Without Borders: The Organ & the Human Voice
Organ: Dalaie Choi
Soprano: Inyoung Lee
“Panis Angelicus” from Messe à trois voix, Op. 12 César Franck (1822–1890)
Prelude and Fugue in A minor, BWV 543, Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)
“Sheep May Safely Graze” Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)
Variations on Bach’s from Mass in B minor, S 180/R24 Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Gyeongsangdo Arirang Youngjo Lee (b. 1943)
“Summertime” from Porgy and Bess George Gershwin (1898–1937)
“I Could Have Danced All Night” from My Fair Lady, Frederick Loewe (1901–1988)
“Till There Was You” from The Music Man Meredith Willson (1902–1984)
“Yo soy María” from María de Buenos Aires Astor Piazzolla (1921–1992)
Fête Jean Langlais (1907–1991)
Program Notes
This recital explores the organ not only as an architectural instrument of resonance and structure, but as a living partner to the human voice. Moving across sacred tradition, personal grief, cultural memory, and theatrical vitality, the program traces a journey in which sound transforms—quiet reflection becoming shared celebration.
The evening opens with César Franck’s Panis Angelicus. Here, the organ does not assert grandeur; instead, it offers warmth and luminous support to the soprano. Devotion is expressed through intimacy rather than scale, through breath and gentle radiance.
Johann Sebastian Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in A minor, BWV 543, follows, presenting the organ as an instrument of design and propulsion. The Prelude surges forward with decisive momentum, while the Fugue unfolds in clarity and balance. Power emerges not from volume, but from structure—each voice listening to and shaping the whole. In this work, architecture becomes audible.
Bach’s Sheep May Safely Graze restores the human voice to the foreground. After architectural intensity comes pastoral lyricism, a reminder that order and song coexist. The organ and soprano move in partnership, neither dominating nor receding.
At the emotional center of the program stands Franz Liszt’s Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen. Originally composed as a piano work in 1859, Liszt returned to the piece in 1862 after the sudden death of his beloved daughter Blandine. In the midst of profound personal grief, he reshaped the work for organ, transforming it into a large-scale meditation on sorrow and faith. Built on the descending bass line from Bach’s Cantata No. 12, the thirty variations move through intensifying lament before culminating in the chorale “Was Gott tut, das ist wohl getan” (“What God does is done well”). Grief is neither denied nor erased; instead, it is gradually transformed. The organ becomes a space where mourning and transcendence coexist.
From this inward reflection, the program crosses cultural borders. Youngjo Lee’s Gyeongsangdo Arirang, transcribed for organ, reimagines a traditional Korean melody through layered resonance. Personal heritage meets architectural sound, allowing memory and place to expand within the instrument’s voice.
The second half of the recital moves outward into theatrical color. Gershwin’s Summertime, Willson’s Till There Was You, and Loewe’s I Could Have Danced All Night reveal the organ’s capacity for intimacy, warmth, and buoyant motion beyond sacred tradition. The instrument breathes alongside the soprano, dissolving boundaries between church, theater, and concert hall.
Astor Piazzolla’s Yo soy María introduces urban intensity and rhythmic urgency. Percussive gestures and bold harmonies transform the space with dramatic immediacy, drawing the listener fully into the present moment.
Jean Langlais’s Fête brings the evening to its final transformation. Rooted in the French organ tradition yet unmistakably modern in gesture, it channels brilliance, rhythm, and clarity into shared celebration. What began in quiet devotion now expands outward. Listening becomes participation; sound becomes communal energy.
Across centuries and cultures, the organ and the human voice reveal themselves as partners in movement—between structure and song, reflection and vitality, sorrow and celebration.
Biographies
Organist Dalaie Choi is an internationally active organist whose performances have taken her across the United States, Europe, and Russia. She has presented solo recitals at distinguished venues including Longwood Gardens (Pennsylvania, USA), Santa María del Coro in San Sebastián (Spain), St. Michaeliskirche and Nikolaikirche in Leipzig (Germany), the Berlin American Church, Erfurt Stadtkirche (Germany), and the Omsk Organ Hall (Russia). In 2018, she received the Minister of Culture Award in Russia.
In 2015 and 2016, she was selected as a full-scholarship Organ Fellow at the Oregon Bach Festival, where she performed in showcase concerts under the mentorship of Paul Jacobs. In 2025, she was named a full-scholarship fellow of the Yale Sacred Music Academy summer program, engaging in intensive performance study and leading worship music across multiple denominations. Her work at Yale further enriched her interpretive approach to sacred repertoire and liturgical leadership through collaboration with internationally active faculty and performers.
Dr. Choi earned her Bachelor of Music in Choral Conducting and Master of Music in Music History from Yonsei University. She later completed her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Organ Performance and Pedagogy at the University of Iowa, studying with Dr. Gregory Hand. She also earned a Master of Arts in Music and a Church Music Certificate at the University of Iowa. At the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, she studied with Dr. Jeremy Filsell and Prof. Donald Sutherland, earning a Graduate Performance Diploma. During her studies, she received the Bruce R. Eicher Prize and the James Winship Lewis Memorial Prize.
An active collaborator, she has performed in Germany with the First Presbyterian Church Choir of Davenport, Iowa. She previously served as Staff Pianist at Delaware State University and currently maintains a private organ studio, balancing performance with dedicated pedagogical work. Through individual instruction, mentorship, and community engagement, she seeks not only to cultivate professional-level musicianship but also to nurture lifelong appreciation for sacred and classical music traditions. Her students are active in church music, performance, and music education, reflecting her commitment to fostering the next generation of musicians and music lovers. Her artistry has also been featured in media appearances, including an interview and performance broadcast on KWQC News – Fran Riley Features.
Dr. Choi currently serves as Director of Music Ministry at Concordia Lutheran Church in Wilmington, Delaware, where she continues to combine liturgical leadership, performance excellence, and educational outreach within the church and broader community.
Soprano Inyoung Lee is an internationally recognized performer and pedagogue whose career spans opera, oratorio, and concert repertoire across North America, Europe, and Asia.
She is a graduate of Seoul Arts High School and earned both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Seoul National University. She later completed her graduate studies in Opera at Temple University’s Boyer College of Music and Dance, where she pursued Professional Studies and earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree.
Dr. Lee is a prizewinner in numerous prestigious international competitions, including the Luciano Pavarotti International Competition, the Lola Wilson Hayes International Competition, the Friday Morning Club International Music Competition, the Matinée Musicale Soloist Competition, and the NATS Artist Awards (NATSAA) Competition.
She has appeared as an invited soloist at major concert venues including Carnegie Hall in New York, Smetana Hall in the Czech Republic, and the Grand Opening celebration of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia. She was also featured as soprano soloist in Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem with support from the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Dr. Lee has performed as soprano soloist with numerous orchestras, including the North Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Philadelphia Chamber Orchestra, Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra, Black Pearl Symphony, Symphony in C, Yale University Orchestra, Curtis Orchestra, Temple University Orchestra, Lower Merion Symphony, the Mendelssohn Club, Oratorio Society of Queens, Philadelphia Singers, Philadelphia Singing City, Immaculata Symphony, Korean Symphony Orchestra, Incheon Philharmonic Orchestra, Gwangju Philharmonic Orchestra, Daegu Grand Symphony Orchestra, the National Chorus of Korea, and the Gwangju Civic Choir.
Her operatic roles have been presented by companies such as Des Moines Metro Opera, Chestnut Hill Operogue, Baisley Powell Elebash Opera Theater, and Temple Opera. Her repertoire includes leading roles in La Traviata, L’elisir d’amore, La Bohème, Le nozze di Figaro, Die Fledermaus, Les mamelles de Tirésias, The Turn of the Screw, and The Old Maid and the Thief.
An accomplished oratorio soloist, Dr. Lee’s performances include Messiah, The Creation, Elijah, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Mozart’s Requiem, Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem, Fauré’s Requiem, Bruckner’s Requiem, Rossini’s Stabat Mater, Poulenc’s Gloria, Vaughan Williams’ Agnus Dei, and Honegger’s King David, among many others.
She has been invited to perform in the United States, Canada, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Romania, China, and Korea. Her discography includes the solo albums Voyage à Paris, The Lord Is My Light, Reminiscences, and Only Jesus, as well as oratorio recordings of Messiah, The Creation, and King David.
Dr. Lee currently serves as Professor of Voice at West Chester University of Pennsylvania. Beginning in May 2026, she will also assume the role of Department Chair of Vocal and Keyboard, continuing her leadership and commitment to excellence in music education and performance.