Diane Meredith Belcher

Diane Meredith Belcher (born 1960) is an American concert organist, teacher, and church musician. She has given a large number of solo recitals throughout the United States and abroad, is a teacher, and serves as Music Director at Saint Thomas Episcopal Church, and Lecturer in Music Theory & Organ at Dartmouth College, both in Hanover, New Hampshire. Her concert career is managed by Karen McFarlane Artists, Inc.

Diane Meredith Belcher earned the degree of Bachelor of Music in 1982 from the Curtis Institute of Music, and the degree of Master of Music in 1983 from the Eastman School of Music. Her teachers include David Spicer, John Weaver, Clarence Watters, David Craighead, and Wilma Jensen (organ); Ford Lallerstedt (music theory, counterpoint and keyboard studies); Edward Aldwell and David Beach (music theory).

Belcher made her solo recital debut at age 15 at The Wayne Presbyterian Church in Wayne, Pennsylvania. While a student at Curtis, she was an Assistant Organist to Keith Chapman (organist) at the Wanamaker Organ in Philadelphia. At age 23 she was a featured recitalist at a convention of the American Guild of Organists for the first time, performing a full solo concert in Anaheim, California. The following year she made the first commercially available recording of the 1933 Ernest M. Skinner organ at Girard College, Philadelphia.

She subsequently won Second Prize in Interpretation at both the 1985 St Albans International Organ Festival and the 1988 Grand Prix de Chartres international organ competitions. In 1987 she was named an Associate of the American Guild of Organists, having won the S. Lewis Elmer Award for Highest Marks in the Professional Certification Examinations.

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