Off the Beaten Track in England

When Martin Neary succeeded Simon Preston as Westminster Abbey's Organist and Master of the Choristers in 1988, a distinguished career reached its logical (if dizzying) pinnacle. From his early years as a boy chorister at the Chapel Royal, Saint James' Palace, through an organ scholarship at Cambridge and several subsequent prestigious appointments (notably St. Margaret's, Westminster and Winchester Cathedral), Neary's achievements are the stuff of which church musicians dream. His numerous honors include a Fellowship from London's Royal Academy of Music; and from 1988-90, he was President of the Royal College of Organists.

But to paint a picture of Martin Neary as the prototypical English cathedral organist would truly miss the mark.  For he has cast his net far beyond the narrow confines of the organ loft, championing early and contemporary music both within and without the walls of the Church. In addition to a thorough musical apprenticeship and solid academic background, he trained on both sides of the Atlantic as a conductor. An active and well-travelled concert artist, he won second prize in the first St. Albans organ competition, and has garnered considerable acclaim for his many recordings as soloist and conductor.

The following conversation took place at Westminster Abbey.

Mark Buxton: As we sit here discussing your life and work, it strikes me there that is a pleasing symmetry to your career. As a boy, you sang in Westminster Abbey under Sir William McKie at the 1953 Coronation. Today, over forty years later, you yourself are in charge of the Abbey's music. What recollections do you have of those early years?

Martin Neary: Well, I began my musical life at the Chapel Royal, where I was a chorister for some seven years. (Incidentally, that was an unusually long tenure.)  When I arrived, Stanley Roper was in charge of the music, although he was later succeeded by Harry Gabb, who also held the position of Sub-Organist "down the road" at St. Paul's Cathedral.

As a Chapel Royal chorister, I was fortunate enough to sing at the Coronation. This was a truly memorable occasion, with a magnificent program of music directed, as you mentioned, by Sir William McKie--one of my many distinguished predecessors here. And in a way, yes, the wheel has indeed turned full circle, as I have just recorded a CD of music from the 1953 Coronation with the Abbey Choir.1

MB: After your secondary education at the City of London School, you went up to Cambridge on an organ scholarship at Gonville and Caius College . . .

MN: Yes, although I began by reading theology, not music. The Professor of Music at the time was Patrick Hadley, a name familiar to many Diapason readers as the composer of the anthem "My beloved spake" and the carol "I sing of a maiden."2 Hadley was Precentor of my college, Gonville and Caius, and encouraged me to change from theology to music. In retrospect, this was a good move, as I'm sure that I would have been too frustrated in the pulpit, not being involved in the musical side of things.

MB:The theological training must have been useful to you in your work as a church musician.

MN: Actually, it has been of immeasurable help to me over the years. As a theologian, I was required to learn Hebrew, which has given me a greater understanding of the Psalms. Wonderful as it is, Coverdale's translation of the Psalter does obscure the meaning of the original text on occasion. The opening of Psalm 121 is a prime example--"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills: From whence cometh my help." This is often taken to mean that the psalmist looks to the hills for his help, and finds it there; in fact, no help is to be found in the hills. The psalmist's help comes from the Lord, of course, as indicated in the following verse: "My help cometh even from the Lord, who hath made heaven and earth."

On another, more practical level, learning Hebrew was an extremely valuable exercise. Reading from right to left developed an independence and mental agility which served me well when it came to playing trio sonatas!

MB: Prior to Cambridge, you studied organ with Douglas Fox and Harry Gabb. During your university years, you were a pupil of Geraint Jones, one of England's foremost Bach exponents of the period, and a teacher of great repute.

MN: Geraint Jones was indeed a great pioneer in the field of early music--Bach in particular. He was also a marvellous teacher; in fact, it was he who really taught me how to play. He had a remarkable knack for knowing just what to do with a piece, even one that he himself didn't play. For example, I remember taking Ibert's Musette to one of my lessons. I'm sure that he didn't know the piece but his comments were so perceptive as to suggest intimate acquaintance with the music. My success at St. Albans would not have been possible without his expert guidance and instruction.

MB: That was in 1963?

MN: Yes--at the end of my Cambridge studies, in fact. In many ways, 1963 was of tremendous importance in terms of my subsequent career. During my last year at Cambridge, I started doing much more choral conducting, and was awarded a conducting scholarship at Tanglewood after a rather unusual interview at London's opulent Connaught Hotel . . .

MB: Unusual?

MN: The "interview" itself consisted of nothing more than a conversation over tea . . . with no less a personage than Aaron Copland.  Without any doubt, this was the most useful cup of tea I have ever had!

Tanglewood was, of course, a thrilling and stimulating experience, especially since 1963 was Erich Leinsdorf's first year with the Boston Symphony. And thanks to Peter Hurford's good offices and introductions, I was able to play a fair number of concerts in the United States.

MB: And you pursued these interests-- playing and conducting--when you returned from America?

MN: When I arrived back in London, I was appointed Assistant Organist of St. Margaret's, Westminster--here in the shadow of the Abbey--under Herbert Dawson, who had himself been an Abbey chorister under Bridge. When he left in 1965, I succeeded him as Director of Music. I also taught at Trinity College of Music in London, while continuing my own organ studies.

MB: With Geraint Jones?

MN: Yes, and also with André Marchal in Paris. Marchal was a great source of inspiration, with his legendary legato and supreme skill in "placing" notes. He was a marvellous teacher, too.

Additionally, I pursued my interest in conducting by going on one of Sir Adrian Boult's courses, something which proved to be extremely beneficial.  Boult's approach was very direct: he believed that the best training for a conductor was, quite simply, to conduct. By this, he meant that the body must convey the musical mind, with the musical thought clearly articulated through the conductor's movements. The same goes for choir training too. At first, one just holds things together, but later, one must shape the performances. A conductor must be much more than a musical traffic cop!

MB: This must have been an exciting time to have worked in London, what with the rapidly growing interest in performing early music with a critical eye to historical detail.

MN: The early music scene was indeed burgeoning at the time. In addition to well-established exponents such as Raymond Leppard, unusually lively musical minds such as John Eliot Gardiner and Roger Norrington were beginning to rise to prominence. As you can imagine, the atmosphere was conducive to new developments and experiments.  I started various things myself, such as performances of Baroque passions with early instruments--something very new at the time.

MB: Who influenced you in this work?

MN: Walter Emery and Arthur Mendel, mainly. I had always been interested in their scholarly writings, and they were a major source of guidance and inspiration.

MB: The crop of new tracker organs, generally designed for a more sympathetic rendition, shall we say, of earlier repertoire, must have been an important stimulus too . . .

MN: Very much so. Of course, as musicological research continued to break new ground, conventional wisdom as to what was the "ideal" organ varied greatly. Thus it was that some organs came to be regarded as old-fashioned within a few years of their installation.

MB: Could you give us an example of one such instrument?  

MN: The Flentrop at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall [QEH]. This was a good organ, designed for playing earlier repertoire, yet its equal temperament and its pitch (A440) made it almost out-of-date after only a few years. Naturally, this caused no end of trouble whenever the organ was used with period instruments at their original pitch. I shall never forget playing Handel's B-flat Organ Concerto [Op. 4, No. 2] at the QEH, and discovering to my horror that the organ pitch clashed with the Baroque ensemble.

MB:  What did you do?

MN: I had to transpose the entire piece down a semitone. (You can imagine how much extra work that entailed!)  Since that time, I have always thought of that concerto as being in A . . .

MB: 1971 saw your appointment to Winchester Cathedral as Organist and Master of the Music. This is undoubtedly one of England's most coveted positions, and one which owes much of its lustre to what you achieved during your tenure there. At the time, however, did you ever feel that you might be sacrificing something by moving away from London's thriving musical life?

MN: In some ways, yes, I did realise that I would have to forfeit certain things, in particular playing with the London orchestras. On the other hand, I moved to Winchester with a very open mind. I was only thirty-one at the time, and went there with an "anything is possible" attitude.

MB: What possibilities did you discover (or create) there?

MN: It was clear that there was ample scope for extending the musical horizons. For example, none of the Bach motets had ever been sung by the Southern Cathedral Choirs (Winchester, Salisbury and Chichester), so that was an ideal starting point. At Winchester, we did a good deal of earlier repertoire, including the first British performance of Bach's St. Matthew Passion with period instruments. On such occasions as these, our top line would be augmented by a group of hand-picked singers from the Winchester area.

MB: But you don't do this at the Abbey.

MN: No, we use the choristers only.  In this way, the forces employed are more in keeping with those used by Bach. Our complement of men is smaller than Bach's, but the Abbey men are older and have stronger voices, thus compensating for what we lack in numbers.

MB: At Winchester, you were an ardent advocate of contemporary music too, with  performances and commissions of works by composers such as Jonathan Harvey--some of our readers will know his exquisite anthem "I love the Lord"-- and John Tavener. Of course, your affinity for the latter's output continues to this day, with the 1988 première (and 1994 recording, I might add) of Akathist of Thanksgiving.3

MN: I have conducted a fair number of Tavener premières, starting with the Little Requiem for Father Malachy Lynch in 1972. That work is very typical of the composer, inspired as it is by vast spaces. I think that this in turn both influences and inspires choirs which perform it.

As you say, Jonathan Harvey was another "Winchester" composer. (His son sang in the Winchester choir, incidentally.) My first contact with Harvey's work came when I played his Laus Deo for organ. There's an interesting story behind this: it takes only four minutes to perform and Harvey wrote it in a mere twelve hours. I spent more than thirty hours learning it!

Regarding "I love the Lord," he gave us this anthem in memory of his mother. It is a very simple, straightforward work, but worthy of Britten, I feel.

In my early years at Winchester, the new Bishop asked me to write a work for his enthronement using the text "TheDove Descending."4 I decided to ask a "real" composer instead, and approached Jonathan Harvey, who was teaching at Southampton University. (Southampton is situated in the Diocese of Winchester.)  He responded by writing a fascinating piece--"The Dove Descending"--although it posed some problems . . .

MB: Because of its technical challenges?

MN: Not only that, but also because there was considerable resistance to contemporary music. It was very unfamiliar terrain at the time, and the music was too difficult for many choirs. Today the situation is very different, because choirs have achieved a greater fluency in contemporary performance. The boys learn the music very quickly--a far cry from the early 1970s--and our men are able to read it at sight.

MB: That must be a prerequisite for professional men in cathedral choirs . . .

MN: Yes, especially here, given the sheer volume of music the Abbey Choir has to perform.

Incidentally, I should add that one of the gripes about "The Dove Descending" was the leap of a major tenth (E flat to top G) at the beginning of the piece.  Not to be dissuaded, I reminded the trebles of a Mozart piece in their repertoire which required negotiating an even larger interval--that of a twelfth!

MB: Before continuing our Winchester discussion, might I digress--since you've mentioned trebles--and ask you about the training your boys at the Abbey receive?

MN: We have regular daily rehearsals.  Nowadays, the training of choirboys proceeds with rather more vigor and liveliness than before, due in no small part to our greater understanding of how to work with a chorister's voice. Each boy receives individual training from myself and a voice coach, and we give them regular "check-ups." In my work at Winchester and Westminster, I have delighted in the challenge of working with boys aged 8-13. It is fascinating to see just how far one can take their voices, and I regard this aspect of my life as a great opportunity and blessing.

MB: As you look back on your time at Winchester, are there any special highlights?

MN: I think that 1979 was a banner year for us, signalling as it did the 900th anniversary of the Cathedral. One of my projects for 1979 was to arrange the first North American visit by an English cathedral (as opposed to collegiate) choir for twenty-five years. We were privileged to sing at several prestigious venues, such as the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Washington's Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall in New York.

Now thereby hangs a tale. Carnegie Hall had an electronic organ which gave out on us just before the concert was due to begin. This necessitated a radical revision of our program, and our tour manager was dispatched in haste to search out suitable repertoire at our hotel.  Luckily, we had a piano at our disposal, and it gave suitable service in several pieces--Mendelssohn's "I waited for the Lord," for example. However, piano accompaniment is considerably less suited for Purcell's "Jehova, quam multi"!  We all felt that the opening words of the anthem--"Lord, how are they increased that trouble me"--were very appropriate that evening!

Fortunately, we received good reviews for the New York concert, and the tour itself was a great success. As a learning experience, it proved invaluable for future visits.

MB: You appear to have enjoyed your good musical relationship with North America.

MN: Oh, very much so. I spent a sabbatical in the United States--at Princeton--in 1980, and was Artist in Residence at the University of California/Davis in 1984. I have done some guest conducting in North America and have always enjoyed playing recitals during my visits there.

MB: Towards the end of your Winchester period, the Choir took part in the first performance and recording of another contemporary work: the Requiem by a certain Andrew Lloyd Webber . . .

MN: Our participation in the Lloyd Webber brought us a great deal of press and media coverage. The exposure was very good for Winchester, of course, but I hope that it was also beneficial for cathedral music in general. Likewise, our tours and appearances at the Proms.  Events such as these bring cathedral music to a wider audience--and that cannot be a bad thing, after all!

MB: Earlier, we talked about your contribution to contemporary music at Winchester. How are you pursuing this interest at Westminster?

MN: I have set myself certain goals for my time here, one of which is to commission ten new masses with today's liturgies in mind. By that, I mean that the Sanctus and Benedictus must be concise.

MB: How is this project progressing?

MN: Well, Jeffrey Lewis has written a fine mass for us, and Francis Grier's contribution, Missa Trinitatis Sancte, is a winner in every way.5

MB: And a commission from John Tavener.

MN: Yes. In 1995, we celebrated the 750th anniversary of Henry III's substantial contribution to the Abbey's fabric. He enlarged the building in 1245 in memory of its founder, Edward the Confessor. To mark this, a major work  was commissioned from John Tavener. Entitled Innocence, it is a work for all humankind, using Jewish, Christian and Muslim texts.6

MB: 1995 was very much an annus mirabilis at Westminster Abbey, with the 300th anniversary of Purcell's death. The Abbey marked the tercentenary in grand style; but that is material for an article in itself . . .

MN: . . . We would have enough material for a series of articles, I'm sure!

MB: What a good idea. . . .

Mention of Purcell brings us back to your long-standing advocacy of early music. What is your approach to maintaining and nourishing the tradition of earlier repertoire here?

MN: I agree with the truism that tradition depends on maintenance. So, in order to perform this repertoire with greater stylistic fidelity and conviction, we now have a chamber organ by Kenneth Tickell. It will be of great use not only in Purcell, but also in English music of the 17th-18th centuries.

MB: A useful supplement to the renowned Harrison & Harrison . . .

MN: Indeed. The Abbey now houses two splendid examples of British organbuilding. The Harrison & Harrison instrument was built for the 1937 Coronation, and has undergone certain modifications since its installation. The most recent work was carried out under my predecessor, Simon Preston, and included the addition of an unenclosed Choir, some new mixtures and the Bombarde division. This has resulted in a superb accompanimental organ which is very rewarding to play.

For obvious reasons, the Harrison is less at home in music of a "chamber" nature, so our new organ fills what was a noticeable gap. It plays at various pitches - 415, 440 and 465 - and comprises Flutes at 8' and 4'; Principals at 4' and 2'; and a Sesquialtera beginning at Middle C.  As you can see, Cornet Voluntaries are possible.  There's also a device enabling the player to cut off the stop, permitting echo effects. Kenneth Tickell has voiced the instrument according to our express wishes, and it is a much-valued addition to the Abbey's musical resources.

MB: Tickell is an organist himself, of course.

MN: And a very fine one at that: an FRCO, no less!

MB:  I see that there's some controversy in British organbuilding circles at present, stemming from the fact that non-British companies have been awarded several recent contracts of note.  (I daresay that a similar situation on this side of the Atlantic would occasion vociferous comment from our North American builders.) Yet in some respects this is nothing new in British organ circles: after all, European firms have been building organs in the United Kingdom for several decades now.  Do you have any comments?

MN: Well, I welcome the work of what are sometimes referred to as "foreign" builders  Many of these organs are eminently superior when it comes to playing the repertoire, although they do not always meet every demand made of them. I do believe that the importation of instruments from abroad has, in some way, encouraged native builders to cast aside the insularity that was so prevalent in their ranks some thirty years ago.  This is heartening, I must say.

MB: Before we end our conversation, would you be good enough to share some thoughts on current North American organbuilding with Diapason readers?

MN: I always admire what the best North American builders have achieved, especially when faced with unhelpful acoustics. Fisk's instruments have always given me great pleasure, as have those by the Canadian firm of Karl Wilhelm. I haven't yet seen the Meyerson Symphony Center Fisk in Dallas, but am greatly intrigued by the excellent reports I hear.  I certainly look forward to playing it one day!

The writer wishes to thank Martin and Penny Neary for their gracious hospitality and generous assistance in preparing this article.

Notes

                        1.                  Music from the Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Westminster Abbey Choir; Martin Baker (organ); London Brass; English Chamber Orchestra/Martin Neary (Cantoris Soundalive CSACD 3050).

                        2.                  Highly recommended too is Hadley's (unjustly) neglected symphonic ballad for baritone, chorus and orchestra, The Trees so High.

                        3.                  Akathist of Thanksgiving. James Bowman, Timothy Wilson (Counter-Tenors); Martin Baker (Organ); Westminster Abbey Choir & BBC Singers; BBC Symphony Orchestra/Martin Neary (Sony SK64446).

                        4.                  This work was commissioned by the Dean & Chapter of Winchester Cathedral, and first performed there at the enthronement of the Bishop of Winchester, the Rt. Rev. John Vernon Taylor, on February 8, 1975.  The text is taken from T.S. Eliot's "Little Gidding" (Four Quartets); the anthem was published by Novello & Co. in 1975.

                        5.                  Francis Grier's Missa Trinitatis Sancte is included on Westminster Abbey Choir's recording A Millenium of Music (Sony SK66614).

                        6.                  Innocence was premièred on October 10, 1995. It is featured on the Abbey Choir's latest recording, Innocence and other works by John Tavener (Sony SK66613).

When Martin Neary succeeded Simon Preston as Westminster Abbey's Organist and Master of the Choristers in 1988, a distinguished career reached its logical (if dizzying) pinnacle. From his early years as a boy chorister at the Chapel Royal, Saint James' Palace, through an organ scholarship at Cambridge and several subsequent prestigious appointments (notably St. Margaret's, Westminster and Winchester Cathedral), Neary's achievements are the stuff of which church musicians dream. His numerous honors include a Fellowship from London's Royal Academy of Music; and from 1988-90, he was President of the Royal College of Organists.

But to paint a picture of Martin Neary as the prototypical English cathedral organist would truly miss the mark.  For he has cast his net far beyond the narrow confines of the organ loft, championing early and contemporary music both within and without the walls of the Church. In addition to a thorough musical apprenticeship and solid academic background, he trained on both sides of the Atlantic as a conductor. An active and well-travelled concert artist, he won second prize in the first St. Albans organ competition, and has garnered considerable acclaim for his many recordings as soloist and conductor.

The following conversation took place at Westminster Abbey.

Mark Buxton: As we sit here discussing your life and work, it strikes me there that is a pleasing symmetry to your career. As a boy, you sang in Westminster Abbey under Sir William McKie at the 1953 Coronation. Today, over forty years later, you yourself are in charge of the Abbey's music. What recollections do you have of those early years?

Martin Neary: Well, I began my musical life at the Chapel Royal, where I was a chorister for some seven years. (Incidentally, that was an unusually long tenure.)  When I arrived, Stanley Roper was in charge of the music, although he was later succeeded by Harry Gabb, who also held the position of Sub-Organist "down the road" at St. Paul's Cathedral.

As a Chapel Royal chorister, I was fortunate enough to sing at the Coronation. This was a truly memorable occasion, with a magnificent program of music directed, as you mentioned, by Sir William McKie--one of my many distinguished predecessors here. And in a way, yes, the wheel has indeed turned full circle, as I have just recorded a CD of music from the 1953 Coronation with the Abbey Choir.1

MB: After your secondary education at the City of London School, you went up to Cambridge on an organ scholarship at Gonville and Caius College . . .

MN: Yes, although I began by reading theology, not music. The Professor of Music at the time was Patrick Hadley, a name familiar to many Diapason readers as the composer of the anthem "My beloved spake" and the carol "I sing of a maiden."2 Hadley was Precentor of my college, Gonville and Caius, and encouraged me to change from theology to music. In retrospect, this was a good move, as I'm sure that I would have been too frustrated in the pulpit, not being involved in the musical side of things.

MB: The theological training must have been useful to you in your work as a church musician.

MN: Actually, it has been of immeasurable help to me over the years. As a theologian, I was required to learn Hebrew, which has given me a greater understanding of the Psalms. Wonderful as it is, Coverdale's translation of the Psalter does obscure the meaning of the original text on occasion. The opening of Psalm 121 is a prime example--"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills: From whence cometh my help." This is often taken to mean that the psalmist looks to the hills for his help, and finds it there; in fact, no help is to be found in the hills. The psalmist's help comes from the Lord, of course, as indicated in the following verse: "My help cometh even from the Lord, who hath made heaven and earth."

On another, more practical level, learning Hebrew was an extremely valuable exercise. Reading from right to left developed an independence and mental agility which served me well when it came to playing trio sonatas!

MB: Prior to Cambridge, you studied organ with Douglas Fox and Harry Gabb. During your university years, you were a pupil of Geraint Jones, one of England's foremost Bach exponents of the period, and a teacher of great repute.

MN: Geraint Jones was indeed a great pioneer in the field of early music--Bach in particular. He was also a marvellous teacher; in fact, it was he who really taught me how to play. He had a remarkable knack for knowing just what to do with a piece, even one that he himself didn't play. For example, I remember taking Ibert's Musette to one of my lessons. I'm sure that he didn't know the piece but his comments were so perceptive as to suggest intimate acquaintance with the music. My success at St. Albans would not have been possible without his expert guidance and instruction.

MB: That was in 1963?

MN: Yes--at the end of my Cambridge studies, in fact. In many ways, 1963 was of tremendous importance in terms of my subsequent career. During my last year at Cambridge, I started doing much more choral conducting, and was awarded a conducting scholarship at Tanglewood after a rather unusual interview at London's opulent Connaught Hotel . . .

MB: Unusual?

MN: The "interview" itself consisted of nothing more than a conversation over tea . . . with no less a personage than Aaron Copland.  Without any doubt, this was the most useful cup of tea I have ever had!

Tanglewood was, of course, a thrilling and stimulating experience, especially since 1963 was Erich Leinsdorf's first year with the Boston Symphony. And thanks to Peter Hurford's good offices and introductions, I was able to play a fair number of concerts in the United States.

MB: And you pursued these interests-- playing and conducting--when you returned from America?

MN: When I arrived back in London, I was appointed Assistant Organist of St. Margaret's, Westminster--here in the shadow of the Abbey--under Herbert Dawson, who had himself been an Abbey chorister under Bridge. When he left in 1965, I succeeded him as Director of Music. I also taught at Trinity College of Music in London, while continuing my own organ studies.

MB: With Geraint Jones?

MN: Yes, and also with André Marchal in Paris. Marchal was a great source of inspiration, with his legendary legato and supreme skill in "placing" notes. He was a marvellous teacher, too.

Additionally, I pursued my interest in conducting by going on one of Sir Adrian Boult's courses, something which proved to be extremely beneficial.  Boult's approach was very direct: he believed that the best training for a conductor was, quite simply, to conduct. By this, he meant that the body must convey the musical mind, with the musical thought clearly articulated through the conductor's movements. The same goes for choir training too. At first, one just holds things together, but later, one must shape the performances. A conductor must be much more than a musical traffic cop!

MB: This must have been an exciting time to have worked in London, what with the rapidly growing interest in performing early music with a critical eye to historical detail.

MN: The early music scene was indeed burgeoning at the time. In addition to well-established exponents such as Raymond Leppard, unusually lively musical minds such as John Eliot Gardiner and Roger Norrington were beginning to rise to prominence. As you can imagine, the atmosphere was conducive to new developments and experiments.  I started various things myself, such as performances of Baroque passions with early instruments--something very new at the time.

MB: Who influenced you in this work?

MN: Walter Emery and Arthur Mendel, mainly. I had always been interested in their scholarly writings, and they were a major source of guidance and inspiration.

MB: The crop of new tracker organs, generally designed for a more sympathetic rendition, shall we say, of earlier repertoire, must have been an important stimulus too . . .

MN: Very much so. Of course, as musicological research continued to break new ground, conventional wisdom as to what was the "ideal" organ varied greatly. Thus it was that some organs came to be regarded as old-fashioned within a few years of their installation.

MB: Could you give us an example of one such instrument?  

MN: The Flentrop at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall [QEH]. This was a good organ, designed for playing earlier repertoire, yet its equal temperament and its pitch (A440) made it almost out-of-date after only a few years. Naturally, this caused no end of trouble whenever the organ was used with period instruments at their original pitch. I shall never forget playing Handel's B-flat Organ Concerto [Op. 4, No. 2] at the QEH, and discovering to my horror that the organ pitch clashed with the Baroque ensemble.

MB:  What did you do?

MN: I had to transpose the entire piece down a semitone. (You can imagine how much extra work that entailed!)  Since that time, I have always thought of that concerto as being in A . . .

MB: 1971 saw your appointment to Winchester Cathedral as Organist and Master of the Music. This is undoubtedly one of England's most coveted positions, and one which owes much of its lustre to what you achieved during your tenure there. At the time, however, did you ever feel that you might be sacrificing something by moving away from London's thriving musical life?

MN: In some ways, yes, I did realise that I would have to forfeit certain things, in particular playing with the London orchestras. On the other hand, I moved to Winchester with a very open mind. I was only thirty-one at the time, and went there with an "anything is possible" attitude.

MB: What possibilities did you discover (or create) there?

MN: It was clear that there was ample scope for extending the musical horizons. For example, none of the Bach motets had ever been sung by the Southern Cathedral Choirs (Winchester, Salisbury and Chichester), so that was an ideal starting point. At Winchester, we did a good deal of earlier repertoire, including the first British performance of Bach's St. Matthew Passion with period instruments. On such occasions as these, our top line would be augmented by a group of hand-picked singers from the Winchester area.

MB: But you don't do this at the Abbey.

MN: No, we use the choristers only.  In this way, the forces employed are more in keeping with those used by Bach. Our complement of men is smaller than Bach's, but the Abbey men are older and have stronger voices, thus compensating for what we lack in numbers.

MB: At Winchester, you were an ardent advocate of contemporary music too, with  performances and commissions of works by composers such as Jonathan Harvey--some of our readers will know his exquisite anthem "I love the Lord"-- and John Tavener. Of course, your affinity for the latter's output continues to this day, with the 1988 première (and 1994 recording, I might add) of Akathist of Thanksgiving.3

MN: I have conducted a fair number of Tavener premières, starting with the Little Requiem for Father Malachy Lynch in 1972. That work is very typical of the composer, inspired as it is by vast spaces. I think that this in turn both influences and inspires choirs which perform it.

As you say, Jonathan Harvey was another "Winchester" composer. (His son sang in the Winchester choir, incidentally.) My first contact with Harvey's work came when I played his Laus Deo for organ. There's an interesting story behind this: it takes only four minutes to perform and Harvey wrote it in a mere twelve hours. I spent more than thirty hours learning it!

Regarding "I love the Lord," he gave us this anthem in memory of his mother. It is a very simple, straightforward work, but worthy of Britten, I feel.

In my early years at Winchester, the new Bishop asked me to write a work for his enthronement using the text "TheDove Descending."4 I decided to ask a "real" composer instead, and approached Jonathan Harvey, who was teaching at Southampton University. (Southampton is situated in the Diocese of Winchester.)  He responded by writing a fascinating piece--"The Dove Descending"--although it posed some problems . . .

MB: Because of its technical challenges?

MN: Not only that, but also because there was considerable resistance to contemporary music. It was very unfamiliar terrain at the time, and the music was too difficult for many choirs. Today the situation is very different, because choirs have achieved a greater fluency in contemporary performance. The boys learn the music very quickly--a far cry from the early 1970s--and our men are able to read it at sight.

MB: That must be a prerequisite for professional men in cathedral choirs . . .

MN: Yes, especially here, given the sheer volume of music the Abbey Choir has to perform.

Incidentally, I should add that one of the gripes about "The Dove Descending" was the leap of a major tenth (E flat to top G) at the beginning of the piece.  Not to be dissuaded, I reminded the trebles of a Mozart piece in their repertoire which required negotiating an even larger interval--that of a twelfth!

MB: Before continuing our Winchester discussion, might I digress--since you've mentioned trebles--and ask you about the training your boys at the Abbey receive?

MN: We have regular daily rehearsals.  Nowadays, the training of choirboys proceeds with rather more vigor and liveliness than before, due in no small part to our greater understanding of how to work with a chorister's voice. Each boy receives individual training from myself and a voice coach, and we give them regular "check-ups." In my work at Winchester and Westminster, I have delighted in the challenge of working with boys aged 8-13. It is fascinating to see just how far one can take their voices, and I regard this aspect of my life as a great opportunity and blessing.

MB: As you look back on your time at Winchester, are there any special highlights?

MN: I think that 1979 was a banner year for us, signalling as it did the 900th anniversary of the Cathedral. One of my projects for 1979 was to arrange the first North American visit by an English cathedral (as opposed to collegiate) choir for twenty-five years. We were privileged to sing at several prestigious venues, such as the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Washington's Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall in New York.

Now thereby hangs a tale. Carnegie Hall had an electronic organ which gave out on us just before the concert was due to begin. This necessitated a radical revision of our program, and our tour manager was dispatched in haste to search out suitable repertoire at our hotel.  Luckily, we had a piano at our disposal, and it gave suitable service in several pieces--Mendelssohn's "I waited for the Lord," for example. However, piano accompaniment is considerably less suited for Purcell's "Jehova, quam multi"!  We all felt that the opening words of the anthem--"Lord, how are they increased that trouble me"--were very appropriate that evening!

Fortunately, we received good reviews for the New York concert, and the tour itself was a great success. As a learning experience, it proved invaluable for future visits.

MB: You appear to have enjoyed your good musical relationship with North America.

MN: Oh, very much so. I spent a sabbatical in the United States--at Princeton--in 1980, and was Artist in Residence at the University of California/Davis in 1984. I have done some guest conducting in North America and have always enjoyed playing recitals during my visits there.

MB: Towards the end of your Winchester period, the Choir took part in the first performance and recording of another contemporary work: the Requiem by a certain Andrew Lloyd Webber . . .

MN: Our participation in the Lloyd Webber brought us a great deal of press and media coverage. The exposure was very good for Winchester, of course, but I hope that it was also beneficial for cathedral music in general. Likewise, our tours and appearances at the Proms.  Events such as these bring cathedral music to a wider audience--and that cannot be a bad thing, after all!

MB: Earlier, we talked about your contribution to contemporary music at Winchester. How are you pursuing this interest at Westminster?

MN: I have set myself certain goals for my time here, one of which is to commission ten new masses with today's liturgies in mind. By that, I mean that the Sanctus and Benedictus must be concise.

MB: How is this project progressing?

MN: Well, Jeffrey Lewis has written a fine mass for us, and Francis Grier's contribution, Missa Trinitatis Sancte, is a winner in every way.5

MB: And a commission from John Tavener.

MN: Yes. In 1995, we celebrated the 750th anniversary of Henry III's substantial contribution to the Abbey's fabric. He enlarged the building in 1245 in memory of its founder, Edward the Confessor. To mark this, a major work  was commissioned from John Tavener. Entitled Innocence, it is a work for all humankind, using Jewish, Christian and Muslim texts.6

MB: 1995 was very much an annus mirabilis at Westminster Abbey, with the 300th anniversary of Purcell's death. The Abbey marked the tercentenary in grand style; but that is material for an article in itself . . .

MN: . . . We would have enough material for a series of articles, I'm sure!

MB: What a good idea. . . .

Mention of Purcell brings us back to your long-standing advocacy of early music. What is your approach to maintaining and nourishing the tradition of earlier repertoire here?

MN: I agree with the truism that tradition depends on maintenance. So, in order to perform this repertoire with greater stylistic fidelity and conviction, we now have a chamber organ by Kenneth Tickell. It will be of great use not only in Purcell, but also in English music of the 17th-18th centuries.

MB: A useful supplement to the renowned Harrison & Harrison . . .

MN: Indeed. The Abbey now houses two splendid examples of British organbuilding. The Harrison & Harrison instrument was built for the 1937 Coronation, and has undergone certain modifications since its installation. The most recent work was carried out under my predecessor, Simon Preston, and included the addition of an unenclosed Choir, some new mixtures and the Bombarde division. This has resulted in a superb accompanimental organ which is very rewarding to play.

For obvious reasons, the Harrison is less at home in music of a "chamber" nature, so our new organ fills what was a noticeable gap. It plays at various pitches - 415, 440 and 465 - and comprises Flutes at 8' and 4'; Principals at 4' and 2'; and a Sesquialtera beginning at Middle C.  As you can see, Cornet Voluntaries are possible.  There's also a device enabling the player to cut off the stop, permitting echo effects. Kenneth Tickell has voiced the instrument according to our express wishes, and it is a much-valued addition to the Abbey's musical resources.

MB: Tickell is an organist himself, of course.

MN: And a very fine one at that: an FRCO, no less!

MB:  I see that there's some controversy in British organbuilding circles at present, stemming from the fact that non-British companies have been awarded several recent contracts of note.  (I daresay that a similar situation on this side of the Atlantic would occasion vociferous comment from our North American builders.) Yet in some respects this is nothing new in British organ circles: after all, European firms have been building organs in the United Kingdom for several decades now.  Do you have any comments?

MN: Well, I welcome the work of what are sometimes referred to as "foreign" builders  Many of these organs are eminently superior when it comes to playing the repertoire, although they do not always meet every demand made of them. I do believe that the importation of instruments from abroad has, in some way, encouraged native builders to cast aside the insularity that was so prevalent in their ranks some thirty years ago.  This is heartening, I must say.

MB: Before we end our conversation, would you be good enough to share some thoughts on current North American organbuilding with Diapason readers?

MN: I always admire what the best North American builders have achieved, especially when faced with unhelpful acoustics. Fisk's instruments have always given me great pleasure, as have those by the Canadian firm of Karl Wilhelm. I haven't yet seen the Meyerson Symphony Center Fisk in Dallas, but am greatly intrigued by the excellent reports I hear.  I certainly look forward to playing it one day!          

The writer wishes to thank Martin and Penny Neary for their gracious hospitality and generous assistance in preparing this article.

Roy Kehl has resided in Evanston, Illinois, since 1969. He is a past member of the Bishop’s Advisory Commission on Church Music of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago. From 1981–1985 he served on the Standing Commission on Church Music of the Episcopal Church which compiled The Hymnal 1982. In that capacity he chaired a sub-committee on plainsong hymnody and consulted with Morgan Simmons in course of that work.

On March 24, 1996, Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago celebrated the music ministry of Morgan and Mary Simmons, who retired after 28 years as organist and choirmaster and associate organist, respectively. The festivities included several motets sung by the Fourth Church Morning Choir and alumni of that choir, vigorous hymn singing accompanied by Morgan, organ works played by Mary, Roy Kehl, Richard Enright, and Margaret Kemper, and tributes by choir members, Richard Proulx, and the Rev. Dr. John M. Buchanan, senior pastor of the church, followed by a gala reception in Anderson Hall.

Both Morgan and Mary Simmons are graduates of the School of Sacred Music at Union Theological Seminary, and have long been active in the AGO and the Hymn Society. During the Simmons' tenure, a number of innovations have taken place. Among them is the annual Festival of the Arts, which has featured such artists as Robert Shaw, Dave Brubeck, Paul Winter and Maya Angelou. Since the installation of the 125-rank Aeolian/Skinner organ in 1971, there has been an annual series of organ recitals performed by an international roster of musicians. The church has commissioned a number of anthems, several of which are included in the Fourth Church Anthem Series, published by Hope Publishing Company. Several recordings of the Morning Choir have also been released.  A recent major building campaign has included structural and acoustical renovations, as well as enhancement of the Aeolian/Skinner organ by Goulding & Wood.

This conversation took place on April 22 and 29 at the Simmons' home in Evanston, Illinois, shortly before they left on a trip to England.

Roy Kehl: Mary and Morgan, can you tell our readers something of your backgrounds, where you were born and raised, went to school, how you met, and how you came to Chicago?

Mary L. Simmons: Although I was born in Centralia, Illinois, I spent my growing up years in Carbondale where I was very fortunate to have a wonderful piano teacher  (Juilliard graduate) from the time I was five until I finished high school. At age twelve I began organ lessons with our church organist, but continued piano as my first instrument at the University of Illinois for my first two years when I switched to organ as a major. My teacher there was Paul Pettinga. In September of 1951 I enrolled in the master's program in sacred music at Union Theological Seminary in New York where I was a student of Hugh Porter and studied composition with Normand Lockwood. It was at Union where Morgan and I met and where we were married on May 17, 1953--two days before we received our degrees.

Our years at Union were very special times for us not only because of our developing relationship but also because of the lively stimulation that prevailed at the seminary and the city of New York. Clarence and Helen Dickinson were very much a part of the school's life as were Ethel Porter, Charlotte Garden, Harold Friedell, Madeline Marshall, Peter Wilhousky, Vernon deTar, and Robert Baker, to say nothing of the theological giants such as Reinhold Niebuhr and Paul Tillich. The friendships which we made in those years with fellow students remain to this day.

Morgan F. Simmons: Andalusia, Alabama, is my home town. Although I was enthusiastic about music from an early age and had a reasonably good piano teacher from the time I was seven or eight, my music study was not very solid until my last three years of high school. During World War II my father was stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where I had the good fortune of coming under the guidance of Union Seminary graduate Lee Sistare who put me on the right path to serious organ study. Simultaneously, I studied piano with a very fine teacher in Fayetteville.  During my senior year in high school we had moved back to Andalusia, and I made a twice monthly trip to Montgomery (85 miles away) to study organ with another Union graduate and a master piano teacher with an engaging southern name, Lily Byron Gill, who had been a student of Moszkowski and Ernest Hutcheson.

My undergraduate work was at DePauw University where I studied with Berniece Mozingo and Van Denman Thompson, the latter, one of the most gifted musicians that I have ever known. (He had completed a bachelor's degree at New England Conservatory in one year, done post graduate study at Harvard and was teaching at the college level by the age of 20.) I, too, entered Union Seminary in the fall of 1951, and, like Mary, I studied with Hugh Porter.  Following commencement and after two years in the army, I was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship for study at the Royal School of Church Music in Croydon, England, where we spent a year.  Returning to the states I began a doctoral program at Union while serving as minister of music at the Bound Brook Presbyterian Church in Bound Brook, New Jersey, where we had a comprehensive program with six choirs. In 1961 I completed the doctorate in sacred music at Union with emphasis on hymnology, and in January of 1963 I accepted a joint appointment as minister of music at the First Methodist Church of Evanston, Illinois, and as assistant professor of church music at Garrett Theological Seminary. I continued at First Methodist until the summer of 1968 and maintained my relationship at Garrett until 1977.

On September 15, 1968 we began our work at Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago--I as organist and choirmaster and Mary as associate organist (although she was not officially listed as such in the early days).

RK: What did you find when you arrived at Fourth Church in 1968? What was the program like at that time?

MFS:  We found a church with a long and impressive history of church music.  Eric DeLamarter had been the director of music from the time of the completion of the present church and its E. M. Skinner organ in 1914 until his retirement in 1935. His distinguished associates included Leo Sowerby, Palmer Christian, Walter Blodgett and Barrett Spach, who succeeded him, remaining at the church until his retirement in 1959 (with a one year's absence from the position). The organ was in a sad state with 240 dead notes and a lot of blanketing in the chamber to use in case of ciphers.  Plans were already under way for a new instrument at the time I was hired.

There were two choirs: the Morning Choir with 34 paid singers and the Evening Choir which had about 30 volunteers. The professional choir left a great deal to be desired since there were a number of singers who really should not have been there, and it took several years to build an ensemble that came close to my ideal of what a really good choral group should sound like. I discovered early on that it takes much more than finances to foster a truly effective musical program. The volunteer choir drew on the large singles' groups which were a hallmark of the church at the time, and there was a good pool of talent from which to draw.

The Morning Choir provided music for eleven o'clock worship and the Evening Choir sang for the 6:30 vesper service. The two choirs combined for a Christmas pageant and for the Spring Choral Festival which was held in May.  In addition the Morning Choir did a Fall Choral Service and a major work on Good Friday Evening. This schedule of special services had dated from the tenure of Barrett Spach, and I did not change it appreciably.

RK: What changes have taken place in the music program at Fourth Church during your tenure?

MFS: After our first Christmas we abandoned the rather old fashioned Christmas pageant and began the tradition of Nine Lessons and Carols, and we soon began an 11:00 p.m. Christmas Eve service which we named A Festival of Banners and Light, which necessitated the fabricating of banners to fill the very large space. Over the years we have been through three sets of banners and the service has grown in popularity so that there is now standing-room-only .

In 1988 a second morning worship service meeting at 8:30 a.m. was added to the existing 11:00 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. services. Vocal music for that service was provided by an octet from the Morning Choir, including one of the soloists. An assistant organist was subsequently added to the staff to direct the Evening Choir and play for the vesper service.

For most of the choral programs we used instrumental accompaniment more than had been done by our predecessors and performed a wider variety of music.  Some of the works performed included:

To St. Cecelia (Dello Joio), Missa Brevis (Kodály), Requiem (Fauré), St. John Passion (Bach), The Great Organ Mass, The Creation, and Stabat Mater (Haydn), Requiem (Brahms), Mass (Stravinsky), Mass in E Minor (Bruckner), Requiem, Grand Mass in C Minor, and Vesperae de Domenica (Mozart), Requiem (Duruflé), Israel in Egypt and Messiah (Handel) as well as lesser known works by contemporary composers.

After the organ was rebuilt and expanded in 1971 we began a series of organ recitals: four evening recitals by outstanding guest performers as well as noonday recitals on the Fridays of October, Lent and June by organists in the Chicago area--many of whom are of stellar caliber.

RK: Share with our readers the way in which you and Mary have shared the leadership of the music ministry.

MFS: Although Mary was not officially designated as my assistant or associate when we first went to the church, she functioned as such, and without her special talents the program could never have gotten off the ground. As I stated to the congregation on our final Sunday, March 3: "Mary has been my ears, my fingers, my best critic and my best friend." Her gifted ear and fine keyboard skills far surpass mine, and she graciously used those skills in a very unassuming manner to undergird the music making that took place at the church. She is a superb accompanist and acted in that capacity at choir rehearsals, morning worship and concerts. Because of her abilities we were able to perform music that I could never have programmed otherwise. We complemented each other's talents; she lent her ear for pitch and intonation to my ear for color, balance and interpretation. She offered steadiness to my exuberance. I did most of the planning and selection of the repertory as well as the registrations for the accompaniments, and she did the execution. In addition she is the organizer of the pair and managed the large and developing music library.

During our early years at the church she had the responsibility of our three children. Later she was employed for eighteen years as a full-time executive with one of the national boards of The United Methodist Church which required a lot of travel and energy. Fortunately, she had flex time and was able to be at the church by noon on most Thursdays for preparation for choir rehearsals. During my first nine years at the church, I still had responsibilities at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston and did occasional teaching in hymnology at Northwestern University's School of Music. That meant that there were many seven-day weeks.

RK: What were some of the challenges you faced at Fourth Church?

MFS: There were and have been few major challenges to the music program of the church. We enjoyed unparalleled support from the clergy and the congregation and were free to express ourselves almost without restraint. For many years there was no music committee as such, and the level of trust that was placed in our judgment was amazing. I did my best never to betray that trust.

One problem which the church in general has faced through the years is the matter of image. Many people have a distorted view of Fourth Church--that it is an elitist institution which caters to the very wealthy and that its financial resources are unlimited. At one time there were rumors that my salary was $100,000 a year, that the pastor had a chauffered limousine, a yacht and a bevy of servants. Actually, the church ministers to a wide variety of people from all economic strata, and its per capita giving has lagged behind the national average for many years. Its location on North Michigan Avenue in a space referred to as "the magnificent mile" and the very handsome Gothic architecture which was made possible by some of Chicago's past wealth reinforces the false image.  During a large part of my tenure, I handled the church's publications and publicity, and I constantly battled to correct the image and to get the message across that this is an all-inclusive community of faith which is open to all.

RK: What are some of the high points of your ministry at Fourth Church?

MFS: That is something of a difficult question to answer because there was a steadiness to the life of the church.  Fourth Church is atypical; we never went through the slump that so many churches experienced during the late sixties and seventies. In fact the membership of the church grew during every year that we were privileged to be a part of its ministry, and when we left we were at an all-time high membership--almost 4100. But there were some peaks along the way: the establishment of the Annual Festival of the Arts in the fall of the year which exposes the church and the participating artists to the important intersection between the arts and religion, the installation of the Aeolian/Skinner organ in 1971 and finally the enhancement of that instrument and the improvement of the acoustics which were completed in 1995. The close relationships which we have had with members of the choir were heightened by three European tours: Germany and Austria in 1987, England in 1990 and Italy in 1994. Singing in the Dom in Salzburg, conducting the choir in Bruckner's Virga Jesse at St. Florian Abbey where the great Austrian composer is buried, and conducting and playing for evensong at Bath Abbey are a few of the highlights of those overseas trips which we will always cherish.

RK: Tell us something about the history of the organs at Fourth Church and the recent renovations that you have referred to.

MFS: I've already mentioned the condition of the E. M. Skinner organ that existed when we went there in 1968.  This had been a landmark instrument when it was installed in 1914 and contained 59 ranks, among them the very first Kleiner Erzähler and Celeste which Skinner built. In the church archives is a letter from him describing the stop and its derivation. He said, "The result is a most beautiful combination, the most beautiful soft effect I ever heard." In 1946-47 the Aeolian/Skinner Company made several changes to the organ, including the addition of a mixture to the Great, a replacement of the mixture in the Swell, the addition of two mutations to the Choir and a Pedal unit (16, 8 and 4). Barrett Spach was very unhappy with the results and never forgave G. Donald Harrison for altering the essential character of the original instrument.

Soon after I went to the church we engaged Robert S. Baker, then Dean of the School of Sacred Music at Union Theological Seminary, as consultant for an extensive rebuild and enlargement of the organ. He, along with Donald Gillett, president of the Aeolian/Skinner Company, and I drew up the specifications for the instrument that was expanded to 125 ranks. All of the mechanical parts of the organ and the solid state console were new, but certain ranks from the original organ and the rebuild of the 40s were incorporated.  Because we were under the restrictions to make no physical changes to the building, it was necessary to confine the pipework to the original chambers: the very deep (25 feet square) chamber to the left of the chancel and the old echo chamber at the east end  peak of the nave. In the new scheme the Swell organ was buried at the back of the chamber and spoke directly into the large pedal prinzipal pipes. Also most of the organ was on low wind pressure. These factors along with the poor acoustics of the church made for a less than satisfactory installation. When people heard that there were 125 ranks, they would ask, "Is that all there is?" after hearing full organ.  Another common remark about the musical performances was, "It's too bad that the building doesn't sound the way it looks."

When the church projected a major renovation and restoration of the facilities, I began to address the matter of the organ which was a "diamond in the rough" and also the problem of three inches of horsehair felt on the ceiling of the nave. In 1989 we began conversations with Thomas Wood, president of Goulding & Wood of Indianapolis, to determine how some of the problems of egress and enhancement might be accomplished. We also worked with Kirkegaard and Associates related to the acoustics and secured the advice of Jack Bethards of the Schoenstein Company and the church's curator of the organ, Kurt Roderer. It was determined to relocate three divisions : the Swell, the Positiv and part of the Pedal. It was also decided to raise the wind pressures on the Swell, the Positiv and the Antiphonal divisions. A new 32' pedal reed was added as was a new prinzipal for the case of the Positiv which now speaks directly into the nave by way of the south balcony. A subbass of larger scale was added to the Pedal, bringing the total number of ranks to 126. A large part of the organ was revoiced and everything was regulated and finished to complement the new acoustic. The results are dramatic and have fulfilled my dream of leaving the church in a much better state than I had found it in 1968.

RK:  Could you tell us more about the acoustical and architectural renovations?

MFS:  As part of the restoration of the sanctuary of the church, which included extensive cleaning of the stone, refinishing of the pews and all other woodwork, repairing the stained glass and updating the antiquated lighting, it was happily decided to improve the acoustics which had been hampered from the beginning by the application of three inches of horsehair felt to cut down on the reverberation of the spoken word at a time when sound enhancement systems did not exist. The felt was removed and insulation was installed, covered by sheet rock and then hard wooden panels which were decorated to match the handsome polychrome beams.  Although there is not a long reverberation as a result of this work, there is far more warmth and clarity of sound so that the organ, the choir and the congregational singing are all wonderfully improved.

Another aspect of the renovation included the relocation of the Blair Chapel where there was a two-manual Austin organ which had been greatly enhanced in recent years by Brantley Duddy of Pennsylvania. The new chapel balcony will not accommodate the large  Austin chests and so the pipework, much of which is new and viable, has been put in storage in the hope that some of it can be incorporated in a mechanical action organ for the new space. 

The building is now almost totally handicapped-accessible with the addition of two elevators, a wonderful ramped loggia which is ideal for art exhibits, and expanded areas for day care, our very large tutoring program, the day and church schools and expanded administrative facilities. The former chapel space has been converted into a great hall which is widely used for after-church coffee hours, forums and large dinners.

RK: You have spoken earlier about the organ recital programs. Who are some of the artists that have been included?

MFS: Robert Baker gave the dedicatory program for the rebuilt Aeolian/Skinner in 1971, and Marilyn Keiser played the rededication recital in February of 1995. Among the other players have been William Albright, Arthur Carkeek, Robert Clark, Douglas Cleveland, David Craighead, Richard Enright, Michael Farris, Grigg Fountain, Robert Glasgow, Ronald Gould, Gerre Hancock, Charles Heaton, David Higgs, Wilma Jensen, Margaret Kemper, Charles Krigbaum, Joan Lippincott, Marilyn Mason, James Moeser, Thomas Murray, Bruce Neswick, John Obetz, Karel Paukert, Simon Preston, George Ritchie, Wolfgang Rübsam, David Schrader, Larry Smith, Frederick Swann, John Weaver, Todd Wilson and you. The list could go on for a very long time.

RK: You have commissioned a number of anthems. Who are some of the composers, and how did the Fourth Church Anthem Series come about?

MFS: Early on we commissioned Anthony Donato to write a piece for the centennial of the church which was in 1971. Subsequently, Gerald Near accepted a commission for one of our first arts festivals. Richard Proulx was asked by the church to compose a work to mark our twenty-fifth anniversary at the church in 1993. The Fourth Church Anthem Series is a joint venture with the church and the Hope Publishing Company, whose chairman of the board is Fourth Church member George Shorney. When I approached George with the idea, he very graciously accepted the challenge and suggested that the composers who were commissioned share a percentage of their royalties with the church and that those monies be used to help underwrite the Arts Festival. Composers in the series include Richard Proulx, Dan Locklair, Charles Huddleston Heaton, John Weaver, Walter Pelz, Kenneth Jennings and myself.  Last year alone over 3000 copies of the various anthems were sold--a very gratifying record for the promotion of good music in the church.

RK: Morgan, tell us something of your activities as a composer.

MFS: Much of the work that I have done has been for use at Fourth Church: a large number of vocal descants and responses as well as some free organ accompaniments. In addition I have composed works for several visiting organists including Cityscape for David Schrader, Metamorphosis for David Craighead, Conversation Piece--Pan and Cecilia Do Sums and Division for John and Maryanne Weaver, and Recitative and Variants on Fourth Church for Marilyn Keiser. I also composed a piece for oboe and organ for Ray Still of the Chicago Symphony as well as Prelude on a Melody by Sowerby which is inscribed to Mary.

RK: You alluded to your interest in hymnody and the teaching that you have done in that area. Tell us more about your association with the Hymn Society and the work that you have done for recent hymnal revisions.

MFS: Cyril V. Taylor, the composer of one of the most beautiful twentieth- century hymn tunes, Abbot's Leigh, was warden of the Royal School of Church Music when I studied there in the 50s. He taught a course in hymnody in such a fascinating manner that I was hooked and have maintained an abiding interest in the subject. My doctoral dissertation was "Latin Hymnody: Its Resurgence in English Usage," a study of the effect of the Oxford Movement on hymnody and the introduction of plainsong melodies to the English church during the 19th century.

Back at Union Seminary I came under the influence of Ruth Ellis Messenger who served, along with Carl Parrish, as my dissertation advisor. Through her urging I became active in the Hymn Society, serving as a member of its executive committee for a number of years and eventually as its vice president. Later I was secretary-treasurer of the Consultation on Ecumenical Hymnody for several years.

You will recall that in 1987, with your help, I compiled a small spiral bound volume of 87 hymns, Again I Say Rejoice, to introduce the congregation to some newer hymn texts and tunes that were not in the 1933 Presbyterian Hymnal. This collection proved to be a good bridge to the denominational hymnal that would appear in 1990.

I was a reader/consultant for The Hymnal 1982 as well as for The Presbyterian Hymnal of 1990, and I contributed a large number of essays on texts, tunes, authors and composers to the Companion To The Hymnal 1982.  That hymnal also includes two plainsong accompaniments which I was asked to compose, and 100 Hymns Of Hope includes my tune Fourth Church which is sung at Fourth Church every Sunday at the presentation of the offering.  The hymn writer Carl Daw, Jr. was commissioned to write the text for that response.

RK: You and Mary have long been active in the American Guild of Organists.  What have been your involvements with the Guild?

MFS: Mary and I joined the Guild when we were undergraduates at the University of Illinois and DePauw respectively. Mary is a past Dean of the North Shore Chapter and is currently an ex officio member of the board. We were both founding members of the Columbus Georgia Chapter when I was stationed at Fort Benning. I served as Dean of the DePauw University Chapter, Sub-Dean of the Columbus Chapter, Dean of the North Shore Chapter and am currently Director of the Committee on Denominational Relations on the national level.

RK: What is the work of that committee and how does its concerns reflect your thinking about the current state of church music?

MFS: The committee seeks to be a sounding board for the wide spectrum of concerns that face church musicians in various churches throughout the country. One of those concerns is the matter of the use of pre-recorded music for worship. You may have seen the statement on that issue in The American Organist. That statement was the result of a lot of work by our committee to address the critical matter of the sidelining of the human dimension in worship.

We are also concerned about the vapidity and banality of much that is being espoused by those who are advocates of the church growth movement.  This is a movement that considers the organ an antiquated means of enhancing worship and one that dismisses much which we as traditional church musicians hold dear, and declares them to be irrelevant to the so-called "seekers." Personally, and I think I speak for the members of the committee, I feel that there is an abdication on the part of many church leaders to do the hard work of providing substantive elements for worship whether it be in provocative preaching or mind-stretching hymn texts set to solid music. I like to think that is what has taken place over the years that we served at Fourth Church. The commitment to excellence at every level of the church staff is evident and the fact that we are at a record membership says that the church does not have to aim at the lowest level of mentality and taste to have a vital and vibrant community of faith.

RK: Your interests are not confined to the musical sphere. Let's talk about your gardening and needlepoint projects.

MFS: Gardening predates my musical interests. I began gardening at the age of four, but I wouldn't describe myself as a horticultural Mozart, even though I have taken a number of blue ribbons at African violet and rose shows. I have a small greenhouse which gives me a lot of pleasure and allows me to enjoy this abiding hobby year round. In it I have camellias and azaleas which keep me in touch with my Alabama roots. I also have orchids and other plants there. Since retiring I have already expanded the garden to include two new flower beds. We are looking forward to visiting the Chelsea Flower Show in London at the end of May.

Needlepoint has been a hobby from the end of my high school days and I have done quite a bit. As part of the renovation for the church I designed and stitched seven cushions for the chancel as well as a wedding kneeler, and now there are six more chancel cushions on the drawing board which will be begun upon our return from England.

RK: What are some of your retirement plans?

MFS: We hope to do more travel and visiting with our three children and six grandchildren. I plan to continue composing, to do some serious writing and get involved in some volunteer work-- perhaps with children. I have missed the contact I had with young people at the two churches we served prior to going to Fourth Church. As I said at our retirement celebration on March 24, there are still many roads left to travel. There is a lot of gas left in the tank, and I plan to continue to exceed the speed limit.

We look back on our active days as church musicians with a great sense of fulfillment and have remarked many times that we are among the most blessed in this our chosen field.

Thank you for the opportunity of sharing some of our thoughts with you and the readers of this venerable magazine which I have been reading for almost fifty years!               

July 1-6, 2002

Larry Palmer is a contributing editor of The Diapason.

Despite heat and humidity this convention proved to be a stellar presentation of high-quality events. Indeed, throughout the week's major recitals there were probably more drops of sweat than dropped notes! Careful thought had gone into programming: each day began with recitals (or a recital followed by a repertoire session). Worship (preceded by a short concert) began the afternoon, followed by educational workshops. Each evening featured an 8 p.m. concert. Artists and instruments were well matched. Disruptions and problems were minimal, especially considering the large number of registrants. Chartered bus transportation was efficient (and cool). In a well-planned and executed first, public transport schedules and directions were provided for those who wished to take charge of their own itineraries, and guides aided these intrepid adventurers.  A large number of center-city events took place within a reasonable walking distance.

This was the fourth convening of an American Guild of Organists national gathering in Philadelphia, previous conventions having occurred in 1930, 1939, and 1964. Many still recall, as well, the 1977 International Congress of Organists in this unique city of major symphonic and retail-store pipe organs, the Ben Franklin Busybody mirror, cheese steaks, and assorted historic charms.

This report will, of necessity, represent only one person's schedule. I attended all the major concerts, save one. As for workshops, the elegant (though heavy) 278-page program book listed 80 (of which one was cancelled); I was able to sample four. Daily worship offerings, in addition to the early morning ecumenical services held at the convention hotel, numbered fourteen. I got to two of them. A chronological report seems pointless; the convention was divided into four color-coded groups, each assigned to attend many of the events at different times.

Two orchestral programs at Girard College

The Philadelphia Orchestra's new concert venue, Verizon Hall in the downtown Kimmel Center for the Arts, presently contains only the façade of a large Dobson pipe organ scheduled for completion in 2006. Thus concerts with orchestra were scheduled on Tuesday and Saturday evenings in the Chapel of Girard College, home to a magnificent four-manual E. M. Skinner organ. That Tuesday's offering happened at all was a tribute to professionalism and sheer determination! Because of the stifling heat, the orchestral musicians would have been justified in refusing to play; indeed, union rules allow them to refuse to perform in such adverse conditions. The performances, however, ranged from heroic to outstanding. James David Christie opened the program as soloist in the first modern performance of the just-published Widor Symphonie in G minor, opus 42 bis--an arrangement of the first and last movements from the composer's Sixth Organ Symphonie with a middle movement arranged from the Andante of the Second Organ Symphonie. Almost immediately, during the second statement of the opening theme the stand lights for half the orchestra and the conductor suddenly went out; so the performers overcame not only heat and humidity but relative obscurity, in addition to constant distraction as technicians tried to rectify the lighting problem.

The fun of hearing familiar music in a new and attractive guise coupled with the drama surrounding its performance led to shouts of "Bravo" and sustained applause from the overflow audience, which, no matter how uncomfortable it might have been, seemed to realize that the players were even less comfortable!

With full lighting restored, Craig Phillips was the deft soloist in his own Concertino for Organ and Chamber Orchestra (1995), a three-sectioned work of great melodic and rhythmic appeal, played without pause.

Although four overheated players exercised their option of leaving the orchestra at intermission, there was an immediate new sense of purpose as Diane Meredith Belcher made her entrance to play the Jongen Symphonie Concertante, opus 81! The organ console's central placement high above the stage allowed favorable sight lines for observing Ms. Belcher's energetic, musical, and poetic performance of Jongen's impressionistic tour-de-force, arguably the most successful coupling of organ and orchestra in the repertoire. The performance of this intricate work was a marvel of synchronization, made more so since the pipes of the 1933 organ are installed in the ceiling, at considerable distance from the console. The assistant conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Bulgarian-born Rossen Milanov, proved himself an able collaborator.

The Saturday closing concert, an evening of inspired choral singing from the 38-member Voices of Ascension, with orchestra and Mark Kruczek, organist, conducted by Dennis Keene, found us back at Girard College. Relief from the punishing heat had arrived on Friday and a significant number of conventioners departed on Saturday, so the Chapel was not as overwhelmed with audience as it had been for the opening concert. Carlyle Sharpe's short AGO/ECS Publishing award-winning choral work Laudate Nomen served as an upbeat, rhythmically-pungent "curtain-raiser" to the premiere of Ruth Watson Henderson's 24-minute cantata From Darkness to Light. From the quiet opening tympani notes to the hushed and yearning setting of the final words, "Darkness sang to the light and the kiss of love was peace," this lovely work, alternating Biblical texts (sung by baritone soloist Charles Robert Stephens) and choral settings of poems by the 20th-century Canadian writer Wilfred Watson, spoke in a communicative but individual tonal language. Impressionistic harmonies, a constant sense of forward motion, and deft handling of the orchestral voices all combined to make this the most immediately appealing of the large-scale commissions for Philadelphia 2002. It is definitely a work worthy of repeated hearings.

As an unscheduled addition to the program we were given a polished performance of C. Hubert H. Parry's coronation anthem I Was Glad, complete with the often-omitted cries of "Vivat Regina Elisabetta," an appropriate gesture in this, the British Queen's Golden Jubilee year. It was especially gratifying to have one final opportunity to revel in the grandiose full sound of the Girard Chapel organ, one of the finest surviving examples of E. M. Skinner's late work.

A major theme of this gathering was the celebration of the centenary of the birth of French composer Maurice Duruflé. All of his organ works were programmed during this week, as were the unaccompanied Four Motets on Gregorian Themes. For the culminating final offering of this remembrance, Keene and his superb Voices of Ascension performed Duruflé's Requiem, opus 9, with mezzo-soprano Zehava Gal. One of the most beloved settings of these ancient texts, Duruflé's masterpiece received a sublime reading, with every subtle nuance aptly and carefully observed. It was obvious that all involved knew the work intimately. I have never heard a better realization of this haunting, gentle score which I first experienced in 1959 in Holland, with the composer himself at the organ.

Three top-notch organ recitals: Parker-Smith, Morrison, Miura

A third memorable event at Girard College was the spectacular July 4 organ recital by Jane Parker-Smith. Noting that 226 years ago to the very day a group of gentlemen in Philadelphia had declared independence from Great Britain, convention general chair Dennis Elwell remarked that "the convention committee had invited two British organists to play at this gathering to demonstrate that we were gracious winners." Indeed we were all winners to enjoy such artistry! Flanked by two registrants, Ms. Parker-Smith put the organ through its paces in a program of virtuoso works that, in her hands (and feet), never seemed to overwhelm or tire the listener: Impetuoso (Wiedermann), Passacaglia in D minor (Middelschulte--a major work of 62 variations incorporating both the BACH motive and the chorale Ein' feste Burg), Toccata, opus 12 (Germani). Duruflé's opus 4, Prelude, Adagio, and Chorale Variations on the Veni Creator, has rarely sounded better. Especially compelling was Parker-Smith's playing of the beautiful Adagio, her pavane-like statement of the Chorale, and her attention to some surprising manual counterpoint in the accompaniment to the 4-foot pedal flute solo of the third variation. Scherzo Symphonique, transcribed by Jeremy Filsell from a 1974 improvisation by Pierre Cochereau, brought this outstanding recital to a quicksilver conclusion.

Alan Morrison in Princeton

For this listener the new organ work making the most lasting impression during the week was William Bolcom's Borborygm (a Latin/Greek word meaning "a rumbling of the bowels"), based on sketches by the late William Albright and dedicated to his memory by his long-time University of Michigan colleague. Beginning with the eponymous quiet low rumblings in the pedal, the 9-minute work reached its climax in a repeated, drum-like ostinato passage, and then subsided into quietness. Constantly arresting and interesting, this skillful work by the distinguished Pulitzer Prize-winning composer suggested Albright's style without sounding like an imitation. Morrison's performance was riveting, as was his entire recital (heard in the first of its four repetitions).

Another reconstructed Cochereau improvisation, Berceuse in Memory of Louis Vierne, utilized the melody of Vierne's own Berceuse (from 24 Pieces in Free Style)--a tune with startling similarity to the opening phrase of the Rodgers and Hart song There's a Small Hotel. At the climax of this piece Morrison utilized the brilliant Gallery Trumpet stop for the first time in his program.

Masterful command of registration and a deep understanding of the work characterized Morrison's playing of Duruflé's Suite, opus 5. The somber E-flat minor Prelude, perhaps the composer's most elegiac work, waxed and waned with powerful force; the daunting cross rhythms of the Sicilienne were expertly limned, and the thrilling, if over-exposed, Toccata (with the composer's revised ending) was tossed off with virtuoso aplomb.

A week largely devoted to organ music reminded one most pointedly of the absolute need for a sympathetic acoustical space if the organ is to be a successful musical medium. The Princeton University Chapel provided such an enjoyable partnership of noble Gothic-revival edifice with noble four-manual E. M. Skinner/Aeolian-Skinner/N. P. Mander organ (1928/1954-56/1991) installed on both sides of the chancel, plus additional divisions in the nave and west gallery.

Hatsumi Miura in Chestnut Hill

A breath of the past was just the needed antidote to three days of large electric-action organs, orchestral transcriptions, and mostly 20th-century repertoire; a more effective aural cleanser than Hatsumi Miura's elegant playing of the three-manual 45-stop Mander tracker organ (2000) of suburban Chestnut Hill's Presbyterian Church would have been difficult to imagine! The gentle tonal variety offered by the organ's slightly-unequal Kellner temperament, the player's artistic range of touches, and her beautifully-developed program in which works of Frescobaldi, Cabezón, and Cabanilles set off the novelty of Jehan Alain's medieval estampie-like Fantasmagorie and, as emotional high point, his Première Fantasie, led us to the satisfaction of stylistically-played Bach (the double-pedal An Wasserflüssen Babylon, BWV 653b and Prelude and Fugue in C, BWV 545). Brava Miura for this musical high point, and bravo Mander for an eloquently voiced instrument consisting of an encased Great, Swell, and Pedal, with separately encased Choir on the gallery rail, all with full 61-note manuals and 32-note pedal, thank you very much!

The organ as fun

For a group of professionals who take themselves very seriously far too much of the time, it was salutary to experience the organ as entertainment, lighter fare, yes . . . even fun! Among multiple opportunities to do this: the effervescent Hector Olivera amazed with his astounding musicianship at the Roland Atelier AT 90S digital keyboard instrument, especially with an expertly-nuanced and accurately-colored transcription of Stravinsky's Firebird Suite. With faux-castanets clicking from his keyboard-orchestra he brought down the house with a Foxian rendition of Bach's Gigue Fugue. Introducing the concert, Olivera's duo partner Richard Morris quipped "You've heard music you're supposed to hear this week; now here's what you want to hear!" Best of their collaborative efforts (prefaced by Morris' comic proffering of a tuning note and Olivera's "tuning" of his electronic-keyboard tympani) was their performance of the Poulenc Concerto in G minor. A two-keyboard version of Guilmant's Symphony Number 1  for Organ and Orchestra, opus 42, allowed a comparison of this composer's adaptation from a solo organ work with that of Widor heard at the opening concert. Of the two, Guilmant's seemed to be a more idiomatic, better balanced essay for organ and orchestra.

To lighten the procedings at the complimentary breakfast and annual AGO business meeting on Saturday morning, the Philadelphia Organ Quartet (Michael Stairs, Colin Howland, Rudolph Lucente, and Peter Richard Conte) provided their own brand of zaniness at four electronic instruments. Popular favorites included a rip-roaring Light Cavalry Overture thundering forth from twelve keyboards and four pedalboards, Tiptoe Through the Tulips for "petals" alone, and a relentlessly funny spoof of authentic performing practice, a "newly-discovered Sonata in C by the classical Swiss composer 'Monk Mueller'," for which Conte's instrument was tuned to a decidedly earlier (mis)temperament and a lower pitch than that employed by his accomplices.

Speaking of Peter Richard Conte, the Grand Court organist of the Wanamaker Organ at Lord and Taylor's department store displayed his considerable artistry on the world-famous six-manual instrument of more than 28,000 pipes. A twice-performed concert on the evening of July 4 featured his own transcriptions of Overture to Candide (Bernstein), The Sorcerer's Apprentice (Dukas), Edwin H. Lemare's arrangement of Wotan's Farewell and Magic Fire Music from Die Walküre (Wagner), and the truly unique opportunity to hear Dupré's Passion Symphony in its first complete performance on this organ since the composer first improvised it here in December, 1921. Historical performance practice of the first order! Conte's playing of the entire program was of the highest musicality, with an unimpeachable sense of timing and registration and absolute technical control. Both organ and building appeared to be in tip-top shape as were most of the convention venues. And what could have been more fitting than his encore, Sousa's Stars and Stripes Forever, complete with alternating red, white, and blue lights and an unfurling monster flag? No additional fireworks were needed for this patriotic celebration!

More organ recitals

Martin Baker, the "other" British recitalist, was saddled with a smaller instrument (38 ranks of 1921 Austin spread over four manuals and pedal) in a padded room (the visually attractive Congregation Rodeph Shalom). Baker made what he could of his assignment, playing particularly well in Duruflé's Scherzo, opus 2 and in his improvisation on a Jewish psalm melody, for which he utilized rapid repeated notes in an effective and telling manner. Organ and space did not abet his flawless playing of Mendelssohn (Sonata in A), Liszt (Orpheus), or Reger (Chorale Fantasia on Ein' feste Burg).

Similarly disadvantaged, Ann Elise Smoot's recital preceding afternoon worship at St. Mark's Episcopal Church died on the "hothouse" vine of a packed church, afflicted by high humidity and a program that sandwiched the potentially-exciting Reger Chorale Fantasia on Hallelujah! Gott zu loben between two dutiful works by Stanford. In this setting Ms. Smoot was unable to churn up much excitement. At the succeeding worship service the much-discussed, usually-deplored new nave division appended to the historic Aeolian-Skinner organ managed to prove its mettle by ciphering.

For Cherry Rhodes' recital on the Martin Ott organ of Trinity Lutheran Church in suburban Lansdale the only piece that seemed at home was the opener, Bach's lovely mostly-manualiter Pastorale in F. This very Germanic instrument did not do much for Ms. Rhodes' otherwise masterful performances of French and French-leaning works: Scènes d'Enfant d'après "The Turn of the Screw" (Jean Guillou), Meditations on Salve Festa Dies (Fr. Marius Walter), and Variations on Victimae Paschali Laudes (Jiri Ropek), the latter performed in memory of University of Alabama organ professor Warren Hutton, whose sudden death at the pre-convention pedagogy conference had both shocked and saddened the assemblage.

Organist Robert Plimpton capitalized on the Austro-German accents of the 1974 Rieger organ in Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church for assured performances of Bach (Chorale Partita on Sei gegrüsset) and Buxtehude (Toccata in F, BuxWV 157). The organ failed to be as sympathetic to the French vocabulary of  Franck's Grande Pièce Symphonique. Plimpton performed his teacher Robert Elmore's Holiday for Organ as if it were his own, and he seemed to revel in this return to the 98-rank organ installed during his tenure at the church.*

Repertoire enrichment sessions

Two beloved organists, both master teachers, gave organ-related recent-repertoire "mini-recitals" at featured morning time slots: Marilyn Keiser (organ and instruments) and David Higgs (solo repertoire). A third session surveying some recent choral works was offered by Clifford Hill.

Keiser devoted her program to works by living American composers, concentrating on appealing performances of two from the four Psalms for Flute and Organ by Moonyeen Albrecht, Dan Locklair's Sonata da chiesa for flute and organ (both with the elegant collaboration of flutist Mimi Stillman), Robert Powell's Carols of Christmas (which charmed, but failed to cool the room), and, with the Fairmount Brass Quintet plus tympani and cymbals, Craig Phillips' Suite. It was fortunate that the artist chose this format, for open windows admitted as much street noise as air, and her several remarks were totally obliterated by the beeping of backward-intentioned trucks.

David Higgs presented first performances of two works from the commissioned Philadelphia Organ Book (consisting of six pieces). Especially attractive was Star Rising by first-time composer for the organ Erik Santos, who was present. Also in attendance was Emma Lou Diemer, composer of the second work premiered, Prepare the Royal Highway. Because of excessive heat in the non-air-conditioned First Presbyterian Church, Higgs shortened his program; on Thursday, he mentioned that, having dispensed with a jacket, he was "playing in his shirtsleeves for the first time ever in public performance."

The immediate "hit" of Higgs' program was Recollection (Soliloquy No. 2) by David Conte. ECS Publishing head Robert Schuneman reported that all thirty copies brought to the convention sold out immediately after Higgs' first presentation on Tuesday, and more than 200 orders for it were placed during the week. In celebration of the national holiday, Higgs ended his program with 19th-century Harvard Professor of Music John Knowles Paine's sturdy Double Fugue on My Country, 'tis of Thee for the Full Organ.

Competitions

Once again a distinguished panel of judges (Margaret Kemper, Mary Preston, and George Ritchie) confounded those listeners who sat through the complete final round of the National Young Artists Competition in Organ Playing by choosing a safe, middle-of-the-road winner, Timothy Olsen. As has been increasingly the case in recent competitions I have attended, the audience prize winner (selected by votes from those who "stick it out" for the complete program), second-ranked Kola Owalabi, provided more interesting and exciting music-making. If the goal of this competition is to launch a young artist's concert career, it would seem that, once again, the audience made a more "judicious" choice than did the judges.

Not one of these players succeeded equally in all four required pieces ("Great" Praeludium in E minor, Bruhns; Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr, BWV 663, Bach; Etude in A-flat, Schumann; Allegro maestoso [Symphonie III], Vierne). If pressed for my own choice it would have been third place winner Christian Schmitt, whose Vierne seemed to my ears the one performance conveying the menace inherent in this work. His Bruhns was stylistic, if less fanciful than Owalabi's, whose delightful playing of the Schumann was the only one to capture its fantasy and to translate the composer's pianistic idiom to the organ with reasonable success. As is often the case, flexibly-articulated, stylish Bach-playing eluded all three players.

Winners of the National Competition in Organ Improvisation (which I did not hear) were Peter Krasincki (first prize), Neil Weston (second), and David Macfarlane (third). All three improvised on themes submitted by Harry Wilkinson. Judges for this event were Mary Beth Bennett, Lynn Trapp, and John Vandertuin.

A few workshops

While only four in number, my workshop choices included a wide range of topics offered by presenters at various stages of their careers. Nevertheless, each was successful, and each workshop held my interest. On Tuesday, as preparation for the evening concert, I went to hear veteran Widor-scholar John Near discuss the composition and reception histories of the work we were to hear. I am a longtime admirer of Near's exemplary editions of the Widor organ symphonies; he has added further to his luster by preparing Widor's opus 42 bis for performance! Much of what he said had been printed in the extensive notes so generously provided in the convention program book. It was particularly gratifying to hear Near's reference to our own venerable journal as he quoted The Diapason report (April 1919) of the American premiere of Widor's Symphonie in G minor featuring organist Charles Courboin with the Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Leopold Stokowski. (The journal's correspondent reported 10,000 auditors in Wanamaker's Grand Court; other sources suggested the tally might be as high as 12 or 15,000.)

At Tuesday evening's performance I was seated in the balcony, close to Dr. Near, and was therefore privy to his delight as he held in his hands, for the first time, printed copies of his new edition (published by A-R Editions, Madison Wisconsin).

On Wednesday I attended "Thomas Jefferson's 'Favorite Passion'," a workshop by younger scholar Nancy Cooper from the University of Montana at Missoula. She kept us engaged in Jeffersonian biography and Cooperian wit (beginning as she quoted the musical 1776, "It's hot as hell in Philadelphia"), doled out to an overflowing roomful of interested folk. Musical examples from Jefferson's music collection were played on a lovely three-stop continuo positive organ, opus one, by Michael Rathke, now of Fort Worth, Texas (formerly employed by Fisk of Gloucester).

For the Friday time slot, I chose to sample a session on the music of my Oberlin Conservatory classmate Calvin Hampton, presented by Shelly Moorman-Stahlman from Lebanon Valley College. Some unforeseen glitches in her PowerPoint presentation and some non-sequentially copied musical examples notwithstanding, Ms. Moorman-Stahlman gave a well-organized overview of Hampton's organ music and highlighted his expertise in hymn-writing. Her performance, from memory, of The Primitives and Everyone Dance from the composer's Five Dances (1982) served as aural "bookends" to her presentation, and reminded us anew of the terrible loss Calvin's death represents to the organ world. Almost too poignant in this context was a notice posted on the bulletin board beneath the organ gallery of Arch Street Methodist Church: "Because of AIDS we remember . . ."

Finally, on Saturday, I learned again from the redoubtable Marilyn Mason, who presented a workshop, "A Lifetime of New Music," highlighting some of her 78 commissions of organ music. Beginning with prayer, continuing with focused wit, dropping nuggets of wisdom as she proceeded, Professor Mason charmed her audience. She was joined by Jean Randall, who shared the playing of several pieces by Gregory Hamilton, Gordon Young and Jean Langlais from the just-published first volume of the Mason Music Library Collection of Commissioned Works for Organ (MorningStar Music Publishers). In addition, Ms. Mason played Toccata from Suite for Organ (1947) by Edmund Haines, her very first commissioned work.

As for memorable humor, Mason shared a story from her recent trip to Spain during which an old acquaintance, a priest, told her "Madame Professor, you are looking so well preserved." She also recounted her classic tale of an encounter with a Boston matron during a recital visit to Symphony Hall.  Queried by the dowager about her Mason family pedigree, the artist replied that she was "Just Miss Mason from Michigan." To this the Bostonian commented, "Here we think breeding is everything." Without missing a beat Mason responded, "In Michigan we think breeding is fun, but not everything . . ." Of equal value in the good advice department, Prof. Mason left us with the observation, "The amateur practices to get it right; the professional practices so it can't be played wrong."

Choral components

Fine choral singing graced the convention, starting with the Monday evening Gathering Celebration at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul. Gerre Hancock led his marvelous Saint Thomas (New York) Choir of Men and Boys in Duruflé's Four Motets; The Twelve by William Walton (whose centenary also occurs in 2002), and the first performance of a new work, Jacob's Prayer by Owen Burdick (to a text by Gian Carlo Menotti). Expecially lovely was Burdick's chordal setting of the words "O God, let me not die in darkness," and timely, too, for we were informed during priestly welcoming words that a power failure at 4 p.m. had rendered the building untenable for the evening service: "Only God's love (and the quick response of the electric company) restored organ, lights, and air conditioning in the nick of time." This was a relief on several fronts, since the weather deities historically seem to have had little regard for organ conventions. (I think of recent AGO gatherings in Boston, New York, Dallas, Denver; only Seattle was vouchsafed a pleasantly cool week!) It was good to know that, at least for the opening event, God appeared to be siding with organists!

The athletic, intricate accompaniment to Walton's joyous setting of master poet Wystan Auden's memorable text was handled skillfully by Judith Hancock. Stirring improvisations to open and close the service were created by Gerre Hancock and John Weaver. Another new work, Ceremonies for Organ and Brass Quintet by Jennifer Higdon, commissioned to mark the 100th anniversary of the Philadelphia Chapter of the AGO (the first "national" chapter outside New York City), clocked in at more than 30 minutes. This was simply  too much of a good thing. In future hearings, for which individual sections could be selected, the work might prove more effective. (I would suggest Opening Ceremony, Celebration [organ solo], and the last movement, Celebration.)

At the other end of the week, a Saturday concert by the Toronto Children's Chorus introduced the convention to Philadelphia's new concert venue in the Kimmel Center. Verizon Hall is cello-shaped, with four tiers of seats; the upper balconies actually surround the stage area. A dark wood interior, somewhat dry acoustically, has seats upholstered in vibrant red. This color was repeated in robes worn by 55 girl singers; the 13 boys were garbed in white shirts and black pants.

What a superb ensemble! Founder and conductor Jean Ashworth Bartle conducted the long and difficult program, drawing impeccable tuning, clear articulation, and satisfying musical results from her young charges. Their unified diction of Latin, German, and English texts was remarkable and easily understood, gratifying since there were several unannounced changes to the printed program. Pure sounds, plus added appoggiaturas, marked the stylish opening Stabat Mater (Pergolesi). An unaccompanied Ave Maria (Holst) and Eleanor Daley's delicate setting of Hilaire Belloc's The Birds (with piano) gave some welcome relief from the incessant brightness of the accompanying large electronic instrument by the Walker Technical Company.

Composer Ben Steinberg, urbane and succinct in his pre-premiere remarks, was given an exemplary first performance of his Psalms of Thanksgiving. Skillful writing for harp and cello (when not overbalanced by the organ) and flowing, singable choral lines resulted in 20 minutes of easy listening. Impressive poise and projection characterized the Chorus member who served as narrator. However, the work as a whole lacked sufficient variety to sustain interest. Like Jennifer Higdon's, this composition should fare better in excerpted form. Not for the first time during the week's new music I thought of the late Igor Kipnis' quotable quip about an interminable John Cage happening, "It reminded me of the New York Subway, but at least the Subway goes somewhere."

Some closing thoughts

Featuring "Rising Stars," winners of the 2001 AGO/Quimby Regional Competitions for Young Organists, as pre-service recitalists for the worship services proved an effective way to showcase emerging talent. I heard an adroit program of Vierne works played by Brett Maguire at Old St. Peter's Church on Tuesday. Previously I had sampled a Dallas presentation of her convention recital by Lucinda Meredith from Houston, also an assured and able player. The other "stars" in this constellation, still to be heard at some future occasions, included Tim Pyper, Christian Lane, Charles Burks, Thomas Schuster, Martin Grajeda, Jr., and Rico Contenti.

Following Maguire's recital a service of "Worship Through the Day" was offered by the 29-member choir from the Royal School of Church Music Training Course for Teenage Boys and Girls (10th grade through second-year college students), directed by Murray Forbes Somerville, with Eric Plutz, organist. Among a wide range of musical offerings was the first hearing of Douglas Major's anthem Love Poem to God (text by Rainer Maria Rilke) for choir, organ and synthesizer, featuring a congregational refrain ("What will you do, God, when I die?") signaled at each return by the haunting sounds of wind chimes. The young singers rose splendidly to the not-inconsiderable challenges of this work.

It was general cause for celebration to note a goodly contingent of younger AGO members, truly the future of the organization. Frequently manning the Exhibit Hall information booth for Oberlin Conservatory, organ majors Owen Cannon (entering freshman) and David Mislin (junior) were representative of these fresh faces. It was fun to recall the past, too, as I visited with Marjorie Jackson Rasche, FAGO, whom I met in 1957 as an Oberlin sophomore at my own very first AGO convention, a regional gathering in Akron, Ohio. Here she was in Philadelphia, seated next to me at the dinner-reception given by the Guild for members holding certification (FAGO, AAGO, ChM, CAGO, SPC). And, as unlikely as it might seem after reading that collection of letters, the ample Italian menu consisted of more than alphabet soup!

Diversity! It should be apparent to those reading this report that the program offered a wide range of offerings geared to many differing tastes. As a respite from continual organ music during the morning spent in Princeton, the seven-member New England Spiritual Ensemble sang a program of African-American music, their selections chosen to illustrate James Weldon Johnson's descriptive poem O Black and Unknown Bards. (And later, in Philadelphia, on a recreative walk, I discovered the historic marker dedicated to Francis Johnson [1792-1844], "America's first native-born master of music, African-American . . . .")

Another program "sorbet," though not on my schedule, was a concert by the Renaissance band Piffaro, early ensemble music sandwiched between carillon selections played by Lisa Lonie at St. Thomas Church, Whitemarsh, in Fort Washington.

The many Philadelphia connections between artists, pieces, and instruments (some of them noted in the remarks above) were appreciated. (Chairman Elwell and performance chair David Furniss are to be commended for this further felicity!) The plethora of faculty, students, and former students from the Curtis Institute of Music, in particular, made it apparent how very important this place of higher learning has been to the musical scene in Philadelphia and throughout the nation.

Another appreciated "first" at this meeting was the program book mention of the maintenance persons or firm responsible for upkeep and tuning of each convention organ.

Now that the 46th national convention of the American Guild of Organists has passed into history, might I suggest that, in order to secure the continued blessings of posterity, some of the expected profits generated by such a large attendance be set aside to endow an air conditioning assistance fund, with generous grants to the next east coast venue selected as host for a mid-summer convention? After all, who knows? There might not be any free paper fans, the next time around!

                  *Thanks to Dallas colleague Annette Albrecht, who served as my surrogate ears for Robert Plimpton’s recital.

                  Photographs by William Leazer (of the Dallas AGO Chapter).

Mickey Thomas Terry, a native of Greenville, North Carolina, holds degrees from East Carolina University in Greenville, and a Ph.D. in Late Medieval and Early Modern European History from Georgetown University in Washington, DC. Dr. Terry's principal organ teachers have been Clarence Watters, Charles Callahan, and Ronald Stolk (Improvisation). He is currently the organist and minister of music of St. Rita's Catholic Church in Alexandria, Virginia. Dr. Terry has concertized throughout the United States and has been broadcast several times on Pipedreams. Dr. Terry has recently been a featured artist at Washington's John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and organ recitalist at the Piccolo-Spoleto Music Festival in Charleston, South Carolina. In July, 1996, he presented a lecture-recital in St. Paul's Chapel at Columbia University as part of the African-American Organ Music workshop of the AGO National Convention in New York. He will be a featured recitalist at the 1998 AGO national convention in Denver. Dr. Terry has taught on the faculty of Georgetown University and has written several articles for both The American Organist Magazine and The Diapason. He serves on the Advisory board for the ECS/AGO African-American Organ Music Series published by E.C. Schirmer Music Company of Boston. Dr. Terry appears on the Albany Records label compact disc George Walker--A Portrait, playing the organ works of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer George Walker.

In a previous article, "African-American Organ Literature--A Selective Overview,"  seven composers and their works were featured (The Diapason, April, 1996, pp. 14-17). They included George Walker, Noel Da Costa, David Hurd, Adolphus Hailstork, Thomas H. Kerr, William B. Cooper, and Mark Fax. Through a series of musical examples provided, it was shown that in addition to Negro spirituals and jazz, African-American organ literature is based on several diverse musical sources which include plain chant, German Protestant chorales, general Protestant hymnody, themes of African origin, and original composer themes.1

Also mentioned was the fact that several composers from this school are alumni of major musical institutions. A number of them have been recipients of prestigious composition prizes and academic fellowships.2 Among them is George Walker who, in April 1996, became the first black to receive the Pulitzer Prize for music. This award was for his composition Lilacs for Soprano and Orchestra, commissioned and premiered by the Boston Symphony.

Although attitudes towards black composers are gradually changing, the path of the African-American composer has not been an easy one, and it is still fraught with difficulty.3 Historically, racial bias and negative stereotyping have played a deleterious role in coloring perceptions of and attitudes towards African-American composers. In the U.S., such attitudes have long been documented. One of the earliest setof published writings which reflects this attitude is Thomas Jefferson's Notes on Virginia (c. 1784). In this work, the author relates his general perceptions regarding blacks.4 Added to the problem of historical perception was the existence of the now defunct Jim Crow (i.e., segregation) system which deterred blacks from being woven into the fabric of American society. The combination of both factors has greatly contributed to the current dearth of published musical materials from this school of composers. Furthermore, during the pre-integration era, the extant system of laws, racial codes, and negative perceptions prohibited African-Americans, in most cases from matriculating in traditionally white institutions of higher education. At that time, the academic pedigrees and scholastic achievements of blacks were given little or no regard.5 George Walker's experiences, as related to and documented by several newspaper and journal interviews, constitute a case in point.

Prior to receiving the distinction of being a Pulitzer Prize winner, Walker had the distinction of being the first black graduate of the Curtis Institute (Artist Diploma, 1945) and, subsequently, becoming the first black to receive a Doctoral degree from the Eastman School of Music (D.M.A. in Piano, 1956). At the time, this was really quite a notable accomplishment because many institutions including the prestigious Peabody Conservatory did not admit blacks for a long time.6 Although the achievements of Walker and others continued to be increasingly evident, many such institutions remained closed, nonetheless, to blacks; teaching posts in such institutions were simply out of the question.

Since winning the Pulitzer, Walker's interviews, such as that published in the Philadelphia Inquirer (Oct. 31, 1996), have occasionally indicated long-standing difficulties and disappointments experienced not only as a composer, but as a virtuoso pianist and teacher.7 Unfortunate as these experiences may have been, they are neither unique nor isolated; several black composers have shared similar misfortunes. One of the greatest misfortunes from that period to the present has been the absence of sufficient recognition for their contribution to the classical literature; part of this article's raison d'être is the writer's attempt to help alter that situation.

As mentioned in the previous article, it is not feasible to present a comprehensive survey in the scope of a single article; as such, the writer has, once again, provided a select sampling of talents who have made substantive and qualitative contributions to the literature for the instrument. The various cited examples are intended to demonstrate not only a diversity of composition styles, but thematic influences which may be found among this body of music. For the purposes of this article, the organ compositions cited are stylistically divided into two general categories: neo-classical and symphonic. Among the neo-classical works cited are compositions by Ulysses Kay, Roger Dickerson, and Charles Coleman. The more symphonically conceived works are represented by Olly Wilson, William Grant Still, Eugene W. Hancock, Charlene Moore Cooper, Mark A. Miller, and Jeffrey Mumford. The neo-classical works are presented first, followed by the symphonic compositions.

ULYSSES KAY (1917-1995) received a B.M. degree from the University of Arizona. Kay also studied with Howard Hanson at the Eastman School of Music (M.M. in Composition) and with Paul Hindemith both at the Berkshire Music Center (1941) and Yale University. He also studied with Otto Luening at Columbia University. Kay served as visiting professor at both Boston University and the University of Los Angeles (UCLA). From 1968, he served as Professor of Music at Herbert H. Lehman College (CUNY) until his retirement in 1988. While there, he was appointed as Distinguished Professor (1972). Kay was the recipient of several prestigious awards and fellowships. Twice, he won the Prix de Rome as well as winning the Gershwin Memorial Award (1947). Among the fellowships awarded were: Ditson (1946), Rosenwald (1947), Fulbright (1950), and Guggenheim (1964). In addition to organ works, Kay wrote two operas as well as music for chorus, orchestra, ballet, chamber ensemble, and piano. Commissioned and premiered by Marilyn Mason, Kay's Suite No. 1 for Organ (1958) exhibits the influence of  neo-classicism. For the purposes of this article, excerpts from the second and last movements of this work are cited. (See Examples 1 and 2.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores):

Two Meditations for Organ (H.W. Gray, 1951) [out-of-print]

Suite No. 1 for Organ [Prelude, Pastorale, Finale (1958)] (Carl Fischer Facsimile Edition, 1986)

ROGER DICKERSON (b. 1934) received his B.A. (Music Education) Degree from Dillard University in New Orleans and M.M. Degree (Composition) from Indiana University. He received a Fulbright to study at the Akademie für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Vienna (1959-62). Dickerson was also the recipient of a John Hay Whitney Fellowship and received the Louis Armstrong Award (1981). In 1975, he founded the Creative Artists Alliance. He also received an honorary doctorate from the People's Republic of China.  In 1978, he was the subject of a public television documentary film "New Orleans Concerto." Currently, Dickerson serves as Music Coordinator and Choir Director at Southern University as well as Lecturer in Music at Dillard University in New Orleans. He has written for piano, voice, chorus, orchestra, band, and chamber ensemble. The following composition is, at the time of this article's completion, his only contribution for solo organ. Conceived in a neo-classical idiom, it is based on a German Protestant Chorale Das neugeborne Kindelein ("The Newborn Little Child"). (See Example 3.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores):

Chorale Prelude: Das neugeborne Kindelein (1956) [E.C. Schirmer Music Co., 1996]

CHARLES D. COLEMAN (1926-1991) was a native of Detroit. He received his B.M. and M.M. Degrees from Wayne State University in Detroit. Among his teachers were Virgil Fox, Mildred Clumas, and Robert Cato. In 1955, Mr. Coleman founded the Charles Coleman House of Music, formerly known as Northwestern School of Music, Dance, and Drama. In addition to teaching in the Detroit Public Schools, he served as Director of Music for Tabernacle Baptist Church in Detroit. Coleman was also an Associate of the American Guild of Organists (AAGO). His compositions include works written essentially for chorus, organ, and piano. Conceived in a neo-classical idiom, the sonata is dedicated to Dr. Eugene W. Hancock. The Passacaglia constitutes the sonata's first movement. (See Example 4.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores):

Impromptu for Pedals Alone (1961; Northwestern School of Music Press, 1977) [out-of-print]

Sonata No. 1 [Passacaglia, Adagio, Allegro]8 (Northwestern School of Music Press, 1979) [out-of-print]

OLLY WILSON (b. 1937) received a B.M. Degree from Washington University (St. Louis), an M.M. Degree from the University of Illinois (Urbana), and a Ph.D. from the University of Iowa. In addition to being a recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship (1971 and 1977) and a Guggenheim (1972),Wilson was the recipient of a First Prize in the International Electronic Music Competition (1968) and the Dartmouth Arts Council Prize (1968).  In 1974, he received an award for outstanding achievement in music composition from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the National Institute of Arts and Letters. Among his academic positions, he has served on the faculties of Florida A & M University and Oberlin Conservatory.  He is currently Music Department chair at the University of California at Berkeley. Wilson has written for various musical media including: organ, piano, voice, chorus, chamber ensemble, and orchestra. Commissioned for the 1979 Hartt College of Music International Contemporary Organ Music Festival, Expansions was premiered by Donald Sutherland. (See Example 5.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores):

Expansions (1979)

Moe Fragments (1987)

WILLIAM GRANT STILL (1895-

1979) During his lifetime, he was frequently referred to as the "Dean" of African-American Composers. He studied at Wilberforce University (Ohio) and at Oberlin Conservatory. Still also studied privately with George Chadwick and Edgar Varèse. He was the recipient of many honors and fellowships, including a Guggenheim (1933).  Among his distinctions, William Grant Still was the first black to compose a symphony, to conduct a major U.S. symphony, and to have a composition performed by a major U.S. symphony.  He wrote for almost every musical medium including piano, voice, chorus, chamber music, opera, ballet, and orchestra.  Reverie is one of two original organ compositions written by the composer.  It was commissioned by the Long Beach, Los Angeles, and Pasadena & Valley Districts of the AGO in celebration of the 1962 American Guild of Organists National Convention. (See Example 6.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores):

Reverie [AGO Prelude Book (published by Los Angeles area American Guild of Organists chapters, 1962)]

Elegy (Avant Music Co., 1963)

EUGENE W. HANCOCK (1929-1994) was a native of Detroit, as was his friend and colleague Charles Coleman. Hancock received a B.M. Degree from the University of Detroit, a M.M. Degree from the University of Michigan [Ann Arbor], and a Doctorate of Sacred Music from the School of Sacred Music at Union Theological Seminary in New York. Among his organ teachers were Marilyn Mason, Vernon deTar, and Alec Wyton. Hancock studied composition with Seth Bingham. He served as Assistant Organist/Choirmaster of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine (1963-66), and later as Organist/Choirmaster of St. Philip's Episcopal Church (1975-82) and of West End Presbyterian Church (1982-90) in New York. In 1970, Hancock was appointed as Professor of Music at Borough of Manhattan Community College (CUNY), a position he held until his death. Among his professional affiliations, Hancock was an Associate of the American Guild of Organists (AAGO). With several choral publications to his credit, he has contributed much to the genre of sacred music. In his recital work, Hancock had been particularly noted for performing and promoting the works of African-American organ composers. Fantasy is a virtuosic work written for and premiered by Herman D. Taylor in 1985 at the Black American Music Symposium held in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (See Example 7.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores):

An Organ Book of Spirituals [Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child; We are Climbing Jacob's Ladder; My Lord, What a Morning; Joshua fought the Battle of Jericho; Were You There When They Crucified My Lord; I'm Troubled; Fix Me, Jesus; Swing Low, Sweet Chariot; Go Tell It on the Mountain] (Lorenz Publishing, 1966) [out-of-print]

The Wrath of God (Selah Press, 1993)

(Unpublished Scores)

Suite in Three Movements for Organ, String Quartet, Oboe, Xylophone, and Bass Drum [Variation, Aria, Toccata] (1966)

Fantasy for Organ (1985)

CHARLENE MOORE COOPER (b. 1938) is a native of Baltimore. She received a B.M. Degree (Flute/Music Education) from Oberlin Conservatory. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Counseling Psychology at Catholic University in Washington, DC. Cooper has taught music in both the Baltimore and District of Columbia Public Schools. She has also taught liturgy courses at the Howard University School of Divinity. She is also Director for the Municipal Opera of Baltimore, the NAACP Community Choir (DC), the Best Friends Jazz Choir (DC Metro area), and Director of Music for John Wesley A.M.E. Zion Church in Washington. In addition to writing for the organ, Cooper has written for piano, voice, chorus, chamber ensemble, and orchestra. A Solitary Prayer was originally conceived as a musical tribute to the composer's deceased mother. (See Example 8.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores)

A Joyful Noise for Trumpet and Organ (1993)

Alleluia (1995)

A Solitary Prayer (1995)

Festal Postlude (1995)

Christmas Morn for Oboe and Organ (1995)

Meditation (1996)

Gloria in Excelsis Deo (1997)

Joy in the Morning (1997)

Resurrection (1997)

JEFFREY MUMFORD (b. 1955) is a native of Washington, D.C. He received his B.A. Degree (Art/Painting) from the University of California at Irvine and his M.A. Degree (Composition) at the University of California at San Diego. Mumford has won First Prize in the Aspen Music Festival (1979) and the National Black Arts Festival-Atlanta Symphony Composition Competition (1994). Also the recipient of several prestigious commissions, he was awarded a commission by the National Symphony in commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the Kennedy Center. In 1995, he was also the recipient of a Guggenheim in composition. Most recently, Mumford has been awarded a grant from Meet the Composer/Arts Endowment Commissioning Music/ USA to compose a piece for the CORE Ensemble. His compositions consist of music for voice, piano, chorus, solo instrument, chamber ensemble, and orchestra. Mumford's Fanfare for November, so far his only organ composition, was written to be the recessional music for own wedding ceremony in November, 1985. (See Example 9.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores)

Fanfare for November (1985)

MARK A. MILLER (b. 1967), a native of Burlington, Vermont,  received a B.A. (Organ Performance/Composition) from Yale University and an M.M. (Organ Performance) from Juilliard.  In 1989, he won First Prize in the National Association of Negro Musicians National Organ Competition. He is currently Director of Music for the Drew University Theological School (Madison, NJ) and Director of Music for Chatham United Methodist Church (Chatham, NJ). Miller is also an organist for the Nightwatch Program at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City. In addition to organ music, he has written for voice, chorus, and handbells. Reverie constitutes the second movement of Miller's Verses. (See Example 10.)

Organ Compositions (Published Scores)

Fantasias for Pentecost (1983)

Jubilate (1984)

Toccata on the Mountain (1994

Verses: [Prelude and Fugue, Reverie, Toccata] (1996)

Epilogue

In Jefferson's Notes on Virginia, the author writes: "Whether they [blacks] will be equal to the composition of a more extensive run of melody, or of complicated harmony, is yet to be proved." Should one be in quest of proof today, it is necessary to look no further than the compositions represented in this and the previous article. Some of these composers have attained a certain measure of renown; others are less renown, but there are several unmentioned here who are also very fine, even if unknown but to a small handful of devoted supporters and disciples. Given the findings, it is rather safe to say that African-American classical organ music exists sufficiently both in quality and quantity. No longer is there need for queries and proof, but rather concerts and recitals, recordings and publication, and most of all, a fervent commitment by the performer.                      

Notes

                        1.                  Mickey Thomas Terry, "African-American Organ Literature, A Selective Overview," The Diapason (April, 1996): 14.

                        2.                  Mickey Thomas Terry, "African-American  Classical Organ Music: A Case of Neglect," The American Organist Magazine (March, 1997): 60n.

                        3.                  This reference provides information concerning the historical perspective of the black composer, Ibid: 56-61.

                        4.                  Therein, Jefferson briefly assesses the musical capabilities of blacks: "In music they are more generally gifted than the whites with accurate ears for tune and time, and they have been found capable of imagining a small catch. Whether they will be equal to the composition of a more extensive run of melody, or of complicated harmony, is yet to be proved." Thomas Jefferson, Notes on Virginia, ed. William Peden (New York: W.W. Norton and Co., 1982), 140.

                        5.                  Terry, "African-American Classical Organ Music," TAO, 59n.

                        6.                  The first black to be admitted to Peabody Conservatory was Paul Archibald Brent (1907-1997) of Baltimore. Brent, an honors graduate, received a teaching certificate in piano (1953). He subsequently received a B.M. Degree from Morgan State University in Baltimore. When interviewed, Anne Garside, Peabody's Information Director, provided the following information regarding the situation: "The director [conservatory] at the time was Reginald Stewart who very much wanted to abolish the color bar because not only had Peabody faculty been teaching African-American students for years under the table, [but] some of these black students were among the best musicians in the city . . . " The Baltimore Sun, Mar. 21, 1997, 5B.

                        7.                  Philadelphia Inquirer (Oct. 31, 1996), E6.

                        8.                  This sonata is comprised of three movements, none of which has been titled by the composer. The movements listed here are more or less described either by their form or tempo markings. In the case of the second movement, there is neither a title nor tempo marking indicated; consequently, the title indicated is provided by the writer to describe a suggested tempo.

James B. Hartman is Senior Academic Editor for publications of the Distance Education Program, Continuing Education Division, The University of Manitoba. His recent publications include articles on the early histories of music and theater in Manitoba. He is a frequent contributor of book reviews and articles to The Diapason.

                  All excellent things are as difficult as they are rare.

--Baruch Spinoza, Ethics (1677)

The organ has been a prominent feature of the musical life of Canada since the earliest days of the first European settlement. The first organs were brought from France to Québec City around 1600 and organbuilding flourished mainly in Québec and Ontario from the mid-nineteenth century onward.1 Growth in organbuilding accelerated in the years 1880-1950 following the establishment of Casavant Frères in 1879 in Saint-Hyacinthe, Québec. Therefore it is not surprising that organists became prominent around the same time.

As soon as trained musicians began arriving in Canada, usually from England, many of them opened music studios to offer private instruction in piano, voice, organ, and violin. Some were also active in community orchestras or served as church organists and choirmasters. A few took employment in local music stores to supplement their meagre income from professional duties. With the advent of silent films in the early 1900s some organists obtained positions at theaters that had installed pipe organs where they played improvised or specially arranged accompaniments to the events unfolding on the silver screen.

Although the great majority of organists were known only in their local communities, some gifted individuals achieved wider recognition by making exceptional contributions to the musical culture of the country. This article will chronicle the careers and accomplishments of seven such outstanding organists who were active in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

Frederick H. Torrington (1837- 1917) was born in Dudley, near Birmingham, England, where he received his early musical training. Later studies in piano, organ, theory, and choral music led to his position as organist at St. Ann's Church in Bewdley at the age of sixteen.

Torrington moved to Canada in 1856, first working as a piano tuner in Montréal then as organist-choirmaster at St. James Street Methodist Church. He taught privately and at several schools, and conducted instrumental and choral groups, including the Montréal Amateur Musical Union. For three years he was bandmaster of the 25th Regiment, Queen's Own Borderers. In 1869 he organized the Canadian section of an orchestra that performed in the First Peace Jubilee in Boston. In the same year he settled in Boston to become organist at King's Chapel and to join the New England Conservatory of Music as teacher of piano and organ; he also conducted various choral groups and was violinist in the Harvard (later Boston) Symphony Orchestra. He gave organ recitals in Boston, New York, and other eastern cities.

In 1873 Torrington returned to Canada to become organist-choirmaster at Metropolitan Methodist Church in Toronto and conductor of the Toronto Philharmonic Society 1873-94. His influence on the musical life of Toronto included conducting choral-orchestral works and organizing musical festivals. Other activities included director of music at the Ontario Ladies' College in Whitby, conductor of the Hamilton Philharmonic Society in the 1880s, and founder of the Toronto Conservatory of Music in 1888, serving as its director until his death.

In the late 1880s Torrington became president of a group modelled on the Royal College of Organists, founded in England in 1864, dedicated to uniting organists and raising the standards of the profession. Although his group did not last for long, it was a predecessor of the Canadian College of Organists, founded in 1909. Torrington's work with various amateur orchestras led to the formal establishment of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in 1906. He left his organist post at Metropolitan Church in 1907 for a similar position at High Park Methodist Church.

It should be recalled that in these times the organ was regarded as a substitute for the orchestra; consequently, organ recital programs usually included a number of transcriptions. For example, one of Torrington's recitals in 1869 included Rossini's William Tell Overture and the Andante from Beethoven's Septet on the same program with Mendelssohn's Organ Sonata No. 1. Nevertheless, Torrington championed the music of Bach, and his performances of the master's works were enthusiastically received by his audiences. He composed several patriotic songs, a choral work, and some organ music.

Herbert A. Fricker (1868-1943) was born in Canterbury, England, where he received his early musical training as a chorister, and later as assistant organist, at Canterbury Cathedral. In London he studied with Frederick Bridge and Edwin Lemare. His subsequent career in Leeds included city organist, symphony orchestra founder and conductor, and festival choirmaster, along with other positions as organist in various churches and schools, and as a choral society conductor.

Fricker came to Canada in 1917 to become conductor of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, a position he held until 1942. His cross-border musical activities began immediately with his choir's program with the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski in 1918; this reciprocal association continued for seven years. Under Fricker's leadership the choir gave Canadian premieres of several major choral works by such composers as Beethoven, Berlioz, and Walton. Fricker served as organist at Metropolitan United Church, Toronto 1917-43, organ instructor at the Toronto Conservatory of Music 1918-32, staff member at the University of Toronto, and conductor of the Canadian National Exhibition chorus 1922-34. He was an active organ recitalist and adjudicated many competition festivals. He was president of the Canadian College of Organists 1925-6.

Fricker composed several organ works and made arrangements for organ, all published by various London firms. His choral pieces included both sacred and secular works. Over his lifetime Fricker accumulated an extensive library of books and musical scores that were given to Toronto libraries after his death.

William Hewlett (1873-1940) was born in Batheaston, England, where he was a choirboy at Bath Abbey before moving to Canada with his family in 1884.

In his new country he enrolled at the Toronto Conservatory of Music where he studied organ, piano, theory, and orchestration, graduating in 1893 with a gold medal for organ playing and extemporization. While in Toronto he served as organist-choirmaster at Carlton Street Methodist Church at the age of seventeen. In 1895 he moved to London, Ontario, to become organist-choirmaster at Dundas Centre Methodist Church and conductor of the London Vocal Society 1896-1902. Later he moved to Hamilton, Ontario, to become musical director at Centenary Methodist Church 1902-38; his Twilight Recitals on Saturday afternoons were a significant aspect of the Hamilton music scene for about twenty-five years. He was one of the founders of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and served as its first accompanist 1895-7, and he accompanied the celebrated singers Ernestine Schumann-Heink and Dame Clara Butt when they visited Canada. He was one of the co-directors of the Hamilton Conservatory of Music and served as its sole principal 1918-39; during this time he travelled widely in Canada as adjudicator and examiner. He conducted the Elgar Choir, which was frequently joined by the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra. In 1927 he conducted a 1000-voice choir in a celebration of the sixtieth anniversary of the Confederation of Canada.

Hewlett was a prolific composer in the smaller forms; he contributed to the Methodist Hymn and Tune Book (1917) and was one of the compilers of the United Church Hymnary (1930). He was one of the most respected Canadian organists of his generation and an expert on church organ installations. He served as national president of the Canadian College of Organists 1928-9.

Healey Willan (1880-1968) was born in Balham (later part of London), England, and was taught music at the age of four by his mother and his governess. At the age of eight he entered St. Saviour's Choir School, Eastbourne, where he studied piano and organ. By the age of eleven he directed the choir and alternated with the incumbent organist in playing evensong services. After private organ study in London he served as organist-choirmaster at three churches in various parts of England in succession 1898-1913. During this time he developed a reputation as an authority on plainchant in the vernacular (i.e., English, not Latin).

Willan came to Canada in 1913 to head the theory department of the Toronto Conservatory of Music and to become organist-choirmaster at St. Paul's Anglican Church, Toronto. His recital programs around this time exhibited his comprehensive repertoire, including much English music. In 1914 he was appointed lecturer and examiner for the University of Toronto and served as director of the university's Hart House Theatre, writing and conducting music for plays. He was vice-principal of the Toronto Conservatory of Music 1919-25 but his position was terminated as an economy measure and possibly on account of internal politicking involving Ernest MacMillan (see below). In 1921 he became organist-choirmaster at the Anglican Church of St. Mary Magdalene, an association that continued until his death; while there he introduced an Anglo-Catholic style of service music.

Apparently Willan possessed a facetious brand of wit: he was heard to say that the organ was a dull instrument, that organ recitals bored him, and that he was unable to play his own major compositions. On being elected president of the Arts and Letters Club of Toronto in 1923 he promptly set its constitution to music.

Willan held many influential appointments: member of the Arts and Letters Club for fifty years, president 1923; president of the Canadian College of Organists 1922-3, 1933-5; honorary president and life member of the Royal Canadian College of Organists; university organist at the University of Toronto 1932-64 and teacher of counterpoint and composition 1937-50; president of the Authors and Composers Association of Canada 1933; chairman of the board of examiners of Bishop's University; summer guest lecturer at the University of Michigan 1937, 1938; chairman of the British Organ Restoration Fund to help finance the rebuilding of the organ at Coventry Cathedral 1943; summer guest lecturer at the University of California at Los Angeles 1949; co-founder and musical director of the Gregorian Association of Toronto, 1950; founder and musical director of the Toronto Diocesan Choir School; and fellow of the Ancient Monuments Society of England. He was commissioned to compose an anthem for the coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953, the first nonresident of Britain to be so honored.

Willan's public honors included the Canada Council Medal 1961, Companion of the Order of Canada 1967, and a diploma from the Province of Ontario in recognition of his role in Canadian musical life. A group of his admirers formed the Healey Willan Centennial Celebration Committee to encourage activities marking the centenary of his birth in 1980, and the Canada Post Office issued a commemorative stamp bearing his portrait.2

Willan was a prolific composer. His works encompassed dramatic music, vocal music with instrumental ensemble, works for orchestra and band, chamber music, piano works, organ works,3 and choral works; many of the latter have been recorded by groups in Canada, the USA, and England. He also wrote twenty-four articles on church music and organ playing.4

Lynwood Farnam (1885-1930), who became a legend in the organ world, was born in Sutton, Québec, a small town southeast of Montréal. Following basic musical training he continued his studies for three years as a scholarship student at the Royal College of Music in London, England, beginning in 1900. He held several church positions in Montréal and taught at the McGill Conservatorium until accepting a post at Emmanuel Church, Boston, in 1913. The story is that he impressed the audition committee by presenting a list of 200 pieces that he had committed to memory, stating that he was willing to perform any of them; he was hired immediately.

After overseas service during the war Farnam became organist-choirmaster at Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, New York, in 1919. By the time he played his last recital there in 1920 he had given 500 organ recitals. As a concert organist his performances were noted for their flawless technique, infallible memory, and profound musicianship. His reputation was consolidated among his colleagues by a dazzling performance for the American Guild of Organists in 1920. In 1925 he made organ rolls for two companies that manufactured player organs. 

Farnam's New York fame gained him an appointment in 1927 as head of the organ department at the Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, where he taught weekly until his death at the age of forty-five. His pupils included a number of prominent Canadian and American organists. At the climax of his career in 1928-9 he played the complete organ works of Bach in twenty recitals in New York, repeating each program at least once in response to public demand.

Although Farnam did no improvising and composed only one piece for organ, he was one of the great interpreters of his time, introducing North American and European audiences to contemporary organ music, particularly that of French and American composers, as well as to the forerunners of Bach. Louis Vierne dedicated his Organ Symphony No. 6 (1931) to Farnam's memory.

Ernest MacMillan (1893-1973) was born in Mimico (Metropolitan Toronto), the son of a Scottish Presbyterian minister who became an internationally recognized hymnologist. He began his organ study at the age of eight with the organist of Sherbourne Street Methodist Church in Toronto and performed in public shortly thereafter. He accompanied his father to Edinburgh, Scotland 1905-8, where he had the opportunity to take lessons from Alfred Hollins, the noted blind organist, occasionally substituting for him at St. George's West Church, Edinburgh. Around the same time he enrolled in music classes at the University of Edinburgh in preparation for his first diploma. Upon returning to Toronto, now at the age of fifteen, he took an appointment as organist at Knox Presbyterian Church, where he remained for two years. He then returned to Edinburgh and London to complete his work for the Fellow, Royal College of Organists diploma and extramural Bachelor of Music degree at Oxford University, both awarded in 1911 before his eighteenth birthday. Back in Toronto he served as organist-choirmaster at St. Paul's Presbyterian Church in Hamilton, commuting on weekends.

Thinking that his piano training had been neglected on account of his concentration on the organ, he went to Paris in 1914 for private study. While visiting Germany at the outbreak of war he was detained as a prisoner of war; there he befriended other English composers (including Quentin Maclean, see below), organized a camp orchestra for musicals, and concentrated on composition, including a work later submitted as part of the requirements for his Doctor of Music degree from Oxford University.

Back in Canada in 1919 he embarked on a lecture-recital tour of the west in which he played organ pieces and described his experiences as a war prisoner. In 1920 he began teaching organ and piano at the Canadian Academy of Music, and in 1926 became principal of the amalgamated Toronto Conservatory of Music. As an examiner and festival adjudicator, he travelled extensively throughout Canada offering stimulation and encouragement for musical development in small centers. In the following year he became dean of the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto, initially a titular position.

By this time MacMillan had moved away from the organ as an exclusive preoccupation; his new interests included education, administration, and developing systems and policies, although he continued to conduct and to compose new music and arrange old music as required. One of his unusual projects, in collaboration with an ethnologist in 1927, was recording and notating music of native peoples in northern British Columbia. In 1931 MacMillan became conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, a position that enabled him to develop an unused potential. In 1935 King George V knighted him for his services to music in Canada. In the late 1930s he gained fame as a conductor in the USA, appearing in such prominent series as the Hollywood Bowl concerts and with the symphony orchestras of Chicago, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC.

1942 was a banner year for MacMillan: first, he was offered, but did not accept, an invitation to succeed Donald Francis Tovey in the Reid Chair of Music at the University of Edinburgh; second, he succeeded Herbert Fricker as conductor of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir (see above). In 1945 he filled conducting engagements in Australia, and in Rio de Janeiro in the following year. Also in 1946 he was instrumental in establishing the Canadian Music Council and served as president of the Composers, Authors, and Publishers Association of Canada until 1969; one of his first projects was the organization of a concert of Canadian music for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. As part of his renewed interest in the piano he performed piano concertos with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, gave recitals, and made radio broadcasts. In 1950, during a weeklong festival to celebrate the Bach bicentenary, he offered a lecture-recital on the Clavierübung, playing all of Book 3 from memory. Although he resigned as conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in 1956, and of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir in 1957, he still accepted conducting engagements with other musical organizations, travelled throughout Canada to initiate new projects to encourage young musicians, and acted as a classical disc jockey for a Toronto radio station.

MacMillan was a productive composer of musical works for the stage, orchestra, orchestra and choir, band, chamber groups, keyboard, and choir and voice. His writings included works on music instruction, articles in music journals, and other publications. He has been the subject of numerous articles by other writers.

Recognized as Canada's musical elder statesman, in later years MacMillan served as a member of the first Canada Council 1957-63 on account of his extensive participation in the musical arts. He participated in the formation of the Canadian Music Centre, serving as its president 1959-70, and of the Jeunesses musicales of Canada, serving as its president 1961-3. He received the Canada Council Medal in 1964. He was recognized by many public tributes on his seventieth and seventy-fifth birthdays, and these events were marked by special publications and revivals of his works. In 1970 he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada.

Quentin Maclean (1896-1962) was born in London, England, and studied organ there in the early 1900s and with Karl Straube (organ) and Max Reger (composition) in Leipzig 1912-14. During World War I he was interned in Germany where he met Ernest MacMillan (see above). In 1919 he served as assistant organist at Westminster Cathedral, then toured British theaters with newsman Lowell Thomas, providing background music for a lecture-film on Palestine. He was theater organist at many English cinemas 1921-1939 and began to broadcast regularly on BBC radio in 1925.

Maclean moved to Canada in 1939 where he continued his theater organ career in Toronto for ten years. He became one of the best-known organists of his time for his frequent radio broadcasts of background organ music for plays, poetry readings, and music for children's programs. He was organist-choirmaster at Holy Rosary Church 1940-62 and taught at the Toronto Conservatory of Music and at St. Michael's College, University of Toronto.

Maclean composed concertos for organ (two), harpsichord, piano, electric organ (two), harp, and violin; works for solo organ (eight), pieces for orchestra and other solo orchestral instruments, a string quartet, piano pieces, a cantata, and other choral works, among others. He was noted for his diverse musical interests, technical skills, musical memory, and high standards in the composition and performance of serious music, secular and liturgical.

*

Two features are noteworthy with respect to the individuals surveyed here. With the exceptions of Farnam and MacMillan they were born in England and received their early musical training there, which undoubtedly influenced their later musical orientation. Two of them lived for some time in the USA: Torrington 1869-73 and Farnam 1919-30, periods in which their careers flourished. The wide range of the experience and achievements of the seven organists is impressive. Taken collectively, they exhibited exceptional competence in a broad variety of activities: church musician, concert recitalist, teacher, lecturer, composer, arranger, conductor, festival organizer and adjudicator, examiner, writer, academic administrator, academic staff member, president of a professional organization, and expert on organ installation. At least one became a recognized authority in a specialized field (Willan, plainchant). All of them can be counted among those who have contributed significantly, in their specialized fields, to the musical life of Canada. 

Notes

                  1.              For a brief history of organbuilding and the major manufacturers, see James B. Hartman, “Canadian Organbuilding,” The Diapason 90, no. 5 (May 1999): 16-18; no. 6, (June 1999): 14-15.                 

                  2.              With Canadian soprano Emma Albani (1847-1930), who was commemorated in the same way at the same time, Willan was the first Canadian musician to be honored in this fashion.

                  3.              Willan made significant contributions to music for the organ. His monumental Introduction, Passacaglia and Fugue (1916) was described by Joseph Bonnet as the greatest of its genre since Bach. Other works combine Englishness and European chromaticism reminiscent of Reger and Karg-Elert. After 1950 his works became more contrapuntal, and chorale preludes became his most frequent form of expression.

                  4.             See, for example, “Organ Playing in its Proper Relation to Music of the Church.” The Diapason 29, no. 10 (October 1937): 22-23. He discusses the different--but sometimes overlapping--functions of concert organists (excelling in technique) and church organists (beautifying the liturgies or verbal forms, supporting the congregation, accompanying the choir, and welding the entire service into an appropriate whole). “As a general rule, I do not like large organs, large choirs or large noises of any sort, but there are occasions when grandeur is not only appropriate, but positively necessary . . .” (23). 

The biographical information in this article is derived from the Encyclopedia of Music in Canada, Second Edition, and is used by permission from the University of Toronto Press.