Wilma Jensen celebrates 97th birthday

At age 97, Wilma Hoyle Jensen proved that, for her, age was no barrier to musicianship. Though her walk to the bench was measured, once she began to play, she lived up to the long legacy of her career.

On June 28, at St. George’s Episcopal Church, Nashville, Tennessee, where Jensen was choirmaster and organist for twenty years, Jensen’s friends, former students, and four generations of her family gathered for a three-part concert. Her program featured a few of her signature pieces including Cortège et Litanie by Marcel Dupré and Méditation à Sainte Clotilde by Philip James. The recital ended with a three-song section featuring soprano, Christi John Bye, including a finale with Con te partirò (Time to Say Goodbye). Though Jensen warned the audience that age had begun to affect her reach and the stretch of her hands, it was a memorable afternoon of music. 

For information: wilmajensen.com.