Kevin Bowyer premieres Timothy Tikker’s Sequentia

Jonathan Bezdegian

Jonathan Bezdegian earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in organ performance from University of Washington, Seattle, in 2018. He is a lecturer in music and director of the organ scholar program at Assumption University, Worcester, Massachusetts. He also serves as director of liturgical music at Christ the King Parish in Worcester, Massachusetts, and is dean of the Worsceter Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.

Louis Vierne’s “Carillon de Westminster” from the Troisième Suite, opus 54, of his 24 Pièces de Fantaisie is a favorite of organists and audiences alike. While many play this piece, how many take the time to study the unique harmonies in this music? Organists view Vierne’s compositional style as highly chromatic. Yes, this is certainly true. However, how does one analyze Vierne’s music? There are very few studies providing a detailed harmonic analysis of this nature.¹ Thus, the aim of this article is to foster interest in the analysis of Vierne’s organ music via the “Carillon de Westminster,” one of his most appreciated compositions. Before moving forward with analysis, learning the history and early reception of this piece is important. 

A seemingly obvious reason for the great popularity of this piece is due to the familiar “Big Ben” or “Grandfather Clock” theme.² Interestingly, according to the research of Rollin Smith, a scholar of Vierne’s life and works, Vierne encountered this theme for the first time via a clock in the office of a clock shop owner in Le Locle, Switzerland, in 1916, and then, later, while on tour in England in 1924.³ These thematic encounters reached compositional fruition in the summer of 1927 in Luchon, France. 

The initial reception of the “Carillon de Westminster” was positive. Soon after publication, Vierne publicly performed this piece three times, the first as a sortie at the closing of the Forty Hours Devotion at the Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Paris, on November 29, 1927. “Vierne’s student, Henri Doyen recalled that it was ‘one of the rare times when I saw the clergy and faithful not sortie . . . [they] waited quietly until the end, and a number of people improvised a little ovation for the maître when he came down from the tribune.’”⁴

On December 8, 1927, Vierne performed this work in concert for the dedication of “the restored organ in the Parisian church of Saint-Nicolaus-du-Chardonnet.”⁵ The reaction of those in attendance was favorable: “The work, which unmistakably bears the master’s signature, will undoubtedly become known to the whole musical world, just like the name of the composer . . . . The famous carillon joins together with a rhythmic figure that captivates the listener with its adamant periodical recurrence.”⁶

Lastly, Vierne played the “Carillon de Westminster” in concert on May 3, 1928, at the Trocadéro Palace. Remarks were supportive, stating that the “Carillon de Westminster is certainly destined to enjoy great popularity among all organists.”⁷ Even after these initial performances, Vierne “played it constantly, including in 1932 for the inauguration of the restored Notre-Dame organ.”⁸ Clearly, this piece had a warm welcome,⁹ and these recounts foreshadowed current feelings, particularly the remarks after the Trocadéro concert. Now that the history is established, the harmonic analysis becomes the next area of focus. 

While Vierne’s harmonic language was developing by the genesis of “Carillon de Westminster” in the summer of 1927, the tonalities created are approachable. There is extensive use of the Gregorian modes: Ionian starting on D and B-flat; Aeolian starting on D and B; and Mixolydian starting on B-flat, D, F-sharp, and G. Then, the addition of the codified modes of limited transposition: Mode 3 (T1 and T3) and Mode 1 (T1) that gives this piece (and many other works) Vierne’s signature sound.¹⁰ While the Gregorian modes offer listeners a familiar set of harmonies throughout the “Carillon de Westminster,” the harmonies encountered are not functional in the traditional sense. Thus, using a traditional, analytic approach will not yield a positive result.

Through research and analysis, one discovers that Vierne uses common tone modulations. It is the only practical procedure for finding similarities between each mode. There is evidence of tonic and dominant functions, but they are simple and mostly found at cadential points.¹¹ After studying the various modes used in “Carillon de Westminster,” one finds several common tones between them, thus allowing relatively free movement from one mode to another. This is not an unusual circumstance given Vierne’s approach to conventional composition practices (Vierne wrote about his early experiences at the Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles in his Mémoires): “After three years of instruction we wrote correctly, to be sure, but without the flexibility and freedom that make harmony an art. Later I had to work extremely hard to acquire a ‘pen’ in the modern sense of the word, and especially to enable me to teach in a really musical way.”¹² These feelings continued during his studies with Franck, Widor, and Guilmant at the Paris Conservatoire. Fruition was attained when Vierne was given the opportunity to teach Guilmant’s organ class while he was away on tour in America in 1897. Vierne was elated: “I was a little uneasy about such a responsibility but, at the same time, delighted to be able to express unrestrained my own ideas on free improvisation. We would ‘whoop it up’ with modern harmonies.”¹³

Thus, one concludes that Vierne uses a free form of modal writing in the context of the 24 Pièces de Fantaisie. In “Carillon de Westminster” (and in many other works from this collection), Vierne uses the Gregorian modes as a foundation for his writing. The modes of limited transposition, while in their infancy,¹⁴ serve as harmonic enrichment and color to the various themes Vierne creates and develops throughout the composition. One encounters all of these attributes within the first pages of “Carillon de Westminster.”¹⁵

In “Carillon de Westminster,” the sonorities created are from the D Ionian mode. Initial analysis of the opening theme reveals that it is indeed D Ionian (Example 1a). It begins in the tenor in measure 3 and extends to the downbeat of measure 32.

The accompanying figuration in the treble gives an aural image of ringing bells. It begins as alternating fifths and fourths, also in D Ionian. This figuration changes to fifths and thirds on the downbeat of measure 6 (Example 1b).

In measure 11, there is a shift to M3, T1. This continues through measure 12, adding harmonic enrichment (Example 1c). This abrupt change actually occurs quite naturally due to the common tones of D, E, and F-sharp heard in the theme in measure 10.

Also, in measure 11, the theme comes to a temporary hold on D—a common tone of M3, T1, allowing the two modes (D Ionian and Mode 3, T1) to blend seamlessly (Example 2).

D Ionian returns in the upper voices in measure 13 and continues until measure 20, where M3, T1 repeats in a similar fashion to the opening pages. The A non-scale tone is from the dominant of D Ionian (Example 3a).

In measure 24, there is a move to a different transposition level of Mode 3: T3, made possible by the common tones of F-sharp and A found in measure 23 (Example 3b):

M3, T3 continues until measure 33, when an arpeggio in fourths forms a half-diminished vii chord from D Ionian (Example 3c). 

In measure 35, the theme moves to the soprano, and the accompaniment comprising fourths and fifths resumes in the left hand. The interplay of the theme and accompaniment is similar to the material found in the opening measures (Example 3d). 

However, things change in measure 44. The C-natural in the accompaniment and the pedal hints to M3, T1, which serves as enrichment to D Ionian (Example 3e). 

The merger of D Ionian and Mode 3, T1 is traced in both the pedal and accompaniment until the downbeat of measure 60. Here, the D Ionian mode returns with a tonic chord and pedal point. The soprano register is filled with tonic arpeggios spanning two measures, before leading to a transitional section in measure 62 (Example 4).

This transitional section comprises a six-note group that alternates between the left and right hands. The move from D Ionian to D Aeolian is made by the change of one note: F-natural in place of F-sharp (modal mixture) displayed in Example 5. 

This marks the arrival of the B section, where the previously heard six-note patterns are used simultaneously in contrary motion in the manuals, now in B-flat Ionian, the flat-VI of D Aeolian. This new section in B-flat Ionian includes the original theme in the pedal, transposed to the new tonic (Example 6).

Everything seems to move along normally until measure 70, when an augmented V chord suddenly disrupts the melismatic passage, shown in Example 7. This augmented chord actually hints back to M3, T3. This is possible by the B-flat common tone heard in the soprano passage of measure 69 (Example 6).¹⁷ The thematic material continues in an identical fashion from measures 71 to 74.

In measures 75 and 76, an E-flat is added to the six-note pattern, replacing the D. This change is short lived—the D returns in measure 77. However, this time a I7 chord is reached in B-flat Ionian, instead of the augmented V, witnessed in measure 74. This is an important moment, as the primary theme (in the bass) has concluded, and the first portion of the B section draws to a close. The second part of the B section becomes rich in modal sonorities with the addition of pitches found in the Mixolydian mode, Mode 3, and Mode 1 (Example 8).

In measure 79, the six-note pattern remains, but begins a harmonic transformation with the addition of a flat-seven scale degree from B-flat Ionian (Example 8). This addition pulls the ear towards an implied F minor sonority—the minor dominant of B-flat Ionian. At this point, the listener is accustomed to hearing B-flat Ionian. Thus, it is shocking when the music suddenly shifts to B-flat Mixolydian in measure 82 (Example 8).

In measures 87 to 90, Vierne uses Mode 1, T1. This is possible by the addition of G-flat and E-natural to the six-note pattern. One gathers that Vierne used the common tones of M3, T1: C, B-flat, and A-flat (encountered previously in measure 85) in order to implement this change, which creates a harmonic “lean” to Mode 1. The second half of the B section draws to a close with the return of an implied ii7 chord from B-flat Ionian on measure 91, thus leading back to the tonic of B-flat Ionian on measure 93 and concluding in full on measure 94 (Example 9).

After the cascading downward scales in measure 95, a new theme arrives in measure 96, this time in M3, T3, found in the tenor (reached via the common tone of B-flat). This new 13-note theme soon changes from M3, T3 to B Aeolian in measure 103, reached via the F-sharp common tone in measure 99. The driving accompaniment figuration propels this theme forward and will gradually gain intensity. In measure 104, the theme moves from the tenor register to the alto, now recomposed in D Mixolydian via the same F-sharp common tone. The B theme is accompanied by M3, T1 in the left hand. In measure 106, the theme moves to the soprano and changes to F-sharp Mixolydian (via the F-sharp common tone) in measure 110 (Example 10).

This modal interplay creates a sense of anticipation as the theme rises in pitch, register, and dynamic level. In measure 104, the various restatements of the B theme are no longer separated by long notes. Instead, the theme becomes a continuous rising line, which gives way to a bridge in measure 114, gradually leading to the recapitulation of the primary theme. 

The bridge consists of arpeggios and scales from the G and B-flat Mixolydian modes. The primary sources of this modal shift are the common tones of D, E, and B in measure 113. In measure 114, the two inner notes of the chord in the left hand, D and F, serve as a “common tone anchor,” allowing a rocking movement from G to B-flat Mixolydian and back again. The two Mixolydian scales link together seamlessly. The interplay concludes via a final upward rising B-flat Mixolydian scale in measure 119, reaching the tonic of D Ionian by step and by chromatic descent in the pedal (Example 11). 

This active form of writing, combined with the increasing dynamic levels, results in perhaps the most powerful, seamless, and natural recapitulations in the entire set of 24 Pièces de Fantaisie. In the recapitulation, the primary theme is heard in the soprano, accompanied by a supportive pedal and repeated arpeggios in the inner voices. M3, T1 also emerges in measure 124 in the inner voices, adding support and color to the theme. Measure 126 contains a series of alternating tonic and dominant substitute chords over the B theme from measure 96 in the bass, now transposed to D Ionian (Example 12a). 

The thematic material repeats after this four-measure chordal alternation on measure 130. Again, M3, T1 returns with the chromatic descent of the bass line starting in measure 137. The D Ionian alternating chords return in measure 141, this time being interrupted by a stark arrival of a rapid flourish of thirds, fourths, and sixths in the soprano, accompanied by a chromatic, rising bass line in octaves. This flourish is clearly in M3, T1, and the left hand uses the anchor points of D and F-sharp. These anchor notes allow two measures of chromatic rising followed by two measures of chromatic falling before the returning alternating chords resume in measure 149—this time with the “bell-like” interjections used in the soprano heard in the opening measures (Example 12b).

The chromatic ascending and descending patterns from M3, T1 return in measure 153, but end abruptly as the music halts on an extremely dissonant chord formed from M3, T3 in measure 157. The F-sharp heard continuously throughout is locked in place in the soprano (a common tone), allowing the full use of chords from this mode. The chord in measure 159 seems to function as a form of altered dominant, but it is remarkably unstable due to the chromatically altered G in the bass, which is not found in M3, T3 (but is found in D Ionian). It is not easy to identify this chord using functional harmony due to the added notes. Perhaps one could argue that it is, indeed, a iv7 chord (from D Ionian) with an added ninth (the C-natural could be viewed as a displaced, chromatic tone from measure 158, which moves to D in measure 160). Either way, this chord leads back to the tonic (D Ionian) with the B theme in the bass, now in double time (Example 13a). This massive sonority brings “Carillon de Westminster” to a grand conclusion with three, long “hammer stroke” chords shown in Example 13b.

The conclusion of “Carillon de Westminster” (both aurally and analytically) leaves little doubt that Vierne possessed a creative, free-form approach to theoretical practices. The statements from Rollin Smith’s book document the success of this piece soon after its genesis, and the success continues today. With an understanding of some of the basic principles of common tone modulations, one can discern the construction of the Gregorian modes and the modes of limited transposition vital to decoding Vierne’s harmonic language. It is an important study that performers and scholars of Vierne’s music should consider. Not only does the study of music theory assist in the formation of a comprehension of the art of musical composition, it also enhances an appreciation of Vierne’s life and musical thought process. 

 

Notes

1. So far, there are only two recent publications on the harmonic analysis of Vierne’s music, particularly, the 24 Pièces de Fantaisie. One is part of a dissertation by Woosung Kang: “Louis Vierne’s Pièces De Fantaisie Pour Grand Orgue: Its Significance in The History of Organ Music,” DMA diss., Indiana University: Bloomington, Indiana, 2017. Retrieved from: https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2022/21344/Kang%2C%20Woosug%20%28DM%20Organ%29.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y. Here, Kang briefly discusses the octatonic scale (Mode 2) used for Vierne’s “Clair de Lune:” “Vierne begins the melody . . . with [an] octatonic scale combined with chromaticism throughout,” 22. The other is the author’s dissertation: Jonathan Bezdegian, “Louis Vierne and the Evolution of His Modal Consciousness” (Ann Arbor, Michigan: ProQuest LLC, 2018).

2. The actual genesis of this theme is allegedly from “William Crotch’s variations on the fifth and sixth measures of Handel’s ‘I know that my Redeemer Liveth,’ from Messiah, and was played by the chimes of the new Cambridge University clock in Great Saint Mary’s Church. It was played by a mechanism installed 1793–1794 and thus known as Cambridge Quarters.” In 1859–1860 the actual theme was copied (for the second time) for a clock tower at the end of the House of Parliament for a new and larger set of carillon bells. The “Big Ben” nickname was actually the name of the 13.5-ton bell, which was used to strike the hour. There are four smaller bells that chime the actual theme known as the “Westminster Quarters.” We can also note that this particular theme was adapted to clocks in 1886. This was actually the first time tubular chimes were introduced into clocks, and since this revelation, this theme has become a staple in clock manufacturing worldwide. Rollin Smith, Louis Vierne: Organist of Notre-Dame Cathedral (New York: Pendragon Press, 1999), 555–557.

3. Ibid., 557–559. 

4. Ibid., 559.

5. Vierne, Louis. Pièces de Fantaisie en quartre suites, Livre IV, op. 55, edited by Helga Schauerte-Maubouet (Kassel: Bärenreiter-Verlag, 2008), XXIII.

6. Ibid.

7. Ibid., XXIV. 

8. Smith, Louis Vierne, 559.

9. Marcel Dupré, on the other hand, hated this composition (and was not fond of Vierne, either, due to irreconcilable differences). “There was an unspoken rule that students were not to bring Vierne’s music to [Dupré] for study.” If anyone was brave enough to, they were met with harshness. A student actually played the “Carillon” for Dupré at a lesson, the result was unpleasant: “he played the Carillon de Westminster of Vierne . . . When he finished, Dupré said only one word . . . , ‘Rubbish!’” Ibid., 343. 

10. See the Scale Chart for complete spellings.

11. This discovery is also relatable to the music of Olivier Messiaen. Robert Sherlaw Johnson mentions this in his book, Messiaen: “for most of the time constructional harmonic relationships play no part in Messiaen’s music, except at certain points in some works where simple dominant-tonic or subdominant-tonic relationships become evident.” Robert Sherlaw Johnson, Messiaen (Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1975), 13.

12. Smith, Louis Vierne, 21.

13. Ibid., 125. 

14. The modes of limited transposition have a long history. We do not know where they all originated. However, we know that Olivier Messiaen is credited for codifying them. The first publication of the seven modes was in his La Nativité du Seigneur in 1936—one year prior to Vierne’s death in 1937. Also, in relation to the modes of limited transposition, music theorists currently use “T0” to indicate the first level of transposition (starting on C). However, Messiaen used “T1” or “first transposition” in his descriptions in La Nativité du Seigneur. So, to be consistent, I have retained Messiaen’s system. Thus, T1 indicates the first level. See Olivier Messiaen, La Nativité du Seigneur (Paris: Alphonse Leduc, 1936), “Note by the Composer.”

15. There were several accounts of this theme being written incorrectly by Vierne. The theme itself is quite long, since it comprises four quarters (one phrase for each quarter of the hour): one 2-bar phrase for the first 15 minutes of the hour, a second phrase of four measures for the 30-minute mark, a third phrase of six measures for 45 minutes, and the final phrase for the hour, comprising eight measures. It is the second quarter (copied in measure 2 of Example 1a) that was notated incorrectly by Vierne; why this occurred is not entirely known. However, due to Vierne’s musical ingenuity, it is not unwise to attribute this change to Vierne having “taken artistic license and altered the second quarter to suit his own purpose.” Smith, Louis Vierne, 559. 

16. All score excerpts are used with kind permission of Bärenreiter-Verlag, Kassel.

17. Notice that the notes of the augmented V chord are F, A, and C-sharp—all of these notes are common with M3, T3. Thus, the relationship between B-flat Ionian and M3, T3 is clear.

Photo caption: Example 1a (used with kind permission of Bärenreiter-Verlag, Kassel)

Jennifer Lucy Bate, 75, born in London, UK, November 11, 1944, died March 25. She was the daughter of H. A. Bate, organist of St James’s Muswell Hill from 1924 to 1978. An international concert organist, she was considered an authority on the organ music of Olivier Messiaen, having befriended him within the last twenty years of his life as his organist of choice. In 1986, she gave the first British performance of his Livre du Saint-Sacrement at Westminster Cathedral and later made the world premiere recording of the work under the personal supervision of the composer, winning the Grand Prix du Disque. He also endorsed her earlier recordings of all of his other organ works. Bate owned scores that contain many personal markings and references made by Messiaen. In 1995, Bate opened the Messiaen Festival at l’Église de la Sainte Trinité, Paris, France, where his complete organ works were performed and recorded. Among numerous awards for her CD were the Diapason d’Or (France) and Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik (Germany).

Bate performed and recorded a broad repertoire spanning several centuries, including English organ music, the complete organ works of César Franck, and the complete organ music of Felix Mendelssohn. A frequent performer at organ festivals, she often played works written for her. She also presented numerous masterclasses and lectures. She was instrumental in the formation of the annual Jennifer Bate Organ Academy, a course for young female organists, and she was the lead patron of the Society of Women Organists.

Bate was briefly married (as his second wife) to George Thalben-Ball. She received an honorary doctorate from the University of Bristol in 2007. In 1990, Bate was recognized with the Personnalité de l’Année award by the French-based jury, only the third British artist to achieve this distinction, after Georg Solti and Yehudi Menuhin. In 1996, Bate was granted honorary citizenship of the Italian province of Alessandria for her services to music in Northern Italy over 20 years. In 2002, she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and in 2008 was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire.

In 2011, M. Frédéric Mitterand, minister of culture and communication, awarded Jennifer Bate the rank of Officier de l’ordre des Arts et des Lettres, stating that this honor is awarded to renowned artists and writers who have promoted French culture throughout the world. Subsequently, President Sarkozy appointed Jennifer Bate to the rank of Chevalier in the Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur, stating that this honor was awarded in recognition of her skill as an organist and her contribution to making Olivier Messiaen’s organ works more widely known throughout the world. She received both awards in 2012.

 

Marillyn Ila Freeman, 85, musician and teacher, died March 24. Born in Marion, Wisconsin, February 23, 1935, she grew up in New London and Appleton, where she began playing the organ for local church services at the age of twelve. She graduated from Appleton High School in 1953 and the Lawrence College Conservatory of Music, Appleton, earning a degree in music performance in 1957. While at Lawrence, she met her future husband Ralph Freeman, and they were married in 1958. Following graduation Freeman taught music at Lawrence and worked in the president’s office at Princeton University, eventually returning to Wisconsin and settling in Green Bay, where she taught piano and played organ in the Moravian church.

In 1965 the Freemans moved to Neenah where a year later she began a 54-year career as organist for St. Paul Lutheran Church. In addition to playing organ and piano, as director of music ministries she planned worship services, directed youth choirs, accompanied the adult Sanctuary Choir, presented church musicals, and guided the church in purchasing a new Dobson organ in 1986. She earned an associate certificate of the American Guild of Organists in 1995 and an associate in music ministry certificate in 2000.

Throughout her career Freeman continued to teach piano and organ, organizing piano recitals, judging piano competitions, and mentoring young musicians in the Fox Valley. She was a member of the Fox Valley Music Teachers, a member of the Sigma Alpha Iota International Music Fraternity, served as treasurer of the North Eastern Wisconsin chapter of the American Guild of Organists, and was active in the Hymn Society of the United States and Canada. For many years she and her husband Ralph, a pianist, violinist, and published author of hymn texts, performed organ and piano duets each August as part of the Lunchtime Organ Recital Series in the Fox Valley region.

Marillyn Ila Freeman is survived by her husband Ralph Freeman, five children: Rebecca Freeman (Stephen Fusfeld) of Neenah; Jennifer Timm (Terry) of Neenah; Robert Freeman (Robin) of Darien, Illinois; Jon Freeman of Whitefish Bay; and Paul Freeman (Nicole Berman) of Stow, Massachusetts; twelve grandchildren, and several great grandchildren.

Memorial gifts may be made to the music ministry program at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 200 N. Commercial Street, Neenah, WI 54956, or to either the Melanoma Research Fund or the Surgical Oncology Outcomes Research and Awareness Fund at the University of Wisconsin (supportuw.org/give).

 

Josephine Lenola Bailey Freund, 90, died February 8 in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. A lifelong musician, she was a professional organist for almost 70 years and taught piano and organ. She performed organ recitals and directed choirs throughout the United States, as well as in Swaziland and Papua New Guinea.

Josephine Bailey was born April 8, 1929, in Indianapolis, Indiana. She began piano lessons at age six and started studying organ at age thirteen. Among her first professional jobs were playing the organ to accompany silent movies and substituting as an accompanist and organist in local churches.

Following graduation from high school in 1946, Bailey attended Wittenberg College, Springfield Ohio, later transferring to Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland. There she earned a teaching certificate in organ and bachelor’s and master’s degrees. In 1952, she was the first female graduate of Peabody to earn a master’s degree in organ performance.

During the 1950s Bailey played at various churches in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia, including serving as music director for First Baptist, Washington, D.C., which President Truman attended; and St. Anne’s Episcopal Church, Annapolis, Maryland, where she was honored to play for a royal visit by Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. From 1956 until 1961, she was associate professor of music at Longwood College, Farmville, Virginia. She was also organist of First Presbyterian Church, Farmville, and taught music in local public high schools.

In 1963, Bailey became the first full-time director of music at Trinity Lutheran Church, Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. She later returned to Indianapolis to teach in public schools and was the organist and assistant choir director at First Presbyterian Church. In the early 1970s, she moved to East Lansing, Michigan, to work on her doctorate in music theory at Michigan State University. She also was associate professor of music and organist and choir director of Martin Luther Chapel at Michigan State. It was there that she met her future husband Roland Freund who was an Australian agricultural missionary working on his master’s degree. They married in July 1971 and moved to the Highlands of Papua New Guinea.

In 1976, the family moved to Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where Josephine taught piano and was organist at Grace United Methodist Church. The family spent 1982–1984 working on a U.S. AID and Penn State University project in Swaziland, Africa. There she taught music in several schools and directed the largest choir in the country for a performance of Brahms’s Requiem.

Upon returning to Carlisle, Josephine Freund served as organist and choir director at St. John’s Episcopal Church and Gettysburg College Chapel. She was adjunct professor of organ for Dickinson College and an active member and officer of the Harrisburg Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. Freund played her final organ recital in 2010, but continued to teach piano and organ and to substitute and support church services, weddings, and funerals for a few more years. She was a lifetime member of the national honors fraternity for women in music, Sigma Alpha Iota.

Josephine Lenola Bailey Freund is survived by her husband, Roland Paul Freund of Carlisle; her nephew, Matthew Freund of South Australia; and her son, Colonel Ernie Freund, daughter-in-law Megan Sayler Freund, and granddaughters, Amelia Rose and Adelaide Pearl, all from Burke, Virginia.

Funeral services were held February 15 at Trinity Lutheran Church, Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. Memorial contributions may be made to Residential Hospice, 100 Sterling Pkwy #110, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050 or the Traditional Music Fund at Trinity Lutheran Church, 2000 Market Street, Camp Hill, PA 17011.

 

Eleanor Marie Fulton, organist and music educator, died February 23 in New Haven, Connecticut. Born August 9, 1939, in Morristown, Tennessee, she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Bennett College, Greensboro, North Carolina, in 1961, and continued her education at the Manhattan School of Music, New York City; the Haydn Conservatory, Eisenstadt, Austria; and the University of Ghana’s International Center for African Music and Dance.

She served as the longtime organist and director of music for Center Church on the Green, New Haven, and was a music teacher for New Haven Public Schools, director of the New Haven Children’s Chorus, assistant organist and director of Christian education for Battell Chapel, Yale University, New Haven, consultant to the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, and a private piano and music instructor. She was the featured performer on a CD released by Raven, performing on the 1971 Beckerath organ of Dwight Chapel, Yale University, with works of Bach, de Grigny, and Mendelssohn (Eleanor Fulton, Organist: Dwight Chapel, Yale University, OAR-810).

 

Odile Pierre, French liturgical and international concert organist, professor, and composer, died in Paris, France, on February 29, shortly before her 87th birthday. Born in Pont-Audemer (in Normandy) on March 12, 1932, she decided to become an organist at age seven, inspired by a recital by Marcel Dupré on the Cavaillé-Coll organ at St. Ouen Abbey in Rouen. After taking lessons with Madeleine Lecoeur, organist at St. Nicaise Church in Rouen at age fifteen, she served as organist and choir director at the St. Martin Church in Barentin (in the Seine-Maritime region of Normandy). From 1950 to 1952, she studied harmony with Albert Beaucamp and organ with Marcel Lanquetuit at the Rouen Conservatory. She then entered the Paris Conservatory, where she was awarded first prizes in the classes of Maurice Duruflé (harmony), Noël Gallon (fugue), Norbert Dufourcq (music history), as well as organ and improvisation with Marcel Dupré and Rolande Falcinelli. At the age of 23, Odile Pierre became the youngest Marcel Dupré student to win a first prize in organ and improvisation at the Paris Conservatory. She won this prestigious prize the same year as Éliane Lejeune-Bonnier (1921–2015), with the unanimous approval of the jury, which included Jeanne Demessieux.

From 1955 to 1957, Odile Pierre officially substituted for Jean-Jacques Grunenwald, then organist at Saint-Pierre de Montrouge Church in Paris. She then studied organ performance with Fernando Germani at Saint-Cecilia Academy in Rome and at Chigiana Music Academy in Sienne, and with Franz Sauer at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. In 1969, she succeeded Jeanne Demessieux as titular organist of the gallery organ of the Madeleine Church and remained in this post until 1979. By coincidence, on the day after she died, Olivier Périn began his functions as the official assistant to François-Henri Houbart, her successor at the Madeleine.

Well known for her mastery of organ repertoire from early to contemporary masters, Odile Pierre performed at least 2,000 concerts throughout the world, including appearances in Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Canada, Iceland, Russia, Germany, Turkey, Italy, Spain, Austria, and the former Czechoslovakia, including twelve tours in the United States and six in Asia. In 1977, she represented France at the Third International Organ Congress in Washington and Philadelphia. She performed organ concertos under the direction of conductors such as Lorin Maazel, Pierre Dervaux, Antoine de Bavier, and Georges Prêtre.

Odile Pierre recorded for RCA, Mitra, Motette, Festivo, Editions Lade, and IFO. At least two of the recordings were made at the Madeleine Church in Paris: Camille Saint-Saëns’ Preludes and Fugues (1972, RCA LSB 4088) and The Great Romantic Toccatas (1978, RCA/RC 8108). In 1991, she recorded (for SCD 814) Jean-François Muno’s reconstitution of Jean de Joyeuse’s 1694 organ at the Auch Cathedral, which she had inaugurated in 1988 with André Isoir. Her Poetic Symphonic Organ Music (Vierne, Debussy, Duruflé, and Odile Pierre) on the Cavaillé-Coll of the Trinity Church in Fécamp and at St. Godard in Rouen (1988, MP/FR 51190 C) calls upon her Normand origins; her record of Widor, Vierne, and Guilmant at the Orléans Cathedral (1993, Motette 11251), reminds us that she lived nearby, in Tigy, in the Loiret department, at the end of her life.

As professor, Odile Pierre taught organ and music history at the Rouen Conservatoire from 1959 until 1969 and then organ and improvisation at the Paris Regional Conservatoire from 1981 until 1992. Among her students were Michael Matthes, Léon Kerremans, D’Arcy Trinkwon, Kristiyan Seynhave, David Di Fiore, and Lionel Coulon (titular organist at the Rouen Cathedral since 1992, he substituted for her at the Madeleine for four years). In 1991, she gave organ classes at the Scuola Internationale d’Alto Perfezionmento Musicale in Perugia, Italy, and gave masterclasses in numerous colleges and universities. She also served on the juries of international organ competitions. In 1977, she was appointed as a member of the Commission on Organs in Paris.

Her organ works were published as early as 1955: Chorale and Fugue on the first antiphon of the Second Vespers for Christmas (1955, Procure du Clergé), and Chorale and Four-Voiced Fugue (1955, republished by Europart-Music in 1988), Four Pilgrimages at the Virgin Mary for four hands, opus 1 (Leduc, 1988), Variations and Fugue on three Christmas Carols (Leduc, 1990), The Martyr of St. Thomas Becket, op. 4 (Bergamo, Carrara 1994), Chorale and Fugue on the Name of Charles-Marie Widor, op. 5 (Mayence, Schott, 1994), and Canonic Variations and Fugue on Two Christmas Carols from Naples, op. 6 (1955). Her edition of some of Alexandre Guilmant’s organ works was printed by Bornemann in 1983 and 1984. In addition, she wrote about Marcel Dupré’s improvisation exams in 1953 and 1954 (Leduc, undated). Odile Pierre received three awards for her contributions to French culture: Officer in the French Legion of Honor, Commander in the French Order of Merit, and the Silver Medal of the City of Paris.

Odile Pierre is survived by her husband, the historian Pierre Aubé.

—Carolyn Shuster Fournier

 

Philip Astor Prince, 89, of New Haven, Connecticut, died February 5. Born January 5, 1931, in Evanston, Illinois, Prince attended the Taft School before entering Yale University with the Class of 1952. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Latin, subsequently studied musicology in the Yale Graduate School, but completed a Master of Music degree from the Yale School of Music in organ performance under H. Frank Bozyan in 1959. Prince was drawn to the Anglo-Catholic liturgy celebrated at Christ Church, New Haven, and became associated with the music program there, succeeding Richard Donovan as organist and choirmaster in 1966. He became respected among colleagues for his English-language arrangements of Gregorian chants and psalmody and for his hymn accompaniments.

Prince published scholarly articles on Max Reger’s organ music (see “Reger and the Organ,” The Diapason, March 1973) and a performing edition of a sonata da chiesa of Johann Gottfried Walther. He also taught organ students at Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, where he served as university organist for nearly 30 years and played annual recitals. In 1988, he joined the choirs of St. Mary Church, New Haven, and the St. Gregory Society and continued singing with them well into his 80s. Prince became an associate fellow of Ezra Stiles College in 1974. He was a longtime member of both Mory’s and the Elizabethan Club in New Haven, and the American Guild of Organists and Association of Anglican Musicians. Prince was a supporter of the Yale swimming team, and for many years he refereed at swimming matches and tournaments.

Jonathan Bezdegian

Jonathan Bezdegian received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Washington in March 2018. He works at Assumption University in Worcester, Massachusetts, as campus minister for liturgical music and mission trips, lecturer in music, and instructor of organ. He is the past dean of the Worcester Chapter American Guild of Organists.

The “Toccata” from Louis Vierne’s 24 Pièces de Fantaisie was composed in Paris in December 1926. It was published as the final composition in the “Deuxième suite,” opus 53, in September 1927 by Lemoine. “Toccata” is dedicated to Alexander Russell,¹ the director of music for the Wanamaker store in New York City and the first Frick Professor of Music at Princeton University. He also served as Vierne’s eastern manager for his 1927 American concert tour. 

As Vierne’s American concert manager, it seems obvious that Russell would bring Vierne to Princeton University as part of his American concert tour. However, this was not the case. There is no mention of a concert or of Vierne even visiting Princeton in university documents or publications. Rollin Smith makes a definitive statement after compiling this information, “Obviously Vierne never came to Princeton.”^{2, 3} Regardless, Vierne’s visit to America was of paramount importance to his organ compositions, especially his 24 Pièces de Fantaisie. 

Regarding “Toccata,” many do not realize the significance of a unique detail in its registrational scheme. Vierne calls for the addition of super couplers (octaves aiguës) in measures 148 (via the Récit) and 156 (via the Positif); it was his way of paying homage to American organ building.⁴ This is the first time Vierne calls for the use of these couplers in his 24 Pièces de Fantaisie. More importantly, the specification of the 1868 rebuild of the Cathedral of Notre Dame organ by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll in Paris did not have super couplers—there were only sub couplers (octaves graves) on all five manuals.⁵

While super-octave couplers were not yet used by organbuilders in France at the time, American organbuilders incorporated these couplers and other novelties in their consoles. Vierne experienced these features during his American tour and was quite impressed.⁶ Thus, it seems only fitting that he wanted the performance of his music to adequately showcase instruments constructed by American builders. 

Compositional matters in “Toccata” require particular attention. Close study of this popular and intense work reveals an abundance of sequential material, the combination of Gregorian modes with modes of limited transposition, and more structured use of harmony when compared to other works from 24 Pièces de Fantaisie. Analysis of Vierne’s organ music is certainly a challenge. The “Toccata” reveals many strange situations that require a unique understanding of modes and functional harmony. The goal of this article is to aid in the clarification of these situations.

The toccata’s form is ABA′ with coda. Throughout the composition, Vierne uses B-flat and D minor scales, C-sharp Phrygian mode, and modes 1, 2, and 3 from the modes of limited transposition. Vierne was not an advocate of structured harmonic writing. When studying his organ works, one is immediately struck by the characteristics of intense chromaticism and moving from one chord (or scale/key center) to another with virtually no warning or apparent methodology—that is the point. This attribute makes his organ music spontaneous, organic, and exciting. For Vierne, freeing himself from the bonds of structured compositional practices allowed him to make music in a natural, more musical way.⁷

The first two pages of the score present a relatively straightforward analysis using the B-flat (melodic) minor scale (note the copious use of G- and A-naturals throughout).⁸ The first three pages outline the A theme.⁹ Below is an analytical chart of measures 1–23. The chart below contains the measure, scale, and chord found in each:

Measures 1–4, B-flat minor i

5 VI7-i

6 i-III+

7–8 VI6

9 iiØ7

10 IV7

11–12 vii°7/V (dom. pedal)

13 V

14–15 i

16–17 VI7

18 bII7

19 iiØ7

20–23 vii°7/V (dom. pedal)

The next seven measures contain a descending chromatic sequence. Measures 24–26 are the first part of the sequence. Measure 27 contains a vi°7/V (V designating a dominant pedal) that connects this sequence to its repeat in measures 28–30. The chords are the same, but they are revoiced, and the pedal/bass part is now in eighth notes. Due to the chromaticism, it is virtually impossible to label measures 28–30 with our current Roman numeral system—at least in a sensible way. This is a common issue when analyzing Vierne’s organ works. 

However, measures 31–36 present a strange problem. Our relatively standard analysis quickly falls apart as the sonorities encountered do not coincide with B-flat minor at all. This is the first introduction of a mode of limited transposition: mode 3, transposition 3 (M3, T3). Vierne uses this mode seamlessly due to the common tones found between the B-flat minor scale and the preceding sequential measures. (Be cognizant of enharmonic equivalence when studying Examples 1a and 1b.)

When comparing the M3, T3 scale to the measures in question (reduced to the outer voices), one encounters some non-scale tones. The B-natural in the upper voice in measures 31–32 can be argued as a continuation of the downward chromatic sequence. The D-sharp in the bass is a passing tone. Lastly, the G-naturals in the upper voice and in the bass in measure 34 are also passing tones. This is evident when they are viewed as a connection to measures 35 and 36 where the key of B-flat minor (and Roman numeral analysis) continues. Consult the chart below for the analysis. Note that measures 36–38 contain another sequence.

Measure 35, B-flat minor v6, V6

36 i(9), IV7

37 VII7, III7

38 VI7, bII7

39 V

40–41 i

In measures 42–49, the key of D minor emerges, reached via a fully diminished vii chord achieved by common tone with B-flat minor (D-flat/C-sharp enharmonic equivalent).¹⁰ The recurring A dominant pedal point keeps the listener locked onto the new key until reaching a segue to the new B theme.

Measures 42–43, D minor vii°7/V

44–45 i

46 i7, viØ7

47 i

48 IV7, i7

49 viØ7

The segue to the B theme is in measures 50–55. The notes are derived from mode 2, transposition 2. Below is a replication of the segue and the M2, T2 scale for comparison. The non-scale tone of C in measure 50 (the seventh note in Examples 2a and 2b) is a passing tone.¹¹

This meandering material forms an ostinato that accompanies the new, B theme in C-sharp Phrygian. It is first encountered in the bass in measure 60.¹² 

The B theme is first introduced in the pedal in measures 60–76. The theme is seventeen measures long and in two parts. The first spans eight measures and is clearly in C-sharp Phrygian. The second portion is more chromatic. Both the C-sharp Phrygian scale and theme are demonstrated in Examples 3a and 3b. 

While the first eight measures are clear to understand regarding the Phrygian mode, the second, chromatic portion is rather perplexing. However, the accompaniment that begins in measure 68 (where the second portion of the B theme starts) is another descending chromatic sequence. Thus, Vierne is able to blend the C-sharp Phrygian mode with these chromatic, non-scale tones seamlessly.

In measure 76, the B theme moves to the soprano. It is an exact repeat of its first statement. However, this time the accompaniment contains non-C-sharp Phrygian tones from mode 3, transposition 2—this mode and transposition will take over in measure 92. Pay close attention to another descending chromatic sequence beginning in measure 84. 

The B theme undergoes a miniature development in measures 92–115. A fragmented version of the B theme returns to the bass (still in C-sharp Phrygian) while juxtaposed with new rhythmic patterns in the accompaniment from M3, T2. The constant resurgences of a D-natural in the accompaniment are from the C-sharp Phrygian mode (Examples 4a and 4b). 

By measure 100, the remaining portion of the B theme is in M3, T2. Ultimately, in measure 104, the theme devolves to a pedal point on F—the dominant of B-flat minor. Measures 104–115 serve as a decoration of the vii°7 chord from B-flat minor (respelled for ease of reading: A-flat, B, D, F). The diminished chords are linked by chromatic scales that rise in pitch and create tension and anticipation before reaching the recapitulation in measure 116 (Example 5). 

The recapitulation is not an identical repeat; much of the material is reharmonized, thus the A′ designation. The recapitulation spans from measure 116 to measure 147. Measures 116–128 are charted below.

Measures 116–117, B-flat minor i

118 i, ii°

119 i

120 VI

121 iv

122 ii°7

123 V

124 ii°7

125 III

126 ii°7

127 III

128 ii°7

Measure 129 is rather unusual. If one follows the original A theme, this is the point where the key of D minor is reached via a fully diminished seventh chord (vii°7). The pitches in measure 129 indicate a seventh chord, but the addition of a G-sharp prevents the sonority from being fully realized.¹³ The new C-sharp minor seventh chord adds richness and color and seems to foreshadow what is yet to come—a sudden arrival of the B theme (in the bass) in measure 132, this time in mode 1, transposition 2 (Examples 6a and 6b). 

The accompaniment contains whole-tone scales from T2 and is connected via a viiØ7 chord from B-flat minor in measures 136–137. Note the presence of another descending chromatic sequence in measures 140–147. While this sequence is a bit different in presentation (especially with the meandering repetitions in measures 145–147), the effect is the same for harmonizing the chromatic second portion of the B theme (Example 7).

The coda begins in measure 148. The initial auditory response at the arrival of this measure is one of “sensory overload” as Vierne employs Mode 2, T2 over an F-sharp pedal point.¹⁴ Vierne will alternate transposition 2 and transposition 3 from mode 2 until the downbeat of measure 156, where he will retain transposition 2 and switch to an F pedal point. The ensuing scales contain passing tones not found in mode 2, transposition 2—they are approached and left by step.¹⁵ Below is a chart analyzing measures 148–159 by mode and transposition.

Measure 148, Mode 2 T2

149 T3, T2

150–151 T3

152 T2, T3 (last 2 16ths)

153 T2, T3 (last 2 16ths)

154–159 T2

The F pedal point in measure 156 serves as an anchor to the dominant of B-flat minor, which re-emerges in measure 160. Vierne uses the augmented III chord and dominant-seventh chord above the opening seven-note group heard in the beginning of the “Toccata,” thus creating a relentless, closing section of the coda. Measures 160–179 are charted below.

Measure 160, B-flat minor III+, V7

161 i

162 III+, V7

163 i

164–168, descending chromatic 

  chords

169–179, B-flat minor

The Toccata’s final page contains a descending chordal passage from measures 164–168. The bass gains momentum and rises chromatically in a rapid succession of sixteenth notes. One encounters a return of the opening seven-note group heard at the beginning of the “Toccata” in measure 169. Finally, the constant arpeggiation of the tonic chord (eight measures!) brings the piece to an abrupt close (the last piece of material the listener encounters before the close is the seven-note group heard in the bass). Because of the absence of a normal ritardando—Vierne specifically indicates senza ritardando—this piece often leaves the listener with a sense of bewilderment and uneasiness. 

Not to create a whimsical comparison, but the feeling of bewilderment is also common when attempting an analysis of Vierne’s music! Analyzing music is no easy task, and Vierne’s music is no exception. “Toccata” reveals many peculiar situations that require a different way of analytical thinking. These situations involve various uses of sequential material, Gregorian modes, and the modes of limited transposition. Vierne seamlessly combines all of these elements, resulting in a mesh of chromaticism and thematic material. It is this combination that gives his music its signature sound and character. Understanding the various elements of Vierne’s unique harmonic language is paramount in unlocking the mysteries behind the sound of his music. Hopefully, the information presented in this article will aid in the discovery of new analytical techniques for enthusiasts and disciples of Vierne’s oeuvre.

Notes

1. Rollin Smith, Louis Vierne: Organist of Notre-Dame Cathedral (New York: Pendragon Press, 1999), 416.

2. Ibid.

3. During Vierne’s American concert tour in 1927, Princeton University’s chapel and Skinner Organ Company organ were not yet completed. Completion came the following year. See: https://chapel.princeton.edu/chapel/history and https://chapel.princeton.edu/chapel/chapel/mander-skinner-organ. If Vierne had come to Princeton, he would have played the four-manual Aeolian organ installed in 1916 in Procter Hall. That organ no longer exists. See: https://www.princeton.edu/~gradcol/album/picsphall.htm.

4. Louis Vierne, Pièces de Fantaisie in quatre suites, Livre II, op. 53, ed. Helga Schauerte-Maubouet (Kassel: Bärenreiter-Verlag, 2008), XXII.

5. See Smith, 346–349, for the 1868 Notre-Dame stoplist and console layout.

6. Vierne was very attracted to the ease of use and versatility of American organ consoles. The availability of Unison Off and sub- and super-couplers in the manual divisions was of particular interest to him, so much so that he desired an American-style console for Notre-Dame. He began designing one on his return to France after his American tour concluded in 1927. Rollin Smith devoted an entire chapter in his book on this matter. See endnote 1: “Vierne on Organ Design,” Smith, 356–365.

7. Vierne constantly reflects on his struggles with structured theory practices in his memoirs (Souvenirs). This was particularly evident during his formative years at the Institution Nationale de Jeunes Aveugles. His beginning studies in harmony with Julien Héry were particularly problematic: “He helped us with a host of practical suggestions . . . . But on the artistic side he was rather limited, for he went strictly by the rules. After three years of this instruction we wrote correctly . . . but without the flexibility and freedom that make harmony an art. Later I had to work extremely hard to acquire a ‘pen’ in the modern sense of the word, and especially to enable me to teach in a really musical way.” Smith, 21.

8. The best approach to reading this article (and the subsequent study of the “Toccata”) is to have a recently published (or corrected) score available for consultation. The musical charts and examples in this article can be compared to the score for clarification.

9. Be aware that the opening seven-note group is an important identification mark throughout the composition:

10. The D melodic minor scale is used for this part of the analysis. Note the B-naturals and C-sharps throughout measures 42–49.

11. One views a key signature change at the halfway point of the segue—yes, this key signature has the same accidentals found in C-sharp Phrygian. However, one should be prudent when analyzing Vierne’s music. Just because a key signature is relatable does not guarantee that the composition in question is in the implied mode or key. (Obviously, this section is not in F-sharp minor or A major.) One should analyze carefully to justify their findings.

12. During the statement of the B theme, one encounters a non-scale tone in the ostinato in measures 58–59, 62–63, and 66–67—the F-sharp in the lower voice may cause a bit of confusion. However, one should note that F-sharp is present in the C-sharp Phrygian mode, thus allowing it to occur rather seamlessly.

13. D minor is reached in measure 132, but in name only as the forthcoming sonorities are not relatable.

14. Not only does Vierne’s use of mode 2 contribute to the unsettling arrival of measure 148, but the registration (full organ) also adds to the passage’s brutality.

15. Vierne switches between transposition levels of mode 2 by chromatic movement, which the listener has experienced many times in this toccata via the use of sequences. At this point, there is nothing that seems terribly out of place by these constant chromatic maneuvers.

The Diapason staff

Matthew Buller

Matthew Buller is a native of Lake Charles, Louisiana, and a candidate for the Artist Diploma at Oberlin Conservatory of Music, Oberlin, Ohio, where he studies with Arvid Gast. He earned his Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from Oberlin in May 2017, where he had the privilege of studying with organists such as Nathan Laube, Liuwe Tamminga, Jean-Baptiste Robin, and Marie-Louise Langlais, in addition to his regular studies with James David Christie and Jonathan Moyer. He also studied harpsichord under Webb Wiggins and fortepiano under David Breitman. Since 2017, Matthew has been director of music and organist at Holy Family Catholic Church in Parma, Ohio. As a performer, he has performed extensively around the United States, in Montreal, Québec, and in Paris, France. He also performed on the 2015 Danenburg Honors Recital, in addition to performing on the Songsun Lee Memorial Concert in Vero Beach, Florida, in 2016.

An interesting fact: I am a collector of old organ scores and old hymnals.

Proudest achievement: A major scholarship to study at Oberlin Conservatory and many opportunities in the world of church music.

Career aspirations and goals: I hope to be a director of music in a major cathedral and to perform large choral, orchestral, and organ Masses in their original context, namely during the Catholic Mass.

Katie Burk

Originally from Lawrence, Kansas, Katie Burk is an organist, conductor, vocalist, and composer pursuing the Doctor of Music degree in organ performance at Indiana University, where she is a student of Christopher Young. An active organ recitalist and choral clinician, she currently serves as music intern at Trinity Episcopal Church in Bloomington, Indiana, under the direction of Marilyn Keiser, where she directs and accompanies both youth and adult choral ensembles and coordinates the Evenings at Trinity music and liturgy series. Additionally, she teaches undergraduate aural skills courses at the IU Jacobs School of Music. She holds the Master of Music degree in organ from IU and Bachelor of Music degrees in organ and music education summa cum laude from Saint Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota, where she sang in the Saint Olaf Choir and studied organ with Catherine Rodland, conducting with Anton Armstrong and Christopher Aspaas, and voice with Karen Wilkerson. This summer, Katie will be a faculty member at both the Royal School of Church Music in America’s King’s College Training Course in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and the Presbyterian Association of Musicians Conference on Worship and Music at Montreat, North Carolina.

An interesting fact: I am an identical twin; my sister Maggie is a choral conductor and composer (who moonlights as an organist!) about to start her doctorate at the University of Michigan!

Proudest achievement: Though it’s still a little way off, I predict that once I finish everything up, I will be very happy to have earned a doctorate in organ (an instrument I didn’t play until college!). For the moment, however, I’m excited that my choral compositions are being performed in venues such as the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., and Saint Mark’s Church in Philadelphia!

Career aspirations and goals: Whether I find myself in academia or working as a church musician (or both), I’d like my job to be multifaceted. I’ve always enjoyed a wide variety of musical activities—playing the organ, conducting, singing, teaching, composing—and I hope to be in a setting where I can continue to pursue all of my interests!

Jared Cook

Jared D. Cook is a native of Houston, Texas, where he began his formal organ study at age seventeen with Stephen Morris. He is currently a junior organ performance and French major at Baylor University, where he studies with Isabelle Demers. In the 2018 William C. Hall Pipe Organ Competition, he was awarded first place in the undergraduate division, as well as the prize for outstanding hymn playing. During his sophomore year, he was selected as the organ division winner in the 2018 Baylor School of Music Semper Pro Musica Competition. An active recitalist, Jared has performed recitals at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, New York City, Saint Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, New York City, Christ Church Cathedral, Houston, among others.

Jared has served as organ scholar at Holy Spirit Episcopal Church in Houston and as principal organist at Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church, Waco, Texas, where his responsibilities included accompanying the Chancel Choir and playing for services. Currently, he is serving as organ scholar at Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church, Dallas, Texas.

An interesting fact: I speak three languages (English, Spanish, and French) and enjoy traveling frequently!

Proudest achievement: I’m the proudest of making the organ accessible to non-organists. I enjoy showcasing the colors and abilities of the instrument, and helping people develop an appreciation for the organ.

Career aspirations and goals: I’d like to inspire people as a concert organist, pedagogue, and church musician. It is my goal to continue making the organ an accessible instrument and to give back to the community through music. I want to help educate others about the organ and help them develop a passion for the “King of Instruments.”

Carolyn Craig

Carolyn Craig of Knoxville, Tennessee, is the 2018–2019 organ scholar at Truro Cathedral in Truro, England, where her duties include playing for at least three Evensongs per week and training the youngest boy choristers daily. She will begin a Master of Music in organ performance in 2019. Carolyn graduated summa cum laude from Indiana University in 2018, where she held the Wells Scholarship and was one of five graduating seniors to receive the Elvis J. Stahr Award for leadership and academic excellence. Carolyn graduated with a Bachelor of Music in organ performance in the studio of Christopher Young with minors in conducting and German. While at Indiana University, Carolyn was organ scholar at Trinity Episcopal Church with Marilyn Keiser.

Carolyn began her keyboard studies as a pianist and performed in Carnegie Hall at age 14 as a winner of the American Protégé International Talent Competition. At the age of seventeen, Carolyn won the Region IV Quimby Competition for Young Organists and performed a Rising Star recital for the 2014 American Guild of Organists national convention in Boston, Massachusetts. She has since been heard on Pipedreams and in recital domestically and abroad, in venues such as St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, England.

An interesting fact: I love to sing. I study voice privately whenever I have the chance, currently with Margaret Kingsley, professor emerita of the Royal College of Music, and studied privately at Indiana University and, as a high school student, at the University of Tennessee. At Indiana University, I sang in Dominick DiOrio’s new music choir NOTUS, in the early music group CONCENTUS, for many colleagues’ composition premieres, and in the student-led chamber choir Burgundian Consort (Hannah McGinty, director). I have also done some musical theater and enjoy singing a cappella with the Choral Scholars of Truro Cathedral.

Proudest achievement: I’m proudest when my teaching is successful—when I see my organ students playing their first postlude, when the youngest boy choristers I train have their first solos, when theory concepts and sight singing click, and when community choirs get German vowels right.

Career aspirations and goals: I would like to be the choir director and organist at a church where vibrant children’s choir and adult choir programs provide a foundation for faith formation and contribute to a sense of community and where the standard for choral and organ music is excellence. Additionally, I would like to concertize as an organist and would like to perform as a collaborative pianist and professional choral soprano. I would also like to continue teaching organ lessons.

Bryan Dunnewald

Conductor and organist Bryan Dunnewald of Arvada, Colorado, has performed in numerous venues across the country, from the Washington National Cathedral to the Mormon Tabernacle. From 2015 to 2018, he served as organ scholar at Saint Mark’s Church, an Anglo-Catholic parish in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and as assistant organist at Macy’s (formerly Wanamaker’s) department store, giving frequent concerts on the largest organ in the world. Bryan enjoys collaborating with ensembles large and small and has performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Colorado Symphony, the Curtis Symphony Orchestra, and numerous chamber ensembles as an organist and harpsichordist. As a conductor, Bryan has led a variety of ensembles, from orchestras at Curtis to choirs in Denver. He is an active composer and recently conducted the premiere of his Missa Brevis: Saint Mark with Saint Mark’s Parish Choir. Bryan currently lives in New York City where he pursues a master’s degree in orchestral conducting with David Hayes at the Mannes School of Music. He is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and Interlochen Arts Academy, earning over the course of his studies the highest honors in music, academics, citizenship, and character. Bryan’s teachers and mentors include Alan Morrison, Robert McCormick, Jonathan Coopersmith, Leon Schelhase, Thomas Bara, Steve Larson, Martha Sandford-Heyns, and Joseph Galema. In the summer of 2018, he worked at Schoenstein & Co., developing his love of organbuilding as an apprentice to Jack Bethards.

An interesting fact: I love architecture and public transit. I have a very real dream to drive a bus one day.

Proudest achievement: My proudest professional moments are those in which I create something great with others. These achievements can be in- or outside of music. Some recent examples include conducting the premiere of my Missa Brevis at Saint Mark’s, working for years with administrators at Curtis to make positive changes to the orchestra program, conducting my friends at my graduation recital in a performance of one of my very favorite pieces, Poulenc’s Le Bal Masqué, and voicing my very first rank of pipes (with some success!) at Schoenstein.

Career aspirations and goals: I want a career in which I build something special. There are many disciplines that make me feel fulfilled, so I look for a career with variety, one where those disciplines complement each other. Being a leader and fostering an environment of healthy, serious artistry are important to me. Outside that I expect to have a career that involves, in some form, playing, conducting (orchestras and choirs), working with others, organbuilding, and bus driving (likely in retirement).

Website: www.bryandunnewald.com.

Daniel Ficarri

A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Daniel Ficarri is a graduate student at The Juilliard School, studying with organist Paul Jacobs. Ficarri is recognized as a performer of both new music and standard classical repertoire—The New York Times listed his performance of John Cage’s Souvenir under the “Week’s 8 Best Classical Music Moments,” and WQXR broadcast his live all-Bach performance as part of their “Bach Organ Marathon.” He has performed around the country and at New York City’s Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, Saint Thomas Church, and Trinity Church Wall Street. His orchestral performances have included engagements with the Florida Orchestra and the Juilliard Orchestra in Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall. Ficarri has also composed extensively for the organ—his Exultation was commissioned by Choir & Organ magazine for the dedication of the Miller-Scott Organ at Saint Thomas Church. An active church musician, Ficarri is currently organ scholar at Church of Saint Paul the Apostle in Manhattan, where he founded the organ concert series “Sacred Sounds at Saint Paul’s.” Previously, he served as organ scholar at Hitchcock Presbyterian Church in Scarsdale, New York. For more information, and to purchase sheet music, visit www.danielficarri.com.

An interesting fact: I began my musical training as a violinist and studied privately for ten years. Though I no longer study the violin, I still have a great love of music for strings and orchestra and enjoy transcribing these works for organ.

Proudest achievement: I find the greatest satisfaction in composing my own works for the organ. My favorite of these compositions is Exultation, a fanfare. Composing allows me to push the limits of the instrument while sharing my unique voice.

Career aspirations and goals: I hope that my work is able to bring awareness to the potential of the organ and the enduring relevance of its music. Whether through performing, composing, or serving in churches, I hope that I am able to educate and inspire others to take interest in the voices of history’s great artists. The organ and its repertoire are greatly misunderstood—by the musically ignorant in society and also by the most advanced classical musicians. My greatest aspiration is to enlighten others, and in doing so, enrich their lives in some way.

Julian Goods

Raised in Chicago, Illinois, Julian J. Goods is a senior at the University of Michigan pursuing a Bachelor of Music degree in choral music education. He has a primary focus in voice and secondary focuses in pipe organ and conducting. Over the last few years, Goods has worked closely with the choral conducting and music education faculty to help find ways in which he can become a successful and effective teacher in schools with primarily African American student populations. In the fall, he will be starting a Master of Music degree in choral conducting at the University of Michigan. Goods serves as the music director for the Michigan Gospel Chorale and organist at both Hartford Memorial Baptist Church and Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church in Detroit. He is a member of the American Guild of Organists, American Choral Directors Association, and the National Association of Negro Musicians where he serves on the Collegiate Board and as the recording secretary for the Central Region.

An interesting fact: I am a proud Eagle Scout.

Proudest achievement: My proudest achievement is every time an ensemble or someone I work with experiences a success.

It would be very easy for me to say that my proudest achievement would be any of the awards, honors, or recognitions that I have collected over the years; however, there is one achievement that I am especially proud of. My proudest achievement is the work that I do as a student teacher within the Detroit Public Schools System. As a student teacher I have the opportunity to spend time engaging with and cultivating young minds. On a daily basis, I am able to sow into these young minds and work to provide them with the resources they need. I am the most proud when I am able to see these bright individuals take those resources and utilize them to work toward a successful future. I am a giver to my very core, and watching my students take what I give them and produce success is truly my proudest achievement to date.

Career aspirations and goals: My ultimate goal is to one day serve as the director of choral activities at a university/college where my focus would be to build a choir that will continue the strong tradition of Western European Classical music while constantly displaying the diverse repertoire of choral music from around the world.

Conner Kunz

Conner Kunz was born in Delta, Utah, to Mark and Beverly Kunz and has always had a fascination with music, the pipe organ, and large mechanical devices. He graduated from Delta High School and currently studies business management at Utah Valley University and also works with Bigelow & Co. organbuilders as a part-time craftsman. His main areas of interest in the organ world include the mechanical creation of the organ, as well as voicing and tuning of pipes, and he hopes to continue to broaden his skills in those areas.

An interesting fact: Before I was employed at Bigelow & Co. I was a high-end furniture maker.

Proudest achievement: My furniture can be seen internationally in the temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Career aspirations and goals: I hope to be able to take on the career of pipe organ building and more fully develop my capabilities in both the design and production of these beautiful instruments.

Colin MacKnight

Colin MacKnight is a third year C. V. Starr Doctoral Fellow at The Juilliard School, where he also completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He studies with Paul Jacobs, Grammy award winner and chair of the organ department, and is working on his dissertation entitled “Ex Uno Plures: A Proposed Completion of Bach’s Art of Fugue.” Colin also serves as associate organist and choirmaster at Cathedral of the Incarnation on Long Island. Before Incarnation, Colin was assistant organist and music theory teacher at Saint Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue.

Colin’s first prizes and scholarships include the 2017 West Chester University International Organ Competition, 2016 Albert Schweitzer Organ Competition, 2016 Arthur Poister Scholarship Competition, M. Louise Miller Scholarship from the Greater Bridgeport Chapter of the American Guild of Organists, the 2013 Rodgers North American Classical Organ Competition, and the Ruth and Paul Manz Organ Scholarship. He also won the New York City and Northeast regional AGO competitions. In addition, Colin received the Clarence Snyder Third Prize in the 2016 Longwood Gardens International Organ Competition and is a Fellow of the American Guild of Organists.

An interesting fact: I was an extremely reckless and accident-prone kid. I went to the emergency room so often that I had my favorite hospital and the staff there knew me, and my mom says that my raison d'être was self-destruction. One of my more memorable injuries was when I concussed myself by diving into a bathtub with no water.

Proudest achievement: Most recently, acquiring two free leather couches and smuggling them into the Juilliard organ rooms.

Career aspirations and goals: I’m mainly interested in doing church music, concertizing, and perhaps doing some teaching. I particularly enjoy the variety of musical activities that are involved in church music: repertoire, improvisation, conducting, service playing, etc.

Website: colinmacknight.com.

Thomas Mellan

Born in Lyon, France, Thomas Mellan won first place in the Musical Merit Foundation’s national competition in 2016. In 2011, he recorded for the official documentary of the Walt Disney Concert Hall organ. He performed as a Rising Star in the American Guild of Organists’ West Region Convention and the Spreckels Centennial International Festival in 2015. As Young Artist of the Year, he played in the 23rd International Festival of St. Eustache in Paris, France. In 2018, his European tour included a residency at the Organ Hall in Lviv, where he gave the Ukrainian premiere of Messiaen’s Livre d’Orgue.

His compositions include orchestral, chamber, and solo works, which have been performed in France, America, Canada, and Ukraine. Mellan was the Outstanding Graduate of the undergraduate class of 2017 at the University of Southern California, Thornton School of Music, graduating with a double major in organ and composition.

An interesting fact: I pick hikes spontaneously and based on the elevation gain. If it’s below 700 meters (+- 3,000 feet), then it’s too pleasant!

Proudest achievement: Pushing organ technique to new possibilities, by playing and designing études (Chopin, Dupré, Liszt, my own), modern music (Xenakis and Barraqué, for instance, push keyboard technique and expression to new boundaries), and new works of my own, such as my Ballade de l’impossible.

Playing three concerts on three consecutive nights in Lviv, Ukraine, each with individual programs last summer.

Career aspirations and goals: Touring internationally as an organist with programs of music that I believe in (sometimes, but not always, organ repertoire: Ferneyhough, Bach, Louis Couperin, Schoenberg, Liszt, Xenakis, Reger, Webern, to name just a tiny bunch); teaching at a university or conservatoire; composing pieces that I feel need to be written (at the moment my backlog of commissions includes an organ concerto, violin inventions, and a percussion solo); touring as a harpsichordist (Couperin, Froberger!) and pianist (Boulez! Bartok!).

Alexander Meszler

Alexander Meszler is a Doctor of Musical Arts degree student in organ of Kimberly Marshall at Arizona State University. He currently lives in Versailles, France, on a Fulbright award where he investigates secularism and the organ and studies with Jean-Baptiste Robin. Meszler completed his master’s degree in organ performance and music theory at the University of Kansas where he studied organ with Michael Bauer and James Higdon and his bachelor’s degree in organ with Kola Owolabi while at Syracuse University.

Alexander has been a finalist in several performance competitions and, in 2016, he won second prize at the Westchester University Organ Competition. A strong advocate of music by living composers, he currently serves as a member of the American Guild of Organists’ Committee on New Music. He has collaborated with composers Huw Morgan, Hon Ki Cheung, and George Katehis on the premieres of their organ works.

In 2017, he was awarded a grant from the Arizona Center for Renaissance and Medieval Studies for a project titled, “Crossroads for the Organ in the Twenty-First Century: A Precedent for Secularism in the First Decades of Sixteenth-Century Print Culture.” He has presented papers and lecture-recitals at conferences including the Rocky Mountain chapter of the American Musicological Society, the Westfield Center for Historical Keyboard Studies, and the Historical Keyboard Society of North America. He is making his first significant interdisciplinary contribution this June at the European Association for the Study of Religions’ annual conference.

An interesting fact: I started my undergraduate career as a trombone major. Having taken some organ late in high school with Stephen Best in Utica, New York, I was warmly welcomed as a secondary student into the organ studio at Syracuse University. I found myself in the organ practice room for hours at a time—much, much more time than I spent practicing the trombone. The moment I knew I needed to approach Kola Owolabi, my organ teacher at the time, about the possibility of switching majors was when my trombone professor, Bill Harris, complimented my trombone playing in a rather distinctive way. He said, “You know, you play the trombone extremely well for an organ major.” Not an insult at all, he knew where my heart was. I am extremely thankful for both mentors!

Proudest achievement: I’m proud of a collaborative project that I initiated and organized with my mentor, Kimberly Marshall. Inspired by other artist-activists, we explored the negative environmental effects of a United States-Mexico border wall. We incorporated the art and music of many others including commissioning two new works funded by the Foundation for Contemporary Arts in New York City. One resulting work was for two organs and fixed-media electronics by Huw Morgan, which incorporated sounds of the wall itself from musician-activist Glenn Weyant. Another highlight for me was working with a leading scientist in the field, Michael Schoon, to write an accurate, yet moving script that accompanied the program. The result, if nothing else, was that new audiences were exposed both to the organ and the science behind this important and timely issue.

Career aspirations and goals: While there is no doubt that we live in uncertain times for the organ, I remain optimistic about the future. I want to find a place that will support my continuing research on secularism and the organ, but no matter where life takes me, I will share my love for the organ through teaching, research, and concertizing. I am and will always be on the lookout for ways to keep the organ exciting and relevant.

Website: alexandermeszler.com.

Collin Miller

Collin Miller is a native of Lafayette, Louisiana, and is a junior organ performance major at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music where he is a student of Janette Fishell. He began playing piano at the age of five, receiving initial training from Rosa Lynne Miller and then studying with Susanna Garcia. In his freshman year of high school, Collin began taking organ lessons with Tom Neil and has since held church positions as pianist and organist at Northwood Methodist Church and the Episcopal Church of the Ascension in Lafayette. He was the winner of the 2017 American Guild of Organists Southwest Regional Competition for Young Organists and is a recipient of the Barbara and David Jacobs Scholarship.

An interesting fact: My primary interest outside of music is film, particularly the work of Béla Tarr, Federico Fellini, and the films of the French New Wave.

Proudest achievement: I am most proud of a few performances of lesser-known music I have given, including programming the Sonata on the 94th Psalm of Julius Reubke alongside the composer’s other more underplayed masterpiece, the Piano Sonata in B-flat Minor, as well as more recently performing the “Toccata” from the Second Organ Symphony of Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji, one of the most technically demanding sections of this massive work.

Career aspirations and goals: I aspire to become an organ professor at a university while continuing to advocate for and perform some of the neglected works of the repertoire, including eventually the three organ symphonies of Sorabji.

Ryan Mueller

Ryan Mueller holds a lifelong fascination of music, history, and all things mechanically inclined. A native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, he credits the region’s landscape of instruments as inspiration for his love of pipe organs. Ryan began piano studies in third grade with Susan Eichstadt and began organ as a freshmen in high school with John Reim. Frequently called upon as a recitalist, lecturer, and writer, he recently founded Cream City Preservation, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to the advocacy of historic instruments, buildings, and artifacts. Ryan has served in various local American Guild of Organists and American Theatre Organ Society chapters and is also an active member of the Organ Historical Society, AGO’s Young Organist division, Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, and National Trust for Historic Preservation. He was a recipient of an OHS E. Power Biggs Fellowship in 2014 and was a scholar at the 2017 American Institute of Organbuilders convention. Ryan currently resides in Ogden, Iowa, working for Dobson Pipe Organ Builders Ltd., of Lake City, Iowa. While he takes part in a wide variety of service work and shop activities, Ryan’s primary responsibilities at Dobson revolve around the tonal department. Outside of the organ scene, he thoroughly enjoys restoring classic cars, photography, cycling, and spending time with his fiancée Emily, to whom he will be married this June.

An interesting fact: One thing not too many people know about me is that I have a real fascination of fire trucks. (I was one of those little boys who wanted to be a firefighter when I grew up.) Growing up, we lived right across the street from a fire station, and so till this day I am usually able to identify, by the sound of the siren, whether it is a ladder truck, engine, ambulance, or police car, etc., coming down the street.

Proudest achievement: Being a part of our new instrument at Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue is perhaps one of my bigger career accomplishments. Even though the project conceptualized many years before I began at Dobson, I was fortunate to be a part of the in-shop work, installation, and on-site voicing. Being but a small part of the team that brought Opus 93 to life and spending many months in Manhattan was a life changing experience. To me, there is no greater satisfaction than knowing that the fruits of your labor are going to stand, be used, and be heard by generations of people from around the world to the glory of God.

Career goals and aspirations: Though I am currently content with where I am at in my career, someday I would like to be the tonal director of a large firm and perhaps own my own company. Outside of career-oriented goals, I currently have two books in the works which I am hoping to complete in the next year or two.

Kevin Neel

Kevin Neel enjoys a versatile career as organist, collaborative pianist, conductor, singer, and arts administrator. He has been heard at the organ in numerous venues including Symphony Hall, Old South Church, Emmanuel Church, Old West Church, all in Boston, Massachusetts, as well as in the southeast. In December 2016 he co-founded The Brookline Consort, a choral ensemble for which he serves as co-artistic director, baritone, and primary accompanist, a group whose mission is to tell stories through diverse, thoughtful programming performed at the highest level. As a singer, he has sung with the Marsh Chapel Choir, Emmanuel Music, Cantata Singers, and VOICES 21C. He is organist and chapel choir director at Emmanuel Church, Boston, and serves as executive director for Coro Allegro and organist for Saint Clement Eucharistic Shrine. He holds degrees from Boston University in choral conducting and Indiana University in organ performance and is originally from the Charlotte, North Carolina, area.

An interesting fact: I trained in classical ballet.

Proudest achievement: Co-founding my own choral ensemble and serving as a singer, pianist, organist, and administrator for the ensemble.

Career aspirations and goals: I am excited to be able to work at the intersection of the choral and the organ worlds, both in and out of sacred music. I aspire to use my skills at the organ and as a choral musician to further the collaborative approach to music making. I’m drawn to collegiate music making, especially in university chapels, as it represents the intersection of the highest caliber music with inspired preaching and collegial youthfulness. I’m looking forward to an upcoming concert in October 2019 where I’m performing Duruflé’s Requiem (organ-only) and Kodaly’s Missa Brevis. And later that month, turning 30!

Website: www.kevinwneel.com.

Jessica Park

Jessica Park is a native of Saint Paul, Minnesota, and is the chapel organist and assistant liturgical musician at the Chapel of Saint Thomas Aquinas of the University of Saint Thomas, Saint Paul, Minnesota, where she is the principal musician of the chapel and director of the Schola Cantorum. She received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in organ performance from the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, where she studied with Dean Billmeyer. Jessica received the Master of Music degree in Historical Performance and Bachelor of Music degree in Organ Performance at Oberlin Conservatory of Music, Oberlin, Ohio, where she studied organ with James David Christie, Jonathan Moyer, Olivier Latry, and Marie-Louise Langlais, and harpsichord and continuo with Webb Wiggins. She received first prize at the 2013 American Guild of Organists/Quimby Competition for Young Organists (Region VI) and performed as a “Rising Star” at the 2014 American Guild of Organists national convention in Boston, Massachusetts. She was the featured organist for the inaugural 2014 Twin Cities Early Music Festival and was also a performer at the 2017 Organ Historical Society Convention held in Minneapolis. Her performances have been broadcast on American Public Media’s Pipedreams.

An interesting fact: I run my own photography business as a specialist in portrait photography, and I like to paint on canvases and hang them around my place. I have not mastered the Bob Ross style yet, but I hope I can someday.

Proudest achievement: I am proud of my master’s degree harpsichord recital in 2014. I loved the music I was playing, and I remember being fully focused and enjoying the music. After the recital, I listened to the recording and was actually very pleased with my playing (which is rare)! It really was one of my happiest moments as a student, and I still love the harpsichord.

Career aspirations and goals: I would like to continue performing as a recitalist, playing in the church, and in the future, I would like to teach organ and harpsichord.

Jordan Prescott

Heralded by The Baltimore Sun as a “rising organ star,” Jordan Prescott has established himself as one of the leading organists, church musicians, and directors of his generation. A native of Greenville, North Carolina, Jordan holds the Bachelor of Music degree in organ and sacred music from East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina. While at East Carolina, Jordan spent two years as organ scholar of Duke University Chapel in Durham, North Carolina. He is now pursuing a Master of Music degree in organ performance at the Peabody Conservatory where he studies with John Walker. Jordan formerly studied with Andrew Scanlon and Christopher Jacobson. In 2018, Jordan won first prize in the 16th International Organ Competition at West Chester University. He was a 2015 E. Power Biggs Fellow with the Organ Historical Society and currently serves as the Mid-Atlantic Chair for the American Guild of Organists Young Organists. Jordan has research set for future publication in The American Organist, and his performances have been featured on WBJC radio. Jordan is in his seventh season as associate musical director of The Lost Colony, America’s longest-running outdoor drama. Under his direction, The Lost Colony Choir has risen to critical acclaim and was featured as part of the Sing Across America campaign honoring the centennial of the National Parks Service.

An interesting fact: I am a distance runner and currently training for the Baltimore Marathon.

Proudest achievement: I am proudest of the collegial relationships that I have with other organists and my colleagues in the broader music profession and grateful for the network of support and collaboration that we have created.

Career aspirations and goals: I hope to follow in the footsteps of my teachers in developing a career that includes church music, teaching, and performing—in that order. Church music allows me to actively practice my faith and glorify God in thanksgiving for the gifts he has given me as well as enhance the spiritual and liturgical lives of the parishioners I am called to serve. Through teaching I will pass on the knowledge, passion, and kindness given to me by the mentors in my own life. Lastly, performing affords me the opportunity to share the music that I connect with and to do my part in the preservation of the incredible repertoire to which we have all been entrusted.

Website: www.jordanprescott.com.

Alexandria Smith

Alexandria Smith is a pipe organ technician currently employed at John-Paul Buzard Pipe Organ Builders. She has passionately trained as a musician since a young age, beginning with piano before starting oboe. Her journey as an instrument technician began while she was a freshman in college.

In spring 2017 through winter 2018, Alexandria studied organ with Joby Bell and was awarded the Wallace Organ Scholarship. Alexandria received the E. Power Biggs Fellowship of the Organ Historical Society in 2018, deepening her love of historic organs. She will graduate from Appalachian State University with a Bachelors in Music Industry degree: merchandising and manufacturing, with a minor in general business in May 2019. Alexandria spent two summers as an intern at Buzard before beginning full-time work in January 2019. She finds maintaining instruments and keeping the builders’ original style as alive as possible extremely rewarding. Her work lies mostly in late nineteenth- and twentieth-century organs.

An interesting fact: My primary instrument in college was oboe, English horn, and Baroque oboe.

Proudest achievement: Joining the service department at Buzard Organs. It is a well-rounded team, and everyone has so much knowledge to share and pass on, and I get to work on so many rewarding projects.

Career aspirations and goals: To manage a pipe organ company and to continue to grow my knowledge as much as possible on the instrument.

Emily Solomon

Emily Solomon is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in sacred music from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Her prior degrees include dual Master of Music degrees in early keyboard instruments and sacred music from the University of Michigan and a Master of Arts in music research from Western Michigan University with a thesis on Johann Walter’s Geistliches Gesangbüchlein. Emily is the executive director for the Academy of Early Music in Ann Arbor and cantor of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church of Detroit, Michigan. She is also a continuing visiting artist in harpsichord at Western Michigan University. In May 2018, Emily was invited to perform on the Nordic Historical Keyboard Festival in Kuopio, Finland. She toured Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic as the organist for the Concordia University Ann Arbor choir in May 2017. A proud Michigan native, Emily is a Certified Tourism Ambassador™ for Washtenaw County and serves on the board of the Soo Locks Visitors Association in the Upper Peninsula.

An interesting fact: I love Great Lakes freighters! I’m frequently involved with maritime activity in the Upper Peninsula and have been a long-time member of the American Society for Marine Artists.

Proudest achievement: When I began organ lessons at the age of 19, I had no idea that I would go on to earn advanced degrees in this field. I’m both proud of and humbled by what I have been able to accomplish in the last nine years.

Career aspirations and goals: I hope to continue my work in church music, performing arts management, and early music while also becoming an effective and influential pedagogue.

Website: www.emilysolomon.com.

Mitchell Stecker

Mitchell Stecker is director of chapel music and carillonneur at The Citadel, Charleston, South Carolina. He is an alumnus of the University of Florida (Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Arts in linguistics, 2014), studying principally with Laura Ellis. In 2015, Mitchell spent six months at the Royal Carillon School (Mechelen, Belgium) before returning to UF to pursue the Master of Music (musicology), which he will receive in May of this year. Prior to his current role, Mitchell served as carillon fellow to Geert D’hollander at Bok Tower Gardens, Lake Wales, Florida, from 2017 to 2018.

Mitchell is also an active composer, with titles published by the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America and American Carillon Musical Editions, and with several commissions in progress. His scholarly interests include shape-note music, campanological topics, and the music of Peter Benoit and the Flemish Romantic. He is an active member of the GCNA, serving as the guild’s corresponding secretary since 2017; in 2016, he was awarded the guild’s Barnes Scholarship to study Roy Hamlin Johnson’s monumental Carillon Book for the Liturgical Year and its relation to Bach’s Orgelbüchlein. In his free time, Mitchell is an avid fasola singer, enjoys studying languages, and is passionate about good food and drink.

An interesting fact: In 2011, I took part in the “largest carillon recital in history.” Designed to commemorate the seventy-fifth congress of the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America, a novelty concert program was presented in which seventy-five individual performers all shared an hour-long recital program.

Proudest achievement: As a freshman at the University of Florida, I originally declared a major in engineering, with no intention of studying music. I had the occasion to re-evaluate my purpose and realized that my calling was elsewhere. The simple fact of being a church musician is a great source of pride for me. I find the work of leading God’s people in praise to be tremendously fulfilling and am proud that such a significant responsibility falls to me.

Career aspirations and goals: I hope to serve as a church musician in whatever capacity I am best suited for, for as long as I can. Additionally, I aspire to continue to grow as a scholar and eventually seek a doctoral degree in musicology. Avocationally, I am in the midst of compiling several new compilations of fasola music and hope to see these offerings find a place within the shape-note singing community.

Grant Wareham

A Dayton, Ohio, native, Grant Wareham began organ studies with Jerry Taylor in 2007. He earned his Bachelor of Music degree at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, Houston, Texas, where he studied with Ken Cowan, graduating cum laude and with distinction in research and creative work. While at Rice, Grant served as Moseley Memorial Organ Scholar and assistant organist at Saint Thomas Episcopal Church, Houston, and as associate organist at Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church, Houston, where he worked with music director Brady Knapp and artist-in-residence and organist Ken Cowan.

Winner of both the First and Audience prizes at the 2017 Albert Schweitzer Organ Competition in Hartford, Connecticut, Grant was also a featured performer at the 62nd annual convention of the Organ Historical Society in Saint Paul, Minnesota. This June, he will compete in the 2019 Longwood International Organ Competition at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.

Grant is currently pursuing his Master of Music degree at the Yale University Institute of Sacred Music and School of Music, New Haven, Connecticut, where he studies organ with Thomas Murray. He also serves as organ scholar at Christ Church, New Haven, one of America’s renowned Anglo-Catholic parishes, where he works alongside choirmaster Nathaniel Adam and organist and artist-in-residence Thomas Murray.

An interesting fact: I am an avid distance runner and completed two half-marathons in 2018.

Proudest achievement: Winning the first and audience prizes at the 2017 Schweitzer Competition, then playing the Fauré Requiem three days later with the University of Saint Thomas Singers under the direction of Brady Knapp.

Career aspirations and goals: I firmly believe in a very strong future for the organ, and every organist who feels this way has a duty to train and nurture successive generations in
the art of organ playing. Therefore, I want to teach at the collegiate level to pass on the incredible legacies that all of my teachers have given to me. I greatly enjoy serving in churches as a source of professional and personal fulfillment and would love be employed at a church with a vibrant music tradition. I also love learning new instruments and hope to have an active performing career.