Newspaper Articles About Chris' Album Projects

AIDS Victims' Memory Lives On In Music: Woman and daughter died after contracting AIDS from transfusion - reprinted from the Channel 9 KMSP Twin Cities Fox News website. This featured story was on their December 1 & 2, 2008 newscasts. This is a summary of the newscast.

HASTINGS -- AIDS devastated a Minnesota family, claiming the life of a mother and her 5-year-old daughter. Monday, a family friend came through on a promise to honor their memory in a collection of songs.

In a Hastings church, a promise made 12 years ago is finally fulfilled.

"I promised her I would keep her memory alive."

That's how long it took liturgist Chris Falteisek to compose a musical tribute to his friends Nancy and Candace Simon.

Back in the 1990s, Nancy and her daughter Candace contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion. At first they kept their sickness hidden, but eventually took their message of AIDS awareness everywhere from rural Minnesota to Washington D.C.

Candace died three days before her 6th birthday in 1993. Nancy died at age 32 in 1996.

Monday night's performance is a reminder that years later, their lives continue to inspire. Sandy Scheffler, Nancy's sister, heard the music for the first time.

"Hopefully Nancy's proud and Nancy and Candace are looking down, happy with what we've done," says Falteisek.

Prescott Resident's AIDS Musical is Dec. 1 in Hastings, article by Jason Schulte is reprinted from the November 25, 2008 Pierce County Herald

PRESCOTT — Chris Falteisek has been a church accompanist for over 30 years, has performed in five U.S. states, in addition to three concerts in Norway, and has recorded 14 albums.

For all those successes, his latest project might be the most personal to him. “Remembering,” a musical celebrating the lives of Nancy and Candace Simon, will be presented at 7 p.m. next Monday at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in Hastings, Minn.

The Prescott resident wrote the lyrics or came up with the music to all 17 songs.

“I want to keep their memory alive and show that their deaths weren’t in vain,” Falteisek said. “They spiritually enriched my life and taught me what living was really about.”

Nancy and Candace were a mother and daughter who both died in the 1990s due to AIDS. Candace was 18-months-old in 1989 when Nancy and husband Doug found out she was diagnosed as being HIV-positive. She died in 1993, three days short of her sixth birthday. Nancy was also later diagnosed with HIV. She died in 1996 at age 32. Nancy is buried next to Candace at St. John’s Catholic Church in Veseli, Minn. (Veseli is located about 60 miles south-southwest of Prescott. It’s approximately 10 miles off of Hwy. 35.)

Connection: Falteisek, who grew up in Prescott, was in his first tour of duty as Director of Liturgy and Music for St. Elizabeth’s when he corroborated with Sister Viola Kane in 1992 to write “God is in This Place,” a song for those suffering with AIDS. (He now has that job for the third time.)

Kane loved the song so much she asked the song be dedicated to Candace. Candace was a grandniece to a fellow Sister at the church, Sr. Valeria Skulzacek.

A month later, Chris met the family for the first time at a retreat and a friendship was born.

“I was struck by (Nancy’s) humbleness,” Chris said. “(Nancy) was an activist and, at that time, it was an embarrassment to have the disease. It was hard for her not to tell anyone that her daughter had AIDS.” The family traced it back to 1983, when Doug had a blood transfusion while in basic training at the Army National Guard.

Less than a year after Chris met the family, Candice was dead. Chris played at her funeral in Veseli.

Chris explained that, after Candace’s death, Nancy was starting to get her message across.

“In her quiet unassuming self, she was educating people about AIDS awareness,” Chris said. “She saw the need to educate each other.”

Included in that was a passage from a speech Nancy wrote and gave on World AIDS Day in 1994, “We can reach out to those who have AIDS and to their families and friends with compassion and understanding. And that’s what many people have done for us. They have reached out to us with love, compassion and understanding, and it’s made a big difference in our journey with AIDS.”

As AIDS started to take its toll on Nancy, Chris had the lyrics for “The Family” all done, but couldn’t complete it, as he was suffering from writer’s block. He even thought of putting off the song as he thought that wouldn’t make her pending death a reality.

Nancy died on May 24, 1996. He finished the song two days after her death and two days before her funeral, which was also in Veseli.

“It was my way of coping and coming to terms with reality,” he said.

With some songs in hand, Chris had a vision of what he wanted to do next to honor his friends. It became more focused after seeing the musical “Rent.” (Rent is a musical about young artists and musicians struggling to survive in New York, under the shadow of AIDS.)

“I was going after the Midwest version of ‘Rent’,” he explained. “Nancy was the person you would see in the grocery store, at the post office or dropping her kids off at school.”

Ten years later, that vision has became reality.

The performance: Falteisek said the night of the performance, Dec. 1, is significant, as that is World AIDS Day. The performance will also be a benefit for Hope House of St. Croix Valley in Stillwater, Minn., a place for people living with HIV/AIDS. Falteisek became involved with that place in the mid-1990’s, when he spent two years as the Director of Liturgy and Music for St. Michael’s Parish in Stillwater.

The cast will feature Elizabeth Hermanson and Sarah Keller as Nancy and Candace Simon. Hermanson is the choir director at St. Elizabeth’s, while Keller is Falteisek’s assistant. Providing vocal narration is Kay Caturia, Heather Doffing and Jessie Holm.

Besides the musical performance, Falteisek said “Testing the Human Spirit,” a photographic essay of the Simon family by Minneapolis Star Tribune Photographer Brian Peterson, will also be shown. Peterson followed the Simon family for six years. The essay ended up winning him the Robert F. Kennedy award for journalism.

He said there will be no cost, as a free will offering will be taken. CDs will also be available for purchase. He added that, as of last week, Nancy’s mother and sister, one of her sons, Eric, along with nieces and nephews were scheduled to attend. St. Elizabeth’s is located at 2035 W. 15th St. in Hastings.

World AIDS Day Concert Honors Two Who Died of Virus, article by Pat Norby is reprinted from the November 25, 2008 Catholic Spirit

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton premiers musical Dec. 1 to honor Simon family

The delight on Chris Falteisek’s face is tempered by sadness as he lifts photographs, letters, greeting cards and newspaper clippings from a well-polished wooden box.

Atop the box is a message from his friend, the late Nancy Simon, that says, “What we are is God’s gift to us. What we become is our gift to God.”

In return for the many gifts he received from Nancy and her daughter, Candace, Falteisek has spent the past 10 years writing a contemporary musical called “Remembering: The Lives of Candace and Nancy Simon,” which portrays their life and death from AIDS.

The musical will premier at 7 p.m. on World AIDS Day, Monday, Dec. 1, at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Hastings, where Falteisek is the music and liturgy director.

AIDS intensifies grief: The death of a child or a mother is always painful. But when both mother and child die of AIDS, the grief is intensified.

“I’m sure that there will be some good that will come out of it,” said Eric Simon, 22, who was 10 when his mother, Nancy, died in 1996.

Eric, his brother, Brian, 24, and Nancy’s sister, Sandy Scheffler, plan to attend the performance, along with other family members, Scheffler said.

“I feel very honored that Chris has taken all this time that he’s put into writing all this music for Nancy and Candace,” Scheffler said. “When Candace lost her life [in 1993 three days before her sixth birthday], pediatric AIDS was not very well understood.”

Doug and Nancy Simon, then members of Most Holy Trinity in Veseli, found out in 1989 that their daughter, Candace, was HIV positive, which led to the discovery that they, too, were infected.

In 1983, a year before the couple was married, Doug received a blood transfusion, which they later learned was tainted with the virus. Although their first two children, Brian and Eric, were not infected, the virus struck Candace with a vengeance.

In Nancy’s efforts to educate people about Candace’s condition before the girl was to start preschool in 1991, she spoke to The Catholic Bulletin, now The Catholic Spirit, for an article.

A documentary of the Simon family’s struggle with AIDS was published over six years in the Star Tribune, with award-winning photographs by Brian Peterson, some of which will be presented in a slide show as part of the musical performance.

In addition to media interviews, Simon also spoke at retreats for people with HIV/AIDS and their families after connecting with Sister Joanne Lucid, who directed the former archdiocesan AIDS Ministry office.

Falteisek became friends with the Simons after he provided music for one of those retreats.

“Candace and Nancy knew they were going to die, but they made their life a better life for those around them,” Falteisek said. “Not many people have the honor of meeting such heroic women.”

Doug Simon is still living, but may not be attending the musical performance.

A courageous woman: Scheffler said that no one who knew her quiet, shy sister would have dreamed she would speak publicly about any issue, let alone AIDS.

“She was so courageous and we are so fortunate to have had her be such a great role model for women living with AIDS and for mothers,” Scheffler said. “She was fighting for the moms and the children and the families. It wasn’t as understood as it is now. And even now they have a long way to go.”

Eric Simon said that he has blocked out a lot of memories from those years.

“Whenever I see slide shows or videos, it does bring it back,” he said. “I think it’s great what [Falteisek] is doing. I know he’s been working on it a long time.”

Scheffler said, “I felt privileged to journey with Nancy through the illness and be with her when she passed away…I’m so excited to see and hear the musical.”

As time passes, grief lessens and people can think more clearly, she added.

“I’m so excited for Brian and Eric, because their mom was such a terrific person and . . . maybe their memories have faded,” she said. “This will be good for them to see their mom was a wonderful, sweet woman.”

Although Falteisek is the composer, producer and director of the musical and a CD, he said that it is “a tribute for women by women.”

“Nancy and Candace were ordinary people with extraordinary talents, and I would say that our singers are the exact same [in] the life that they lead and the example they are,” he said.

The vocalists, who all sing at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, are Kay Caturia, Heather Doffing, Jessie Holm, Elizabeth Hermanson as Nancy Simon and Sarah Keller as Candace Simon. Norton Lawellin provided the orchestration and Falteisek was the pianist for the CD.

CDs of the musical will be available after the performance and a free will offering will be taken to benefit Hope House of St. Croix Valley, a housing facility for people living with HIV/AIDS.

AIDS Facts

• 1981: CDC issues the first warning about a pneumonia effecting gay men.

• 1982: CDC identifies Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.

• 1985: At least one case of HIV/AIDS is identified in every region of the world.

• 1990: 10 million people are living with HIV/AIDS.

• 2008: About 40 million people are living with HIV throughout the world.

• In the U.S., more than 1.2 million people are infected. A new person is infected with HIV every 6.4 seconds.

Source: www.worldaidsdaytwincities.org

‘REMEMBERING’ Musical at SEAS to Celebrate Lives of Mother and Daughter Who Lost Their Lives to AIDS, article by Jane Lightbourn is reprinted from the November 20, 2008 Hastings Star Gazette

“Remembering,” a musical celebrating the lives of Candace and Nancy Simon, will be presented at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 1, at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, 2035 W. 15th St. The musical features the music of Chris Falteisek, director of liturgy and music at the church.

The musical is a benefit performance for Hope House of St. Croix Valley, which offers co-housing for people living with HIV/AIDS.

Nancy Simon didn’t know she had the HIV virus until her daughter, Candace, was born in June 1988. Nancy's husband, Doug, had contracted the virus through a blood donation. Candace died in 1993, and Nancy died in May 1996, at the age of 32. After Candace and Nancy were diagnosed, Nancy became an advocate for HIV/AIDS awareness.

These are her words from a speech she gave on AIDS awareness, “My Journey with AIDS: AIDS in the ’90s. What does that mean? It's time to get involved. It's time to learn this life and death information; and I ask you; must we face this illness alone?

“In 1989, not only did I find out that I was HIV positive, but I found out that someone I loved very much had AIDS. At that moment, I knew that life as I knew it would never be same.

“I struggled until I accepted the illness. I knew it would only be a matter of time before Candace would become very ill. I was very frightened; the situation we were in was very devastating. But I would look at my two sons, who were healthy, and say how grateful I am that they weren't infected. I would always say it could be worse and in this, I found hope.

“What kept me going? My faith, my trust in God, hope – I was always very hopeful – although it was very hard at times.

“We can reach out to those who have AIDS and to their families and friends with compassion and understanding. And that's what many people have done for us. They have reached out to us with love, compassion, and understanding, and it's made a big difference in our journey with AIDS.”

Falteisek's involvement with the Simons began in 1992 when he met Sister Viola Kane. He received the following note with the lyrics for “God is in This Place,” one of the songs in “Remembering.”

“If you want to compose something special for our AIDS brothers and sisters, you may want to touch on such qualities as courage in darkness, hope in fear, compassion and trust in the journey through that valley of death. Here's a little something that might inspire you.”

The song, “God is in This Place,” wrote itself, Falteisek said, in 20 minutes. This was the first song Falteisek and Sister Viola collaborated on together. The two worked together on four albums before Sister Viola's death from ovarian cancer.

She asked the song be dedicated to Candace Simon, a niece of her colleague, Sister Valeria Skluzacek. In September 1992, Falteisek met Nancy and Doug Simon while playing piano for the St. Paul-Minneapolis Archdiocesan Celebrating Life Retreat. The following month, Falteisek and his music group, Broken Silence, presented an AIDS benefit concert at St. Boniface Chapel in Hastings.

The Simon family was in attendance, and the Seton School children made cards of support for the family.

Shortly before Candace's death, Falteisek wrote “A Peaceful Release” for Nancy Simon.

“It was my gift to Nancy to help her let go of Candace as she neared death,” Falteisek said.

When Candace died in June of that year, Falteisek played for her funeral at St. John's Catholic Church in Veseli.

Falteisek and friends provided music for the “Life with AIDS” presentation by Nancy Simon at St. Michael's Church in Prior Lake on Nov. 29, 1994.

Nancy Simon died May 24, 1996, and three days later, Falteisek wrote “The Family” for her funeral. He had the lyrics for months, but put off writing the song, believing it would not make her immanent death a reality. The song was written two days after her death and two days before her funeral.

At her funeral, Falteisek provided the music.

The musical includes the following Falteisek's songs: “Arise My Love,” “Minutes in Time,” “Child of My Dreams,” “Make It Go away,” “God is in This Place,” and “Blessing Song.”

The musical will feature Seton vocalists Sarah Keller as Candace Simon, Elizabeth Hermanson at Nancy Simon, and Kay Caturia, Heather Doffing and Jessie Holm as narrators and vocal trio.

A free will offering will be taken at the performance.

The “Remembering” CD will be available for purchase at $15.

Prescott Resident Sees Labor of Love Come to Fruition, article by John McCloone is reprinted from the November 20, 2008 Prescott Journal

Prescott resident Chris Falteisek will see his labor of love come to fruition on Dec. 1.

Falteisek’s musical “Remembering” will be performed on World AIDS Day at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish is Hastings. Falteisek is Director of Liturgy and Music at the parish.

“Remembering” has been a labor of love for Falteisek. His website describes it as “a contemporary musical based on the lives of Candace and Nancy Simon and how their lives changed with the onset of AIDS.”

The musical will debut at 7 p.m., and Falteisek’s new compact disc offers music from “Remembering.” The event is a fundraiser for Hope House of Stillwater.

Chris met Nancy Simon and her husband, Doug, in 1992. Doug Simon had a blood transfusion in basic training at the Army National Guard in 1983 and he contracted HIV. The disease spread to Nancy Simon and her baby was born HIV positive, being diagnosed when she was 18 months.

Candace Rose Simon died in 1993, just three days before her sixth birthday. Nancy Simon died in 1996 at the age of 32.

Chris Falteisek and his music group, Broken Silence, presented an AIDS benefit concert at St. Boniface Chapel in Hastings that the Simon family attended in 1992.

In 1993, he wrote, “A Peaceful Release” for Nancy Simon.

“It was my gift to Nancy to help ‘let go’ of Candace as she neared death,” Falteisek said.

In 1994, Falteisek and friends presented music during a World AIDS Day presentation on “Life With Aids” Nancy Simon gave in Prior Lake.

Falteisek wrote “The Family” for Nancy Simon’s funeral in May and he played at the funeral on May 29, 1996.

Falteisek was inspired by Simon’s words, from a speech on AIDS awareness.

She said, “What kept me going? My faith, my trust in God, hope – I was always very hopeful although it was very hard at times.

“Watching my daughter struggle with her fight against AIDS, I got a lot of strength from her. She was a very brave little girl – she was so strong. She went through so much in her six years of life.”

“We can reach out to those who have AIDS and their families and friends with compassion and understanding. And that’s what many people have done for us. They have reached out to us with love, compassion and understanding, and it’s made a big difference in our journey with AIDS,” Simon said.

Learn more on Falteisek’s Web site: www.falteisek.com

Falteisek Premiers Musical of Simon Family on World AIDS Day – reprinted from the November 18, 2008 Pierce County Herald

On Monday, December 1, 2008 at 7:00 p.m., Chris Falteisek will premier his musical & latest album project, “Remembering: The Lives of Candace & Nancy Simon,” at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Hastings, MN on World AIDS Day.

“Remembering” tells the story of the Veseli, MN mother, Nancy Simon & her daughter, Candace who died of AIDS. Nancy’s husband, Doug Simon, contracted AIDS through a blood transfusion while he was in basic training in the Army National Guard in 1983. The Simon family was made aware of their situation in 1989, when their 18-month-old daughter, Candace was diagnosed as being HIV positive. Through an award-winning photojournalistic essay in the Minneapolis Star Tribune by Brian Peterson, “Testing the Human Spirit,” the Simon family became AIDS activists by putting a face to this deadly disease. Candace Simon died in 1993, three days before her sixth birthday, while her mother, Nancy died in 1996 at the age of 32.

The performance of “Remembering” will consist of two parts – a slide show of Brian Peterson’s photographic essay, “Testing the Human Spirit” which won Peterson the Robert F. Kennedy award for journalism & Falteisek’s musical project, “Remembering” which deals with the relationship & life Nancy & Candace Simon.

Chris Falteisek, a native & resident of Prescott, WI is currently the Director of Liturgy & Music at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Hastings, MN where the performance will take place. The musical features Elizabeth Hermanson & Sarah Keller as Nancy & Candace Simon, with Kay Caturia, Heather Doffing & Jessie Holm as the vocal narrators. “Remembering,” was recorded this fall at Track Record Studios in St. Paul, MN. The December 1st performance also serves as an album releasing in which the family & friends of Nancy & Candace will be in attendance. Refreshments will be served following the performance. More information on “Remembering” can be found on www.falteisek.com.

“Remembering” is also a benefit performance for Hope House of the St. Croix Valley, which co-houses people living with HIV/AIDS. A free will offering will be taken.

CD of Seton Church Choirs Will Debut November 8, article by Jane Lightbourn is reprinted from the October 30, 2008 Hastings Star-Gazette

Sharing the music; sharing the love of music with others.

That is what the musicians – singers and instrumentalists – of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish have done with a soon-to-be-released CD, “The Music of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish.”

The CD will be released at a special concert at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 8, at the church, 2035 W. 15th St. The CDs will be available for purchase that evening.

While the former St. Boniface Parish produced its own album almost 30 years ago and Seton director of liturgy and music Chris Falteisek has created and produced his own albums, this is the first such venture for the choirs of Seton Church – Chapel, Children's, Seton Singers, Doffing-Eckes Choir (relatives and friends of the two families), 6 p.m. Mass Band (contemporary music), and the handbell choir.

“We have talked about the choirs doing a CD for several years,” Falteisek said. “This was a collaborative effort with Legacy Productions, who are very easy to work with.” The company is located in the Twin Cities and works with churches and organizations in fundraising projects.

The idea was presented to the choirs and church leadership, and they both liked it.

Discussions with Legacy Productions began about a year ago and the contract was signed April 3. The actual recording of the CD was completed Sept. 16 in the church's sanctuary.

“The CD contains standards and new songs,” Falteisek said. “We decided on them early in August and then rehearsed.”

The recording is considered a “live album,” he said, with each choir assigned a particular time segment to perform their songs throughout the afternoon and evening hours.

Once completed, Legacy Productions completed the actual production, and the copyright work. Falteisek did the photography for the cover and insert, with Legacy Productions completing the copy.

There are 12 songs on the CD, which in addition to the choirs, includes Andrew Walker on piano and Phil Snyder on the trumpet. Andrew Dziuk wrote the fanfare for the CD.

Familiar sings include “I Know That My Redeemer Lives,” “Go Tell It on the Mountain” and Lamb of God.” New songs include “We are Alleluia People,” with music by Falteisek, and “In Memory,” written and arranged by Walker.

In addition to Falteisek, choir directors are Liz Hermanson, Seton Singers; Ramona McCullough, handbell choir; and Mo McNeary Sieben, Children's Choir.

“I'm very proud of the CD,” Falteisek said. “We want to share our love for music with our family and friends.”

They feel the mission has been accomplished with this CD.

The CDs are $15 each and will be available in the church office after the concert.

Prescott Resident to Release 2 Albums – article is reprinted from the July 21, 2005 Prescott Journal

Chris Falteisek, a resident and 1982 graduate of Prescott, will be releasing two albums during a concert at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Hastings, Min., this Saturday.

Since recording his first album in 1990, "Called to Remember" & "Echoes From the Past" are the 12th & 13th personal albums that Falteisek has composed & recorded.

"Called to Remember" is an anthology of contemporary Christian music, while "Echoes From the Past" is an anthology of instrumental variations and historical stylings.

Several songs included in these anthologies have never been released and have been recorded especially for these album projects. The music of these two albums trace Falteisek’s diverse study into history – both his personal history and that which he acquired while tracing his family history.

Falteisek is currently working on a musical, "Remembering," which tells the story of a mother & daughter whose relationship is strengthened as they lived and died of AIDS.

Falteisek, the son of Frank & Sylvia Falteisek, studied piano for only two years while he attended St. Joseph’s Grade School. He is currently the director of liturgy & music and full-time accompanist at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Hastings.

The July 23rd free concert is at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Hastings at 7:00 p.m. Vocalists at the concert will be under the direction of Lynn Lutterman, while liturgical dancers will be under the direction of Suzi McNamara.

Copies of Falteisek’s latest album projects & previous album projects will be available for sale. Refreshments will be served after the concert.

For more information on Falteisek or his music, log onto www.falteisek.com.

SEAS Music Director Releases Latest Work – article by Michael Moore is reprinted from the July 07, 2005 Hastings Star Gazette

It’s an often-used and more-often-misused label, but Chris Falteisek, director of liturgy and music at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish, is about as close to a renaissance man as you’ll find.

Aside from directing music at SEAS, Falteisek researches his own family history and assists others with researching theirs. He is a freelance photographer, whose work has appeared in national wrestling publications. And Falteisek composes and records music privately, too.

On July 23, Falteisek will release two albums that revisit the music he’s recorded since 1990, when he first entered the studio. SEAS will host the album release at 7 p.m. July 23; the event, free and open to the public, will feature Falteisek and others in concert, as well as liturgical dancers directed by Suzi McNamara.

Falteisek’s music is as varied as his personal interests, and the two albums he will release July 23 reflect that diversity.

"Echoes from the Past" is an anthology of "instrumental variations and historical stylings," Falteisek said. "It’s music that goes everywhere, from Yiddish music, Baroque music, high-tech, organ, flute and medieval music, and then very techno-oriented music as well."

The second album, "Called to Remember," tracks the composer’s work in the genre of contemporary Christian music.

A personal triptych: Together, "Called to Remember" and "Echoes from the Past" complete what Falteisek calls his "triptych," a medium in which three pieces usually panels of visual art exist side by side. Falteisek’s triptych begins with his 1993 CD release of collected piano works, entitled "Breaking Silence."

"These two (albums) complete my different styles," Falteisek said. "I have recorded orchestrated music, contemporary Christian vocal music and then piano music."

People familiar with Falteisek’s previous albums there are 11 will recognize many of the songs on "Echoes from the Past" and "Called to Remember." The 16-track anthologies offer a more user-friendly means of accessing Falteisek’s work.

"All my other albums were cassettes," Falteisek said. "People have requested, ‘Can’t you do some CDs that we can put in our car or in our computer?’"

Both albums also include new material. "Called to Remember" includes three new contemporary Christian tracks and two previously unreleased songs. "Echoes from the Past" includes two previously unreleased tracks and one new recording, which Falteisek called "a smooth kind of jazz and blues, kind of a Kenny G song."

Varied inspiration: Falteisek said part of the reason his music fits into three genres is because his inspiration to create comes from very different sources. Many of the songs on his orchestral album Falteisek wrote in response to happenings in his life.

"I do a lot of family history work, and I think it’s important to know where you came from and where you’re going," Falteisek said. "I’m just trying to share with people where I’ve come from musically."

To create his contemporary Christian music, meanwhile, Falteisek finds inspiration in the parish that has supported him for the better part of 15 years. One of the songs on "Called to Remember," entitled "Loving Shepherd, Gentle Shepherd," he wrote for the funeral of a SEAS parishioner.

"I had visited with her, helped her plan her funeral and she had said, ‘I’d really like you to do something with Psalm 23,’" Falteisek said. "I worked on it for a year and couldn’t do a thing, but the song wrote itself the afternoon that she died.

"I’d view the parish as an extension of my family," Falteisek added. "It’s become my musical family."

More information on both the July 23 concert and Falteisek’s music is available at www.falteisek.com.

Hamar Cathedral Today: Morning concert in Hamar Cathedral – reprinted from the June 19,2004 Hamar HA Godsommer newspaper

Organist Chris Falteisek from Wisconsin, USA, will be seated on the organ bench at the Hamar Cathedral this morning.

Naturally it will be American composed music, but a couple of elements by G. Fr. Händel and J.S. Bach also are on the program.

Ordinarily, Falteisek plays at the Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish - a church that holds 1400 people. He has a free and improvised style of playing, which is more common in the American tradition of performing music. That’s why today’s music experience will be slightly different from what we are used to from organ benches in Norwegian churches.

Different: Today’s morning concert offers more improvised music than what is usual from Norwegian organists. The American Chris Falteisek, with Czech ancestors, is known for his improvised style of playing.

AN UPDATE ON OUR '98 IN '98' - reprinted from the January 3, 1999 St. Paul Pioneer Press

Pianist and composer Chris Falteisek has expanded his work as parish musician at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in Hastings. But the musical he was writing about a mother and daughter who died of AIDS has had to wait a bit, in large part because of the declining health of a grandmother, whom he visits daily. He fulfilled a childhood dream by playing an original composition, "Take This and Eat," on the organ at the Cathedral of St. Paul for a confirmation mass. Not to be too one-dimensional, he also is editing a book on 50 years of wresting at Hastings High School, to be published this spring.

98 To Watch In '98 – reprinted from the January 11, 1998, St. Paul Pioneer Press

From A to Z - from well-known newsmakers to behind-the-scenes types and those just beginning to emerge in their chosen fields - our newsroom staff previews a wide range of area folks we think you should watch this year as they pursue important or interesting projects.

#24. Chris Falteisek, Pianist and composer

A self-taught piano player, Falteisek was a church organist by age 12. Now 34, he has recorded 11 albums and is parish musician at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Hastings.

His current project is writing a musical about Nancy and Candace Simon, a mother and daughter from Veseli, MN, who died of AIDS. At the moment Candace died, three days before her sixth birthday, she was listening to "God Is In This Place," a song Falteisek had written for her.

Falteisek was inspired by seeing "Rent." "But the people in 'Rent' weren't from the Midwest. Nancy was the person you see in the supermarket and at the bank, one of us," he said. "Her story warrants being kept alive."

Beauty Of River Valley Provides Inspiration For Local Composer – article by Julie Kink is reprinted from the December 7, 1995 Stillwater Courier News

The beauty of the St. Croix Valley is the inspirational backdrop for local composer, Chris Falteisek. He sees themes in people's lives for ideas. He has found that the Stillwater area is a very welcoming place to live the creative life.

For Chris Falteisek the "sketches" are inspired by the life experiences of people he's met. "Some of my most powerful songs came out of an experience I had working with Sister Viola Kane, who passed away two years ago of cancer," he said. An album that Falteisek is currently working on was inspired by the emotions of a family he befriended whose six-year-old died of AIDS. "Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and go to the piano," he said.

Falteisek, who is Director of Liturgy and Music for the Church of St. Michael in Stillwater, composes and performs contemporary Christian music he calls "easy listening piano styling," similar to music by George Winston. He started composing in the 1980's and now has 11 albums on cassette and CD.

Falteisek came to St. Michael's about a year ago by way of several different directing and performing positions. After taking piano lessons for just two years, he started playing for church services in Prescott, WI, in sixth grade. He attended the University of Wisconsin at River Falls, went to the seminary at the College of St. Thomas for a year and a half, then returned to River Falls where he was music director at a church while going to college. Falteisek now coordinates the training of ministers, decorating of the church, and helps plan weddings and funerals, in addition to conducting and accompanying the church's teen choir and the "Other Group."

"The church is very traditional, but the two services I play at are very contemporary," he explained. He said the key to producing successful collaborative albums is to "surround yourself with talented people" - whom Falteisek has found in Fr. Killian Perry of Inver Grove Heights and Carol Moudry Warnacutt of Apple Valley, with whom most of his work has been performed. All of the albums were recorded live to digital, meaning that if someone made a mistake, the group had to do the song over again, he said.

He's been involved in a number of benefit concerts featuring instrumental, liturgical and ritual music and ballads over the past several years, and is performing a concert with national recording artist Dona Pena later this month in Inver Grove Heights.

Falteisek will be performing as part of the City of Stillwater Chamber of Commerce Traditional Meander on Tuesday, December 12. He will play at the Lumber Baron's Hotel during the evening dinner hour.

PRESCOTT NATIVE CUTS SECOND ALBUM – article by Brent Honcharenko is reprinted from the November 7, 1991 Prescott Journal

While most residents in Prescott and Hastings spent the stormy week-end cutting through the ice and snow, Chris Falteisek spent the weekend with nine musicians/vocalists, an engineer and his producer in a Minneapolis studio cutting his second album. The album and his group are called "Broken Silence."

Falteisek (most of his former classmates and Prescott friends know him as Rick) coordinated the entire musical project and wrote and arranged all of the pieces on the album. He calls it contemporary Christian.

"It's church service type music, all different types and styles, but it's done in a contemporary fashion,” Falteisek said.

On his first album, entitled "Where Two Worlds Meet," released in July 1990, Falteisek wrote, arranged, and performed all the music on synthesizers and a drum machine, and there were no vocals. This time around he's using more live music such as a flute, drums, guitar, bass, piano, synthesizer and vocals.

Falteisek started working on this project in the early spring and with the help of his producer, Tommy Wiggens, the project became a reality last weekend.

"Everything went good in the studio," Falteisek said. "Now I'm hoping to have the cassette released before Christmas."

Falteisek, a 1982 graduate of Prescott High School and a 1988 graduate of UW-River Falls, now lives in Hastings and is the Director of Music and Liturgy at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in Hastings. He is also the director of a contemporary and a high school choir at the church, and often writes original pieces for those choirs.

With only two formal years of piano training, Falteisek is a self-taught musician who loves to create. His musical influences have been many over the years. He says he doesn't have any certain type of music he likes better than another, but said the music of George Winston, David Haas and Mannheim Steamroller have influenced him the most.

Falteisek at one time had been in the seminary, but decided that music was more important to him. He said music allows him to be more creative and gives him the time to do what he really loves.

He wrote his first piece in 1984, "For All You've Given Me." He said that song expresses the highs and lows that occur with any friendship or relationship. He's also written songs for weddings.

Many occurrences have influenced Falteisek to write including; the death of a friend to suicide, his time spent in the ministry, his family, his devotion to Christ, the dilemma in which direction his life will take, the experience of a new beginning when starting his new career and his self-realization that life shouldn't be taken so seriously.

"Music is personal," Falteisek said in an earlier interview. "It's an expression of one's self."

Someday, he'd like to be signed on a major label, but he's not kidding himself. Falteisek knows his two album releases are just stepping-stones to that goal. He said that attitude, determination and keeping an open mind are the keys to success.

Falteisek has also started scoring his music for the piano and guitar, and hopes to get it published and sold so that those who like it can take it home and play it themselves.

Aside from this album project, Falteisek is also working on some "new age" pieces for the piano, which he hopes to release someday and is also working on some original Christmas music which he hopes to record.

"At this point in my life, I'm experimenting with different musical styles and I'm trying to decide where I want to settle in; whether it's new age, vocal, piano, etc."

He said one of the things he'll do to promote this album more than he did the last one is to try and get public radio and religious stations airplay in the Twin Cities and elsewhere.

"I really enjoyed doing this album and working with the people,” Falteisek said. "These people are virtually working for free and dedicating their time."

He continues saying that they've been practicing and working together for the past three months.

The album was recorded, mixed and mastered live at Creation Audio Recording (formerly Cook House) in Minneapolis.

"Mixing an album live leaves no room for error. We all had to do it right the first time," Falteisek said. "On an average, it took us about six takes per song."

Creation Audio Recording is the same studio where Paula Abdul recorded three of her songs, including "Opposites Attract", for her "Forever Your Girl" album. And, artists like Steve Miller and Herb Alpert have also recorded there.

There are 10 songs on "Broken Silence” and recordings will be mass-produced at Precision Tapes in Minneapolis.

Featured on "Broken Silence" are members: Brad Czech, vocalist; Chris Schmelzer, vocalist; Peg Jones, vocalist; Carol Moudry-Warnacutt, flute/vocals; G.G. Nauer, guitar/vocals; Red Freeberg, drums; Killian, synthesizer; Burt Fraher, bass guitar; and Andy Clipperton, bass and acoustic guitar. Falteisek plays piano on the album and Richard Grossman engineered it.

Falteisek also reported that the group would like to continue and incorporate. He said they'd also like to do some concerts and benefits and already have one scheduled for February 7th.

Recording music has always been a dream of Falteisek's. "It's something I never actually thought I could do. But after working in the church and with some of the people I have, certain avenues were opened and it's become possible."

Former St. B Music Director Cuts Album – article by Patt Ligman is reprinted from the July 19, 1990 River Falls Journal

"It's been kind of a dream," Chris Falteisek said, "A musical accomplishment."

Falteisek, the former St. Bridget music director, released the first album of his career last week. The album "Where Two Worlds Meet," is a sampler of the many types of new age music he plays.

"I tried to write about life's spectrum,” he said. A friend's suicide influenced some of his work, as did the conflicting concepts of birth versus death, fear versus shelter and morning versus evening.

The album had been six years in the making. Falteisek said he wrote the first song in 1984 and the last just two days before recording it. The only other musician Falteisek used on the album was Gregg Thomas of Sun Prairie. He played the drums and provided the recording studio.

Working from chords written on a piece of paper, Falteisek said he would lay down the keyboards for a song and then they would build around it. Surprisingly, the album took only 37 hours to record and mix. "We really worked well together,” Falteisek said of Thomas.

Falteisek has been playing the piano since third grade. "My sister is a music teacher, so music has always been in my family," he said.

Falteisek credits George Winston, Mannheim Steamroller and David Haas, a religious composer, as having the most influence on his career. Music, he said, is a way of expressing his feelings.

"I would like to get the album on the radio and hopefully get it marketed through the stations,” said Falteisek. Locally, copies can be purchased at Hair Fair or at St. Bridget's.

Falteisek is currently the Director of Music and Liturgy at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish in Hastings, MN.