He was Minister of Music and the Arts at the First Church of Christ in Wethersfield, Connecticut, where he co-founded the Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival [Wikidata] and directed it from 1997 to 2015.
[1][2] A native of Austin, Texas, Spicer was a 1968 graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music[3] in Philadelphia, where he was an Artist/Scholar under Alexander McCurdy and a devotee of Virgil Fox.
A gifted conductor, Spicer presented many oratorio concerts with orchestra throughout his career, including several premiere performances of: Verdi's Requiem, Berlioz's Requiem, Sir William Walton's Belshazzar's Feast, Felix Mendelssohn's Elijah Oratorio, and Gian Carlo Menotti's Amahl and the Night Visitors (among others).
Also a teacher, Spicer mentored numerous younger organists, and held the distinction of having three of his students (including Diane Meredith Belcher) win full scholarships to his alma mater, the Curtis Institute of Music.
Spicer emphasized the importance of phrasing and pauses in singing while maintaining long, open tones (where appropriate) in order to project sound effectively.