Rev. David F. Gallagher, C.S.S.

Father David F. Gallagher, C.S.S. completed his journey on this earth at 7:45 A.M. Wednesday, June 21, 2023.

“The delicate balance of mentoring someone is not creating them in your own image, but giving them the opportunity to create themselves.” – Steven Spielberg

Fr. David was a Stigmatine priest, teacher, fine musician, composer, choral conductor, friend and confidante to many people, and a mentor to many.

He was born of Irish parents in Watertown in 1930. His father Herman was a plumber; his mother, Winifred, from Castlenancy, County Galway, Ireland, was known for being a fine negotiator in all things, and lived to age 99.

He was already working and mentoring as a teenager when, at the tender age of 15, he conducted his first choir: The Concord Reformatory Choir at the jail in Concord.

He was also already a fine organist, studying with accomplished teachers at the Longy School of Music, and gave his first major recital at the Perkins School for the Blind in 1946. He was 13 when he built his first pipe organ.

He went on to receive Bachelor and Master degrees in Music from Boston University, writing his thesis on the Brahms Requiem. He studied organ with George Faxon and Max Miller, and also coached with Virgil Fox. His many students included internationally renowned organists and other musicians such as Peter Krasinski, and John Faieta of the Atlantic Brass Quintet, as well as many other well-known fine organists such as Glenn Goda and Robert Blake.

He had an abiding interest in musicology, and conducted an extensive analysis of the Grand Pièce Symphonic of Cesar Franck. He was a confidante of Henrica Bordwin, President of the American Shubert Institute (deceased).

He was ordained in Rome by Pope John XXIII in 1959, and performed his studies in Latin, as was the practice at the time, at the Pontifical Gregorian University there.

In a major ecumenical experiment, he served as the Assistant Organist at Old South Church, Copley Square, Boston in the early 1970’s.

Fr. David’s music positions included Director of Music at the Stigmatine Fathers International College, Rome, Italy; 1954 to 1959; Saint Agatha of the Goths Church, Rome, Italy; 1954 to 1959; Saint Bernards Parish, Concord, Massachusetts, 1960 to 1961; Sacred Heart Parish, Milford, Massachusetts, 1962 to 1962; St. Mary’s Parish, Dedham, Massachusetts, 1962 to 1963; Saint Michaels Parish, Annandale, Virginia, 1964 to 1967; Saint Anne’s Church, Washington, DC, 1967 to 1968; Associate Organist, Old South Church, Boston, Massachusetts, 1960 to 1972; Professor of Organ, Lecturer in Music History, Longy School of Music, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1971 to 1974; Music Commission, Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, 1971 to 1974; Instructor of Organ, Emmanuel College, Boston, Massachusetts, 1972 to 1976; Executive Board, Boston Chapter, American Guild of Organists, 1975 to 1978; Director of Music, St. Joseph’s Church, Lynn, Massachusetts, 1979 to 1985; Co-Founder and Director of the Concert Singers, Lynn, Massachusetts, 1979 to 1985; Director of music, St. John’s Seminary, Brighton, Massachusetts, 1983 to 1985; Professor of Music, History and Theory, St. John’s Seminary College, Brighton, Massachusetts, 1985 to 1987; Organist, Saint Ignatius, Church, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, 1985 to 1987; Chapel Organist, Boston College, Newton, Massachusetts, 1985 to 1987; Grace Episcopal Church, Lawrence, Massachusetts for many years, and many more until very recently.

His priestly assignments included Instructor in Latin and Italian; Stigmatine Fathers’ Seminary, Wellesley, Massachusetts, 1959 to 1963; St. Mary’s Parish, Dedham, Massachusetts, 1962 to 1963; Stigmatine Fathers’ House of Studies, Washington DC, 1964; Saint Michaels Parish, Annandale, Virginia, 1969 to 1974; our Lady of the Assumption Parish, Lynnfield, Massachusetts, 1969 to 1974; Sacred Heart Church, Waltham, Massachusetts, 1974 to 1975; Holy Family Church, Lynn, Massachusetts, 1975 to 1983;

He is survived by four first cousins (once removed): Marie Pabicz of Groveland; Joanne Donnellan, Watertown; Geraldine Woods, Lisbon Falls, Maine; and Robert Robillard, Sagamore Beach.

His most cherished years were in the 1960’s in Rome with summers spent in the Austrian Tirol, in particular at the Franziskaner Kloster in Lienz.

His most cherished place was “Castlenancy”, the 1792 colonial home in Farmington, Maine that his family restored after purchasing it in 1962, into which he assembled a pipe organ.

His optimism was frequently expressed by saying, “Don’t worry, the days are already getting longer”; his final day was the summer solstice.

Family and friends will honor and remember Father Gallagher’s life by gathering for visitation on Friday, June 30th, beginning at 9:30 a.m. in Sacred Heart Church, 5 East Main Street, Milford, where his Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Burial will follow in Sacred Heart Cemetery, Milford.