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The first concert of the 2012-2013 Concert Artist Series in the Sykes Chapel and Center for Faith and Values will also be a first for The University of Tampa. The concert, scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 7, at 2 p.m., will be the first to feature the chapel’s 3,184-pipe Dobson organ with an orchestra.

During the concert, titled “Concertos for Organ,” organists Haig Mardirosian, dean of the College of Arts and Letters, and Ryan Hebert, assistant professor of music, will perform in solo roles with a professional chamber orchestra conducted by Mardirosian and Kira Horel, assistant professor of music.

The program includes Francis Poulenc’s “Concerto for Organ, Strings and Timpani,” Howard Hanson’s “Concerto for Organ, Strings and Harp,” Jean Langlais’s “Piece in Free Form” and the famous “Adagio” of Tomaso Albinoni.

The Concert Artist Series features two evening concerts by the organist of Westminster Abbey in London, plus seven additional performances by renowned organists, pianists, choirs, violinists, orchestras and others. The traditional University of Tampa holiday celebration will also be performed as part of the series.

The upcoming concert dates follow. All concerts are free and open to the public, but seating is limited. Doors open 30 minutes before the concerts.

• GRIGORIOS ZAMPARAS, PIANIST, Sunday, Nov. 4, at 2 p.m. Program features the Busoni transcription of the Bach “Prelude,” “Adagio and Fugue in C” and the “Preludes for Piano” of Frederick Chopin. Zamparas is an assistant professor of music at UT.
• AND HEAVEN AND NATURE SING: A HOLIDAY CELEBRATION, Sunday, Dec. 2, at 2 and 4 p.m. Conducted by Ryan Hebert, performers include The University of Tampa choirs, The Tampa Brass and Haig Mardirosian on organ.
• THE GRAFFE STRING QUARTET, Sunday, Feb. 17, at 2 p.m. The Graffe String Quartet, from the Czech Republic, is one of the most acclaimed quartets of the younger generation. In 2010, the quartet was awarded the Czech Chamber Music Society Prize at the Dvorak Hall in Prague, designating it the most distinguished young ensemble in Central Europe. Grigorios Zamparas will accompany on piano.
• JAMES O’DONNELL, ORGANIST OF WESTMINSTER ABBEY, Friday, March 1, at 6 and 8 p.m. Continuing the tradition of inviting the world’s most acclaimed organists in concert on the Dobson organ of Sykes Chapel, UT presents the organist and master of the Choristers from London’s Westminster Abbey.
• THE MUSIC OF CÉSAR FRANCK, Sunday, April 7, at 2 p.m. The musical voice of César Franck was both distinctive and pivotal in the transition from the 19th to the 20th centuries in French music making. This program focuses on several monumental works: the “Grande Pièce Symphonique for organ” and the celebrated “Violin Sonata.” It closes with the jubilant setting of Psalm 150 for choir and organ. Conducted by Ryan Hebert, the performers includes Haig Mardirosian, organist; Lei Liu, violinist; Grigorios Zamparas, pianist; and the University of Tampa Chamber Choir. Hebert will hold a preconcert talk, The Music of César Franck,” at 1:15 p.m.

The Concert Artist Series 2012-2013 is sponsored by the UT College of Arts and Letters and the Sykes Chapel and Center for Faith and Values. For more information, contact caldean@ut.edu or go to www.ut.edu/sykeschapel.