MEET OUR ORGANIST!

Jackson Borges

Jackson Borges, organist, began formal studies in piano and voice at age 13 and organ at age 15. Since that time, he has been in demand to serve in capacities ranging from accompanist to vocalist, church musician to concert soloist and vocal and instrumental coach to musical theatre player. Jackson has performed extensively at home and abroad in venues such as the Spreckels Organ Pavilion, St. Paul’s Cathedral and First United Methodist Church, San Diego and Khandallah Presbyterian Church, Wellington, New Zealand. His orchestral debut was made in 2005 performing as organ soloist for Joseph Jongen’s monumental “Symphonie Concertante” with the University of Southern Mississippi Symphony. That same year, Jackson served as organist for the same institution’s Southern Chorale at the American Choral Director’s Association National Convention, performing at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. He has premiered new organ works by American composers Carolyn Hamlin and Daniel E. Gawthrop and has been awarded top scholarship and competition prizes from the American Guild of Organists, the Spreckels Organ Society and the Pacific Council of Organ Clubs.

Jackson holds the Bachelor of Music degree in Organ Performance from San Diego State University where he studied with Robert Plimpton. Other teachers have included Dr. John Redford and Dr. Steven Gray, with additional coaching in theatre organ and improvisation from the late Tom Hazleton. Jackson is presently completing the Master of Music degree in Organ Performance at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey as a student of Alan Morrison. He served as Director of Music and Organist at First Presbyterian Church of Freehold, New Jersey.