Visiting Artists

Layton “Skip” James

Layton “Skip” James

Harpsichord
Hudson, Wis.
Bio | Events | Images

Biography

Known to all as “Skip,” Layton James has been principal keyboard artist with The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra since 1969. James is also a conductor and composer internationally known for his cadenzas for Baroque and Classical concertos. In April 2002, the SPCO premiered James’ adaptation of J.S. Bach’s B-Minor Partita for full string orchestra, a piece originally composed for solo violin. He has also scored organ music and choral selections for the SPCO holiday concerts. James is music director and organist at Bethel Lutheran Church in Hudson, Wisconsin, and has been a clinician for the American Choral Directors Association and the American Guild of Organists. He has performed on several LifeStyle Records albums, and is the featured harpsichordist on Robert Shaw’s 1984 and 1987 recordings of Handel’s Messiah. A builder of harpsichords, James plays one of his instruments with the SPCO. He trained as a musicologist at Cornell University and has taught music history and performance practice courses at the University of Hawaii, Stanford, Cornell, Macalester College and Westminster Choir College. He has also been named one of the newest Steinway Artists. In his spare time, James is an enthusiastic trout fisherman and amateur chef.

James was also a featured artist at the 2007 White Pine Festival.

Events

Talk: The Art of Fly Fishing

10 AM Saturday, June 21 [ free ]
See a different side of renowned keyboardist Skip James when he explains the art of fly fishing in this riverside talk. Skip will give an explanation of flies based upon entomology of the local streams, a description of tackle, and a demonstration of casting techniques. No previous fishing experience or equipment is necessary.

Closing Concert: Skip James & Friends

4 PM Sunday, June 22 [ buy tickets ]
The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra's internationally known harpsichordist Skip James returns to the festival to present a magnificent program of Bach favorites along with two of his friends and SPCO colleagues, violinist Daria Adams and flautist Julia Bogorad-Kogan, who will join him for two duets. For the finale, James will perform Bach's notoriously challenging Goldberg Variations on the harpsichord, giving listeners the rare chance to hear them played live and on the instrument for which they were originally written.