Who is the man behind the black glossy piano? Every Ipswich musician knows the one sitting center stage during every chorus concert, the one with fast fingers and an ear for perfection, the one who also conducts his chorus of about 100 students with mere head nods. For those of you who don’t, this is our very own chorus teacher, Mr. Patch.

Mr. Patch has been teaching in the Ipswich School system since 2003. He is an accompanist and a full time chorus teacher. The following are a few of his commitments and chorus groups that he teaches: Music Theory, accompanist for the middle school chorus’, Treble Chorus, high school large ensemble chorus, Chambers, and Bel Canto. And these are only his commitments during school hours. Mr. Patch’s fingers do not leave his white keys until well after 2:06 when the school day ends.

Outside of school, Mr. Patch has arranged and directed many theatrical productions and is an organist/keyboardist at St. Richard Parish in Danvers. His schedule is just as busy as the typical high school students’; however, he still manages to find time to watch his favorite television show, Modern Family, on Wednesday evenings.

Mr. Patch first began playing the piano at six years old. His mother was a pianist and his brothers were taking piano lessons as well. Mr. Patch said he was the only child who really “stuck with it.” Nowadays, he “mainly play[s] piano and organ [although he does] not consider [himself] an organist.”

Mr. Patch’s vocal talent was a hidden gem. At Catholic University of America in Washington D.C., Mr. Patch entered the college as an instrumentalist, but then started singing in order to fulfill the requirements of his music major. During his freshman year he took singing and opera courses.

 “[It was] an excellent school of music [and] I was lucky to get a full scholarship”, said Mr. Patch. He added, “I loved all of the music courses, [as well as religion and philosophy courses].” If Mr. Patch never unveiled the instrument of his own voice, he would not have been able to share and serenate Pope John II with his song.

 In October 1979, Pope John Paul II made his first visit to the United States. After meeting with President George H.W. Bush and delivering an address to the United Nations on October 2nd, the Pope visited the National Shrine of Immaculate Conception. He became the first reigning Pope to visit this Basilica.

On October 7^th, the Pope arrived at the Catholic University of America at the “Crowe Center”, which was the school’s old gym, refurbished upon the Pope’s arrival. Here, the Pope gave a speech on Catholic higher education to a crowd of over 2,000. Following the speech, a four part choir of 200 performers sang for the Pope. One of these performers was Mr. Patch. The chorus sang Serdeczna Marko, a selection of Polish hymns to the Virgin Mary.

Mr. Patch describes this experience as one of the most memorable moments in his musical career. He distinctly recalls the Pope’s grand entrance and how intently he watched and listened to their music.

“[Mr. Patch] is very humble”, said Ms. Sherman, the high school’s temporary orchestra teacher. She noted “he is an amazing pianist”, but did not know that he had the opportunity to sing for the Pope. She was not surprised though because he is such a gifted individual who has worked very hard to achieve his success.

“I think he’s an excellent chorus teacher”, said Cassandra Balzer, a senior at Ipswich High School.  Balzer added, “He really knows what he’d doing, and he has the experience to know how to make the choral groups sound amazing. He’s not afraid to tell you if you’re singing a part wrong, or if you’re out of tune. This makes for much better groups, as well as much better performances.”

Next time you see Mr. Patch performing on stage, just know that the wonderful music he brings to life is a result of the fusion of his two passions, singing and playing the piano.