A free concert featuring organists Kevin Birch (above) and Scott Vaillancourt, accompanied by the Androscoggin Chorale and the Prince of Peace Men’s Choir will be held Sept. 27, at the Basilica of St. Peter and Paul, Ash Street, Lewiston.

LEWISTON — As part of the concert series celebrating the 75th anniversary of the installation of the Casavant organ, a free concert will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, at the Basilica of St. Peter and Paul, 122 Ash Street. Donations gratefully accepted for the restoration fund for the Casavant organ. This concert features organists Kevin Birch and Scott Vaillancourt, accompanied by the Androscoggin Chorale and the Prince of Peace Men’s Choir. Music of Widor, Bach, Vierne and Guilmant will be performed.

Birch is a member of the music faculty at University of Maine where he teaches organ and harpsichord and conducts The Athena Consort, UMaine’s Women’s Choir. Since 1992 he has served as Director of Music at St. John’s Catholic Church in Bangor where, in addition to choir training and service playing, he directs the St. John’s Organ Society – an organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the church’s historic E. & G. G. Hook Pipe Organ, Opus 288 (1860).

Founded in 1972, the Androscoggin Chorale is an auditioned, mixed-voice community chorus based in Lewiston-Auburn. Led by Maine Music Society Artistic Director John Corrie, the 60-voice chorale has distinguished itself with an ever-evolving level of excellence and professionalism. The group’s diverse repertoire reflects its desire to explore a broad range of musical genres — contemporary, musical theatre, classical, opera, oratorio — and master the challenges of increasingly complex material.

For more information, visit www.princeofpeace.me.

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