At March Meeting This Month We Offer an An- Publishers Web Sites to Distrib- to Your Colleagues As Good Them-Reading Session
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March 2006 Volume 22 THE Number 6 OPUS The official publication of the St. Louis Chapter of the American Guild of Organists www.agostlouis.org Let’s ‘Sing Up a Storm’ at March Meeting This month we offer an an- publishers Web sites to distrib- to your colleagues as good them-reading session. There will ute at the meeting, and would reference sources, would you be a selection of seasonal and like help from the membership in please send them to me at general titles, new releases and drawing up the list. If there are [email protected]. older pieces, all Hope to see you from easy to The Details on March 27. moderately diffi- Date: Monday, March 27, 2006 Please come and cult. There will be Event: Choral Reading Session sing. a few titles for Location: Trinity Presbyterian Church - - - - 6800 Washington unison/two parts. St. Louis, MO 63130 Our April meet- Several publish- Time: 6:30 p.m. – Dinner in Fellowship Hall ing will especially ers will be repre- 7:30 p.m. – Program in choir room important for sented. The goal Host: Paul Vasile Chapter member- Cost: $8 for dinner for the evening is Reservations: Kathleen Bolduan, 314-935-5517 ship. We’ll hear a to help you plan or [email protected] comprehensive ahead and find a (Vegetarians accommodated upon request. Please confirm review of the your reservations by Friday, March 24.) new piece or two upcoming Pipe for the end of Directions: Trinity Presbyterian Church is on the southwest corner of Organ Encounter. this liturgical Washington and Kingsland, one block south of Delmar at the west end of Some of the de- the University City Loop. On-street parking is limited. Use parking lot for year, for your Center for Contemporary Arts (COCA). tails are included summer choir, From I-64/U.S. Route 40 Eastbound: Take Hanley exit north. Cross Clayton, in this OPUS issue, and for next fall. Forsyth, and Maryland. Turn right (east) on Delmar. Go through two stoplights and I encourage As part of the (Jackson and Big Bend) and continue past the Lion statues to the light at you to pull out Kingsland. Post Office on right, city library on left. Turn right, jog right at the selection process, Post Office. Next intersection is Washington. Church on corner. Turn right to your copy of the I’ve been visiting parking lot 1/2 block down on the left. February issue various publish- From I-64/U.S. Route 40 Westbound: Take the Big Bend exit and turn north. and reread Dean ers’ Web sites. A Continue on Big Bend until it dead-ends at the intersection with Delmar. Stephen Mager’s Turn right (east on Delmar and continue on past the Lion statues as above. lot of information fine column with is available on 31 suggestions for line, both as pdf files and re- music company Web sites which how you can be of help in this corded performance samples. you use and would recommend major project. I’d like to compile a listing of — Martha Shaffer — From the St. Louis Chapter Dean… On the Subject of Digital Technology Last month our chapter presented Encounter,” not to exclude digital instrumental sound a suitable a program on MIDI and digital organ organs, but to acknowledge the substitute for engaging an instru- technology. Judging by the atten- historic prototype of ecclesiastical mental soloist? Would it be valid to dance, there is lively interest in this instruments. substitute digitally sampled sounds subject. I was pleased to make the Every organist, even the most for, say, a handbell ensemble? To acquaintance of some delightful traditional, enjoys the benefits of what extent is this likely to broaden people at that event, including technology, if only to dispense with or narrow the scope of church music several who are not AGO members. manually operated bellows. Many of ministry? One person told me, in effect, that the ingenious advances in solid-state The artistic use of illusion is a he was not a member because the and digital technology have proven vital creative technique, such as we Guild only seems to recognize pipe immensely helpful, and we would hear in the suggestive art of the organs and those who play them. do well to consider new develop- organ transcription. Likewise, the Naturally, I was sorry to hear him ments with open minds. Nonethe- distinctive character and beauty of say that, but his remarks were not less, at some point we are com- the “orchestral organ” arises from its surprising, and I am prompted to pelled to raise some incisive ques- imitation rather than replication of attempt a constructive response. tions. I will not presume to give orchestral sounds. What is the I suggest that the great “divide” definitive answers, and each reader impact of “virtual reality,” with between those who play pipe organs may very well arrive at different accurate, digitally sampled sounds, and digital organs is largely illusory. conclusions than mine. Still, it is in on musical imagination and genuine Most of us keyboard players, in the our interest to ask the questions and artistic inventiveness? course of our careers, are called think carefully about the implica- Those are my questions; you fill upon to make effective music on tions of our answers. in the answers. Ultimately, whatever instruments of variable type, charac- Is music in worship ancillary or our view of digital organ technol- ter, and quality. And unlike the atmospheric, or can it be in itself a ogy, we should be deeply concerned violinist, whose instrument is worshipful expression? Can the about how we use it, because the almost an extension of his body, the playing of an instrumental solo be discussion is about more than the organist is remarkably unattached, construed as an act of worship? To purely aesthetic. like an itinerant frontier pedagogue what extent is it necessary that — Stephen Mager in search of a schoolhouse. All of us music in communal worship be at one time or another have had to “live?” make the best of a ciphering electro- One impressive technological THE pneumatic, or an old Hammond development is the “sequencer.” OPUS with a single octave pedal-board, to Available on pipe and digital instru- The official publication say nothing of out-of-tune spinet ments, this device enables the of the St. Louis Chapter pianos with broken keys. “recording” of one’s own playing, of the American Guild of Organists. I think it is fair to say that the permitting the instrument to repli- March 2006 pipe organ remains the archetype for cate that performance. To what Volume 22, No.6 digital instruments. For decades, extent does the use of sequencer Wayne King, Editor electronic models have imitated pipe playback in worship constitute “live You are invited to submit material organ nomenclature, principles of music?” How does such use of the to the editor for publication consid- voicing, and console design, and sequencer differ from the pre- eration. Material and calendar newer versions feature sampled recorded accompaniment tapes items should be e-mailed to sounds from historic instruments. offered by many choral publishers, [email protected]. Hence, our coming summer educa- or other recorded music? March issue deadline: March 31 tion institute is called “Pipe Organ Is the use of a digitally sampled -2- PIPE ORGAN ENCOUNTER (POE) UPDATE The Planning Continues… It’s March, and that means that there are only 101 (as of Ash Wednesday) days until the beginning of our Pipe Organ Encounter! Last month our out-of-town teachers and performers were announced. I would like to add the name of Naomi Rowley to that list. Naomi is the national chair of the Committee on the New Organist, and will be joining us here in St. Louis for our POE. In addition to lessons, classes, and the “Build Your Own Pipe” session, other fun events for the week include: an opening hymn festival, a trip to the Fox with Stan Kann, an organ crawl to several area churches, the opportunity to learn about and play the harpsichord. Of course, no summer week in St. Louis would be complete without a trip to Ted Drewes! Chapter members are invited and encouraged to participate in and attend all events that week. I hope you will save and reread Dean Stephen Mager’s column from the February Opus. In it, he listed 31 ways to help with the POE. All are easily manageable tasks. Additionally, several churches are considering donating to the POE. In addition to a personal donation, consider asking your church to contribute to this wonderful outreach. Checks may be made to St. Louis POE 2006 and may be sent to Denis Doelling, treasurer. Cooperative Baptist Wanted: Student Recitalists Fellowship Event For April Meeting [Thanks to chapter member Nancy Massar-Sewell for submitting this Our April 24 chapter meeting, a POE Preview event, will information.] include a recital by young local organists. Students with prepared The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Missouri will hold its repertoire are invited to participate. Teacher approval is required. 2006 General Assembly, April 28-29, at Kirkwood Baptist Church. Repertoire should be 3 to 7 minutes in length. Venue: Grace The program will include a performance by pianist Joseph Martin, Methodist Church. It is open to the first five applicants. Apply by worship, and a leadership seminar by Dr. Diana Butler Bass. March 21. Contact Dr. Marie Kremer at 314-421-3749 or Register online at www.cbfmo.org/. For information call 816-415- [email protected]. 0009 or visit the Web site.