clark via Email.