Gilles Cantagrel named chairman of the Association des Grandes Orgues de Chartres

Father Gerard John Benedict Farrell
style='font-weight:normal'>, O.S.B., an acknowledged leader in Gregorian Chant
studies, died on January 9, 2000. He was 81. A monk of St. John's Abbey in
Collegeville, Minnesota since 1940, Fr. Gerard served as abbey organist from
1946-1969, and choirmaster from 1951-1969. He had earned a Bachelor of Music
from Montréal University, a Master's degree from the Eastman School of
Music, and a Certificate in Organ and Composition from the Royal Flemish
Conservatory in Antwerp, Belgium. In 1952 he introduced the practice of daily
sung Vespers, and under his direction the monastic schola recorded several LP
albums of Gregorian Chant. Also, in consultation with Flor Peeters, Fr. Gerard
was instrumental in the installation of the 1960 Holtkamp organ for the
then-new Marcel Breuer-designed Abbey Church in Collegeville, where he
developed a series of organ recitals which featured leading organists from
around the world. Following two years of additional study at Boston University
and Harvard University, in 1976 Fr. Gerard became professor of Gregorian Chant
and Catholic Church Music at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New
Jersey, where he taught until a few weeks before his death. He also served as associate
priest at St. Paul's Church, Princeton, and was adjunct professor of Gregorian
Chant at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. A compact disc of his performance
of one of the liturgical organ suites by Charles Tournemire, with related
Gregorian Chant propers, was issued by the Liturgical Press in Collegeville.
(Information kindly provided by Michael Barone.)

Pierre Firmin-Didot
died on January 5, after a long battle with cancer, at the age of 79. The
funeral mass was held on January 11 at Chartres Cathedral, France. He is
survived by his wife, international recitalist Lynne Davis. Mr. Firmin-Didot
was the founder, in 1970, of the Chartres International Organ Competition
(Grand Prix de Chartres) and the support organization, the Association des
Grandes Orgues de Chartres, which runs an annual summer-long festival of organ
recitals at Chartres Cathedral as well as, every second year, the competition.
Firmin-Didot was president of the association, and thus of the competition,
until his death.

Mr. Firmin-Didot decided to save the organ at Chartres
Cathedral in 1964, when it was in such bad condition that an orchestra had to
be substituted for the organ during a visit to the cathedral by the president
of France. He enlisted all kinds of artists and celebrities in the cause,
raising money at musical benefit concerts as well as in other ways. The
inauguration of the rebuilt instrument took place in 1971 in the presence of
the President of France, Georges Pompidou. In the autumn of that year the first
competition was held, with Pierre Cochereau as president of the jury. The first
jury also included Maurice Duruflé, Gaston Litaize, Jacques Charpentier,
Victor Ruello, Feike Asma (Holland), Hans Geferte (Germany), Nicolas Kynaston
(England), Anthony Newman (USA), and Pierre Segond (Switzerland). Many
prominent organists from around the world have served on subsequent juries
including George Thalben-Ball, Jean Langlais, Marie-Claire Alain, Martin Jean,
etc. The first prize of the initial competition in 1971 was shared by Daniel
Roth and Yves Devernay. American winners have included Charles Benbow (1972),
George Baker (1974), Todd Wilson (1978), James Kibbie (1980), Martin Jean
(1986), and Matt Curlee (1996).

Mr. Firmin-Didot was also instrumental in other facets of
the preservation and restoration of Chartres Cathedral. He was founder and
president of L'Association Chartres, Santuaire du Monde, and also of the Centre
International du Vitrail, which maintains a museum of stained glass near the
cathedral and both helps to restore the famous stained glass at Chartres
Cathedral and encourages new artists in the field of stained glass. President
of France Valéry Giscard-d'Estaing pre-sided at the museum's dedication.
Mr. Firmin-Didot was made a Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor in 1973 in
recognition of having saved the organ at Chartres Cathedral.

As this issue was going to press, word was received of the death of Pierre Firmin-Didot on January 5 after a long illness with cancer. Mr. Firmin-Didot was a founder and long-time president of the Grand Prix de Chartres competition and made many contributions to the organ culture in France. An obituary will appear next month.

Gaylord Carter, one of the country's most popular theatre organists for eight decades, died on November 20 at the age of 95. He had performed from the age of 10 until about five years ago in churches, theatres, on radio and on television. Carter was named organist of the year by the American Theatre Organ Society and inducted into its Hall of Fame in 1975. Born in Weisbaden, Germany on August 3, 1905, Carter emigrated to Wichita, Kansas, where his father became a church organist and his mother taught piano. At age 10 he began playing the organ in Wichita's Congregational Church, and at age 14 played for children's matinees in a theatre there. In 1922, the family moved to Los Angeles, where he began accompanying silent films. In 1926 he was hired for $110 a week as organist at the Million Dollar Theatre. In 1935 he moved to radio with his own "Prelude to Midnight" program on Los Angeles KHJ and accompanied several network shows. For 17 years he played "The Perfect Song" to introduce the "Amos'n'Andy" show. During World War II, Carter was a Naval motion picture officer in the Aleutians. Returning to Los Angeles he played for radio's "The Whistler," "Suspense," and "Bride and Groom," and later for television's "Pinky Lee Show" and others. He also had his own local show, "Everybody sing with Gaylord," on KCOP Channel 13. A memorial service was held on December 12 at the First Congregational Church of Long Beach.

Justin A. Kramer died on November 20, 2000. Closely associated with the Reuter Organ Company for much of his professional career, Mr. Kramer represented Reuter in California for many years and left his mark on countless organ projects around the region. Born on June 7, 1924, he graduated with honors from Loyola High School in Los Angeles and attended the University of Southern California where he graduated with honors at the age of nineteen. He continued at USC to earn the Master of Music degree. While a student, he worked as a musician at all the major motion picture studios, was drum major and became interim director of the USC band. On January 1, 1953, he married Jean, his wife of almost 48 years. His love of the music of the Catholic Church was a life long vocation. A Gregorian chant expert, he formed several choirs in many Los Angeles churches, and wrote a book on the proper performance of chant, entitled The Pange Lingua. He devoted much of his work to the study of acoustics, and was awarded more than 20 U.S. patents relating to the organ, sound, and performance. He served as a special consultant to the University of California in the construction of the bell towers at the Riverside and Santa Barbara campuses. As a pipe organ builder and designer, he was a member of the International Society of Organ Builders and of the American Guild of Organists. For the U.S. Bicentennial, he wrote the story of the Liberty Bell entitled "Cast in America," working with such international authorities as Alfred Paccard and Paul Taylor. It was his knowledge of bells that led to his being commissioned to produce a bell profile to replace the original bells that once marked El Carnino Real. His most recent contribution is the design and casting of the International Bell, which thus far has been placed throughout Baja, California, marking the original trail of the Franciscan missionaries. Kramer was especially devoted to Padre Junipero Serra, working for his beatification and then for his canonization. He composed "Cancion de Fray Junipero Serra," the official hymn of the Serra Bicentennial Commission, and, in Serra's honor, established the Schola Cantorum at St. Mary's by the Sea Church in Huntington Beach. At the time of his death, Mr. Kramer was engaged as special bell consultant to the architect for the new Catholic Cathedral of Los Angeles.

Stanley Sorensen died on November 24, 2000 in Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin, at the age of 85. He served as president of the Hammond Organ Company from 1955 until 1971. Mr. Sorensen graduated from Schurz High School in Chicago in 1931. He was hired as one of two office boys for the Hammond Clock Company of Chicago, starting at $8 a week, and worked his way up to becoming president. He expanded the engineering and marketing aspects of the company, increasing the popularity of the electronic organ for home use. Mr. Sorensen is survived by his wife Ethel, two daughters, a brother, two grandchildren, three step-grand-daughters, and a great-grandson.