About St. Cecilia Tours
Pictured above: Dr. Avery directing a choir at St. Paul's Cathedral in London.
The video captures Dr. Avery demonstrating the acoustics at a Roman theatre in Israel. Recorded with an iPhone in the back/top row of the theatre.
The video recording below captures Dr. Gundersen in concert, playing the Demessieux Pedal Etude No. 6
St. Cecilia Tours is a boutique tour operator offering Religious Study Tours and Music Performance Tours. We seek to understand better so we can shine light on Truth while resonating Love wherever we go. We do that by listening, reading, researching, learning, teaching, talking, and sharing. Our mission is to expand understanding through travel and shared experiences. The more we experience, the more we know, the better we understand. Let us create a unique, bespoke tour experience for you.
Get to Know Us
Native Norwegian, Dr. John-Eric Gundersen, is a graduate of Yale and Rice Universities, and an expert in religious history, archeology, and music. As an organist, he has concertized throughout Europe and the United States including St. Paul’s Cathedral, London; Frauenkirche in Dresden, and St. Thomas 5th Ave., in New York. His passion for history, and his experience as a professional church musician, combined with his knowledge and comfort in international travel make him the ideal travel coordinator for choir groups, chamber musicians, pastors, and congregations wishing to experience a music tour, a Holy Land Tour to Israel, or a Pilgrimage Journey tracing the rich history of church reformation. When requested and if possible, Dr. Gundersen is able to share his music with travelers during worship services, communion celebrations, and informal organ demonstrations.
Dr. Laura Avery earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in vocal performance and pedagogy. Primarily a sacred music artist, Dr. Avery has extensive training in all genre of singing styles. A University professor with 15 years’ experience, Dr. Avery is an active coach of elocution for the stage, character voice and accent acquisition for actors, as well as a sought after contemporary commercial singingl instructor. She has conducted over fifty musical productions and has served as guest conductor for choral Evensong services at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London; Winchester Cathedral; and Wells Cathedral. An avid history enthusiast, Dr. Avery teaches the history of musical theatre; Greek, Roman, and Renaissance Theatre; sacred singing; and the history of American commercial music. When touring with groups, she often offers special performances of sacred music or presents brief historical synopsis of various sights.
Dr. Giles Brightwell enjoys an international career as a choral clinician, composer, organist, singer, freelance musicologist and writer. He has held significant positions as music director and education professional on both sides of the Atlantic, at the universities of Cambridge and Glasgow, and in Washington, DC and Houston, Texas, and, finally, as Director of Music and Titular Organist at St. Nicolaas Co-Cathedral in Amsterdam where he was responsible for a music programme comprising some 60 singers over three choirs, regularly broadcasting live on Dutch TV. In addition to this, he was artistic director for the Amsterdam Orgelzomer attracting the finest organists to Amsterdam from across the globe. He completed three degrees in musicology (BA, MA, PhD) under the supervision of the renowned British musicologist, Professor Jeremy Dibble at the University of Durham, and studied theology at the universities of Oxford and Durham. He has published in a wide array of peer-reviewed journals both in the UK and USA. As a composer, he has had his works published by Encore Publications.
