Concerts at First Church presents organist Ahreum Han in concert.
Organist Ahreum Han Congdon’s imaginative, powerful, and extraordinary performances have thrilled audiences throughout the United States, Asia, and Europe. Ahreum was a featured soloist at the National Convention of the American Guild of Organists held in Nashville, Tennessee in 2012. She was a featured artist at the Regional Convention of the AGO held in Atlanta, Georgia (2007), the Winter Conclave of the AGO held in Sarasota, Florida, (2010), the Young Virtuosi Festival held at Wesleyan University, Connecticut, Colorado State University, Colorado, and the White Mountain Musical Arts Bach Festival in New Hampshire.
Ahreum has appeared as a solo recitalist at the Kimmel Center’s Verizon Hall (Philadelphia);
St. Bartholomew’s Church and Trinity Church, Wall Street (NYC); Princeton University Chapel; Memorial Chapel at Harvard University (Boston); Ocean Grove Auditorium (Ocean Grove,
New Jersey), Spivey Hall, (Morrow, Georgia) St. Philip’s Cathedral (Atlanta), Broadway Baptist Church (Fort Worth), Merrill Auditorium (Portland, Maine), Jack Singer Hall (Calgary, Canada), Michealskirche (Leipzig, Germany), Oxford Town Hall (Oxford, United Kingdom), Nottingham Albert Concert Hall (Nottingham, UK), and Esplanade Hall in Singapore. She has appeared as organ soloist with the Curtis Symphony Orchestra at Kimmel Center and the University of Pennsylvania Orchestra at Irvine Auditorium.
Ahreum has received top prizes from numerous competitions including the Oundle Award, undergraduate division of Westminster Choir College Scholarship Competition, the Charlotte Hoyt Bagnall Scholarship Competition, the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) National Young Artist Performance Competition, the John Rodland Memorial Church Music Scholarship Competition, the Albert Schweitzer organ competition, the Carlean Neihart Organ Competition, the Edwin Seder prize at Yale Institute of Sacred Music, and the West Chester University Organ Competition. Her live performances have been featured on the radio show PIPEDREAMS from American Public Media.
She was born in Seoul, Korea. Her family immigrated to Atlanta, Georgia when she was sixteen. Ahreum graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in organ performance from Westminster Choir College where she studied with Ken Cowan. She obtained a Diploma from the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music having studied with Alan Morrison. Ms. Han received her Master’s degree from Yale School of Music and Yale Institute of Sacred Music studied with Thomas Murray.
Ahreum is presently the Principal Organist, Assistant Director of Music, and Artist-in-Residence at First Presbyterian Church in Davenport, Iowa. She was on organ faculty as Lecturer at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. She has served as the Principal Organist at First Presbyterian Church in West Chester, Pennsylvania, an organist at Marquand Chapel of Yale Divinity School, an organist the Berkeley Divinity School of Yale University, and Organist at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Stamford, Connecticut. Ahreum was recently married to Todd Congdon and they reside in Davenport, IA.