David McKay was well versed in Colonial Opera in Boston and
Early American Choral music, especially William Billings.
He was Director of Music at 1st U from
1975-1985 and collaborated with the late Stephen Long (Trinity Lutheran)
in several concerts and vinyl recordings exploring eighteenth century choral
music. Among his compositions, many published by Choristers Guild &
ArtMasters, was the highly acclaimed Birds, Beaks, and Beautification
which was a short children’s opera telling the story of creation where God ran
out of “paint” for the birds’ wings and gave the last remaining bird a drop of
gold on its tongue, yielding beautiful songs.
In addition to music history and music theory, he taught
humanities courses at WPI.
Richard Jones offers this summary:
David was honored as a Lifetime
Member of WorcAGO
at the Festival Rededication of the Organ at Mechanics Hall thirty years ago
this September. The rededication committee decided to honor three individuals
(involved with the restoration) at the second of the two concerts --- Fritz
Noack, William Self, and David McKay. David had been very highly
regarded for his contributions to the study of early American music,
particularly that of William Billings, and to a revival of interest in it.
He was also well known as a composer. His settings of poems written by
Holocaust victims were featured at the second concert, sung by the Salisbury
Singers. (First Unitarian was much in evidence at the second concert ---
Wallace Robbins was the featured speaker, Malama Robbins the featured
conductor, and First Unitarian's director of music McKay was an
honoree.) Just as the committee quite intentionally chose to use only
Worcester musicians for the concerts, it chose to
honor Worcester's own as well. Shortly after the dedication concert,
Mechanics Hall commissioned an organ/orchestra concerto from McKay, and a
sonata which were premiered by David Craighead. Joe Policelli, Brenda
Fraser, and Ronald Stalford also performed at this concert on 16 November
1983 which featured The All Saints Choirs, the Wayland Consort, the
Isaiah Thomas Jazz Chorale, and the Worcester Chorus.
His works, which I think are in the archives
at the Historical Museum, are the only pieces of music ever commissioned
by Mechanics Hall.
One of David’s records: http://lfs.alexanderstreet.com/liner/47e720bf1cbce1bea9086312c35776d3/FW32382.pdf
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