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GARDEN GROVE, Calif. (Nov. 14, 2022) — It is with great sadness that the Diocese of Orange and Christ Cathedral community announces the passing of Dr. Frederick Swann, a legendary organist whose expertise helped the cathedral restore the Hazel Wright Organ earlier this year.
Fred passed away peacefully in his Palm Desert home on Nov. 13. He was 91.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Under the Rev. Robert Schuller’s ministry when Christ Cathedral was the Crystal Cathedral, Fred served as the principal organist and music director from 1982 to 1998. During that time, Fred regularly played for Schuller’s “Hour of Power” on the Hazel Wright Organ, helping transform that ministry into a world-famous broadcast and making Hazel the most widely heard pipe organ in the world.
Fred’s tenure with the Crystal Cathedral also influenced generations of organists, as did his teaching of organ music in both New York and California. Prior to coming to the Crystal Cathedral, Fred was organist of the Riverside Church in New York City from 1952 to 1982.
After the Diocese of Orange purchased the Crystal Cathedral property in 2012 with the intent on transforming it into a Catholic center of worship as Christ Cathedral, Fred was enlisted to help restore the Hazel Wright Organ. As chief consultant of the organ’s restoration committee, his decades of experience with Hazel — dating to the instrument’s original installation in 1982 — were uniquely invaluable.
Hazel’s full restoration by the Fratelli Ruffatti firm, one of the organ’s original builders, was completed earlier this year. Fred saw the project, which took nearly a decade, all the way through, and he even played Hazel during a special signing ceremony in February 2022 for Diocese leaders. He was also featured in “Hazel is Back: Restoring an Icon,” a documentary about the restoration effort.
This summer, when asked by OC Catholic, the Diocese’s official newspaper, what the Hazel Wright Organ meant to him, Fred said, “It’s been my good fortune to play the largest and finest organs around the world, and the church positions I’ve held each had super five-manual instruments. But the organ in the Crystal Cathedral — and especially now as rebuilt in Christ Cathedral — tops them all. The design is unique and the superb rebuild by the Ruffatti firm leaves nothing to be desired. Great beauty and infinite possibilities!”
Fred’s legacy lives on forever on the Christ Cathedral campus not only with the constant playing of the Hazel Wright Organ that he helped restore, but with the Frederick Swann Organ located inside the campus’ Arboretum. The instrument there, first installed in 1996, is an 82-rank, 4,949-pipe Aeolian-Skinner model.
David Ball, Christ Cathedral’s music director and principal organist, has always said that Fred Swann is one of his musical heroes.
“Like so many organists, I was excited to tune in to the ‘Hour of Power’ broadcasts just to get the thrill of watching Fred Swann simultaneously conduct and play from the Hazel Wright Organ console,” Ball said. “As president of the American Guild of Organists, Fred’s confident leadership was an aspirational example for all professional organists. And, as a gentleman and legendary musician, the whole organ world looked up to Fred Swann.
“Just this past February, we watched him play on the newly restored Hazel Wright Organ in Christ Cathedral. It was magic. Even though it had been years since his Crystal Cathedral days, Hazel was still truly his instrument, and all of us lucky enough to be in the cathedral that day will always treasure his poetic playing. Rest in peace, Fred.”
* About the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange
With 1.3 million Catholics, 57 parishes, five Catholic centers and 35 schools, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange is one of the largest and most diverse faith communities in the United States. The Diocese empowers Catholics across Orange County to have an active life of faith that is integrated and woven into the fabric of their daily lives through the community and sacramental life of the Church. Under the leadership of Bishop Kevin Vann, the Diocese works to establish and support dynamic, vibrant parishes and schools welcoming all to live the Gospel with faith, joy, charity and unity. Christ Cathedral, the spiritual home of the Bishop of Orange, was dedicated in July 2019.