Don was born in Duluth, Minnesota, the first son of Walter M. And Lillie Pearson (his younger brother, Richard Allen Pearson, was born in 1951). Don will long be remembered for his major contributions to the world’s treasury of Church Music, as a director of music ministry (choral director, organist, pianist and program coordinator), composer, arranger, conductor, and artistic director of numerous conferences and concerts.
Don’s education and musical training included both academic settings (Bachelor of Music, University of Wisconsin, Superior; graduate study at Southern Methodist University; Master of Music in Organ and Doctor of Musical Arts in Organ Performance and Theory at the College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati, Ohio) and graduate seminars with distinguished musicians (Choral Conducting at UCLA with Donald Neuen from the Choral Institute at Cambridge University). From 1965 to 1981, Don served as organist and choirmaster in several different churches and cathedrals in a variety of denominations (Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist, Roman Catholic, and Episcopal) in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ohio.
In 1981, Don was hired by Saint John’s Episcopal Cathedral in Denver, Colorado, where he would serve as Director of Music and Organist through 2003. In the historical article about the Cathedral in the Colorado Encyclopedia, the author writes: “St. John’s has always prided itself on fine music. A grand Kimball organ was given to the cathedral in 1938 and is one of its greatest treasures . . . The organ’s 5,961 handmade pipes range from thirty-two feet to eighteen inches in height and from eighteen inches to pencil shape in diameter. . .Another musical renaissance came when Don Pearson became organist and choir director in 1981. He improved the children’s choir, augmented the concert series, started a Friends of Music support group, and launched new programs such as Music with Lunch. Pearson was honored as Colorado Conductor of the Year, and St. John’s Choir became one of the country’s most recorded.” During his tenure in Denver, Don also founded the Denver Bach Society, and served as Dean of the Evergreen Church Music Conference from 1987-2002. Another highlight was when he hosted the national convention of the American Guild of Organists in Denver, at which he was requested to perform his well-known Advent Lessons and Carols four times in the heat of August, complete with full Christmas decorations and poinsettias. He also was Music Chair for the National Episcopal Gathering in Denver in 2000, of which he was the organizer, conductor and organist for 18 services, with 10 to 1000 participants per service, directed the Festival Choir with 300+ members, and composed the choral anthem commissioned by the Bishop, “Come With Moses to the Mountain.”
Having subsequently relocated to California, Don became a musical force at Saint Ignatius of Antioch, serving as Music Director, Organist and Artist-in-Residence from 2008-2020, returning again in April of 2024. He also served as Principal Accompanist at Dignity/San Francisco from 2006 until his death, and also at Saint John of God Catholic Church in San Francisco (2023-24). At Saint Ignatius, he continued his tradition of organizing a wonderful concert series as well as instituting choir cabarets and Halloween performances in which he would accompany classic silent films with his own improvisations on the organ. Throughout his career, he performed organ recitals in many of the world’s great cathedrals, including the Crystal Cathedral, Washington National Cathedral, and more recently at St. Mary’s Cathedral in San Francisco. Don produced nine recordings of choral music for major labels (including five for Delos, many of which are still in print) that received rave reviews.
Don is loved and well remembered by all those who were touched by his music, and we believe that he is quite busy now creating new arrangements for the choirs of angels, and greeting and celebrating with the hosts of heaven who have gone before him.
Visitation will be held on Thursday, November 7, 2024, 5:00pm with a vigil at 7:00pm. Funeral liturgy Friday, November 8, 2024, at 10:30am both days at St. Ignatius of Antioch. Committal service will follow at 2:00pm at Oak View Memorial Park 2500 E 18th St, Antioch, CA 94509.
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