For a life of community service, Robert Scoggin was honored by the Rochester, Minnesota Mayo Clinic with their 10-year service award in the Mayo Volunteer program. Also, at the Rochester Civic Center, he was the recipient of the Rochester Mayor’s “Medal of Honor,” presented by Jeff Daehn, Mayo Carillonneur, for “Artistic and Cultural Achievement” in Rochester for 47 years.
Ruth Hines Gardner died on June 14, 2003. Born on December 27, 1928, Ruth Gardner was a pioneer. By today’s standards she would be one of many great women who realize their vocations as minister of music. However, in post-war America as Rosie the Riveter went back to the household, few female organists/church musicians were relegated to high-profile positions and leadership. In spite of these odds, Ruth triumphed throughout her life as a Christian and a church musician.
Ruth was a young piano and organ student in Wilmington, Delaware, where she was a parishioner of the Cathedral Church of St. John. She later attended the Curtis Institute on scholarship in 1946. She was the only woman in a class of organists that included such names as David Craighead, Donald McDonald, and George Markey, all of whom studied with the legendary Alexander McCurdy. While at Curtis Institute, Ruth encountered the young Gian Carlo Menotti as a theory professor and even dated classmate and upcoming conductor Thomas Schippers. There are many stories that circulate about Ruth being the only female presence in the organ studio at Curtis. These times were not especially kind to women preparing to work in the church.
Ruth was noted for her ability to conduct and play. She was an expert organist in the great oratorio style. She learned this amazing skill to accompany the Mozart and Brahms Requiems as well as the B Minor Mass at McCurdy’s elbow when she was the assistant to Dr. McCurdy. After Curtis, Ruth obtained her first job in rural Virginia at a Baptist church. Marriage and a family called her back to Delaware in the early 1950s and claimed most of her attention until the early 1970s, when she entered church work again in Main Line Philadelphia and finally at Immanuel on the Green, New Castle. Ruth Gardner was no “Miss Suzie” as her rector, The Rev. Edward Godden would describe. Ruth was always looking forward yet was mindful of the tradition of the Church. Her organ recital programs always embraced Bach and contemporaries such as Messiaen and Leighton, and she frequently played from memory. When a terrible fire destroyed Immanuel on the Green in 1982, Ruth engineered the choice of Ned Rorem as composer of Immanuel’s anthem of rededication. Subsequent musical commissions included Gerre Hancock and Jack Burnam.
I met Ruth in the mid 1990s as I inherited her mantle at Immanuel Church. I could not have imagined a gentler or kinder gift. Immanuel Church couldn’t have been more prepared: a wonderful, expressive organ, a delightful historic building, a marvelous rector and a congregation and choir that could sing Anglican Chant from the Coverdale Psalter. As I worked with Ruth on the King’s College Training Course of the RSCM, I learned more important lessons: a dedication to the art and craft of church music and a dedication to the living God. A graduate of Education for Ministry (EFM), Ruth explored her faith in this ever-changing world.
Ruth was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in January 2003. After a short bout with chemotherapy, Ruth opted not to pursue treatment. In June she died while being taken care of by her family and close friends at Immanuel on the Green in New Castle after 74 years of faithful service to God, the Church, her family & friends, and her vocation.
—Jeffery Johnson
Grace Church, New York
Dean Robinson died on January 31 at the age of 78 in Rochester, Minnesota. He was carillonneur of the Rochester Carillon since 1958, and only the second carillonneur to hold that post in 75 years. Born on July 16, 1925 in Mazeppa, Minnesota, he graduated from Mazeppa High School before serving in the U.S. Navy. He then earned a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin Conservatory, Oberlin, Ohio, and a master of music degree from MacPhail College of Music in Minneapolis. He served as minister of music at Montgomery Baptist Church, Montgomery, Alabama, before returning to Mazeppa where he opened his own studio, later moving it to Rochester. He was appointed carillonneur of the Rochester Carillon in 1958 and became a member of the Guild of Carillonneurs of North America in 1961. He was a founding member of the Southeast Minnesota AGO chapter, and was an active member of the United Methodist Church in Mazeppa, where he played the organ for over 50 years. His recitals took him throughout the United States and Canada. A memorial service took place on February 11 at Calvary Episcopal Church, Rochester, with organists Robert Scoggin and Brian Williams, carillonneurs Jeffrey Daehn, Jeanine Hadley, and Bruce Rohde, the Calvary Motet Choir, and two handbell ringers.
The Rev. Dr. Victor Ira Zuck of Hagerstown, Maryland, died January 6 at the Homewood Retirement Center in Williamsport, Maryland. He was 95. Born in Hagerstown, January 29, 1908, he attended Blue Ridge College, New Windsor, Maryland. For a number of years, he was employed by M.P. Möller Organ Co. of Hagerstown, leaving during the Great Depression to perfect the second commercially successful electronic organ, known as The Orgatron, that was built and distributed by The Everett Piano Co., South Haven, Michigan. During World War II, manufacturing and patent rights were leased to the Rudolph Wurlitzer Co., North Tonawanda, New York, and when they expired in 1952, Mr. Zuck became regional manager and sales representative for M.P. Möller in Hagerstown. He was also president of Victor I. Zuck, Pipe Organs, Pittsburgh.
In his late 60s, he continued his studies for the priesthood at Trinity School for Ministry, and after ordination, served a number of churches in the Diocese of Pittsburgh. One of his great achievements while in Pittsburgh was the raising of money for the restoration of the Mother Church in the Diocese of Pittsburgh, dating from 1765, for which he received a prodigious award from The Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation. During a sabbatical in 1982–83, he attended Trinity Theological Seminary, graduating in 1984 as a doctor of ministry, summa cum laude. In September 1988, he returned to his hometown to enjoy partial retirement and became a member of the Collegium of Pastoral Associates at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Hagerstown. He was a member of the American Guild of Organists, the Organ Historical Society, the American Theater Organ Society and many other organizations, and wrote many articles for miscellaneous publications. Dr. Zuck made seven trips to Europe, Asia and the Middle East from 1956 to 1976. He is survived by his wife, the former Nathalie Peterson of New York City, one daughter, four grandsons, and five great-grandchildren.
James "Bud" Slater will retire from his position
as Carillonneur of the Metropolitan United Church in Toronto, Ontario. With his
final Sunday on the job on March 28, Slater will mark the conclusion of his
35th year as carillonneur of the church. His association with the instrument
actually commenced in late 1954, and his first official recital was played
before the Sunday evening service May 22, 1955 under the watchful eye of his
tutor, Stanley James. Slater was appointed Assistant Carillonneur in 1959. During his tenure at Metropolitan, he had temporary appointments at other Ontario carillon locations, i.e., in Toronto at Exhibition Place and the University of Toronto, as well as Niagara Falls. He appeared frequently as guest carillonneur at the towers in Simcoe, Hamilton, and Ottawa, as well as Montréal, Que., and Victoria, B.C.
Slater became a student member of the Guild of Carillonneurs
in North America in 1955 and qualified as a carillonneur member in 1957 upon
passing an exam at the Guild's congress in Cleveland, Ohio. From 1969 to 1971
Slater served as GCNA president and subsequently, he and his wife, Cecilia,
hosted the Guild's Toronto Congress in 1972. James Slater is the father of
Gordon Slater who since 1977 has served as Dominion Carillonneur at the Peace
Tower Carillon in the Houses of Parliament in Ottawa.
On the eve of his 70th birthday in January, 1997, Bud cites
stairclimbing, cranky knees and reluctant elbows as his reasons for retirement.
The Department of Music and Dance and Professor of Music
Albert Gerken have announced that the 1997 Congress of the Guild of
Carillonneurs in North America will be held at the University of Kansas, June
4-7. Major presenters will include Bill De Turk, George Gregory, Mark Holmberg,
Associate Professor of Music Theory at KU, Karel Keldermans, Roy Hamlin
Johnson, Brian Swager, and Edward Williams, Associate Dean of the Graduate
School of Penn State.
With ca. 28,000 students, the University of Kansas is in
Lawrence, a community of ca. 70,000. Directly off Interstate 70, Lawrence is
located about 250 miles from the geographical center of the U.S.A. The
picturesque campus of the University of Kansas is situated atop Mount Oread
overlooking the Kaw River valley to the north and the Wakarusa valley to the
south. Not flat as most foreigners picture Kansas, there will be some climbing
to do to get to various places. The Campanile is central to the campus
overlooking the football stadium and Kansas river valley. It was provided by
alumni and friends of the University as a memorial to the 276 KU students and
faculty who died in World War II.
Unquestionably the most prominent and central feature of the
campus, the 120-foot tall World War II memorial tower houses a 41/2-octave
carillon, cast in 1950 by the John Taylor Foundry. Transposing down a half
step, the 53 bells range in weight from 13,490 lbs. to 12 lbs. The instrument,
which was dedicated in May, 1951, with Anton Brees playing the dedicatory
recitals, was rededicated on April 26, 1996, following a complete renovation by
the I.T. Verdin Company with new consoles supplied by Meeks, Watson &
Company. The new radial action is void of any counter weights and assisted only
by coil springs. The sound is full and resonant but light in the top register,
typical of Taylor bells of that vintage.
Major funding for the renovation was provided by Honorary
members of The GCNA, and Keith and Joan Bunnel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Both were born and raised in Holmboldt, Kansas, not far from Lawrence, and
Keith Bunnel attended the University of Kansas, graduating in 1946. He was
president of his class and served on the World War II committee that selected
the Campanile and carillon as the memorial project to honor those who were
killed in battle.
The importance of the University of Kansas carillon has been
significant in that it has been at the center of a new genre of carillon
composition since the 1950s. Indeed, until the mid 1950s, very little music of
any significance had been written for the carillon. It was the likes of Ronald
Barnes, the first carillonneur at the University of Kansas, Roy Hamlin Johnson,
formerly of the KU piano faculty, John Pozdro, Professor Emeritus of
Composition and Music Theory at the University, and Gary White, one of Pozdro's
former graduate students in composition, who were the central figures
responsible for creating this wealth of marvelous and exciting new music. Their
works brought about recognition for the carillon as an instrument worthy of
recital status.
Because of the significance of their tremendous contribution
to the art form, many of their works will be featured in recitals during the
congress. It will be a meaningful experience to hear many of these works that
were written for this instrument or carillons of similar timbre. Two new
carillon compositions by Roy Hamlin Johnson and John Pozdro, commissioned by
the KU Department of Music and Dance and The GCNA respectively, will be
premiered at the congress.
Tours of the Reuter Organ Company will be made available to
participants and the beautiful new Wolff concert organ in the recently
completed Bales Recital Hall will be demonstrated and played. This is a
one-of-a-kind instrument you must see and hear.
Registration information is available from congress host
Albert Gerken, Department of Music and Dance, Murphy Hall, The University of
Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045.
Beginning last October, new bells rang out up and down the
Avenue of the Arts (Broad Street) in Philadelphia. Thirty-nine Eijsbouts bells
were installed, each on top of a light post, weighing from 40 to 300 pounds.
The creator, Robert Coburn, a sound artist and composer from California,
describes the "worlds longest horizontal carillon" as a half-mile
long piano with the capability of playing pre-programmed or live music on an
electronic ivory keyboard which will be located in the basement of the Academy
of Music.
In observance of the 68th anniversary of The Rochester
Carillon, two special performances were given. Dean Robinson's program on
September 16 included favorite songs of the Mayo brothers. David Johnson of St.
Paul, MN, was the guest recitalist on September 17. The Rochester Carillon was
dedicated on September 17, 1928, and is located in the Mayo Clinic in
Rochester, Minnesota.
David McCain sends word of a new 49-bell carillon at the
First Baptist Church on the Square in LaGrange, Georgia, replete with
"ninety-two electrical connections from the bells to the keyboard and
computer."
In response to a request from Unesco for a program
commemorating the tenth anniversary of the accident at Chernobyl, carillonneurs
Charles Semovich and Pieter Blonk gave a recital at the Albany City Hall in
Albany, New York, on April 26, 1996. Works performed included Lagrima by
Francisco Tárrega, Bells of Hell by Theophil Rusterholz, and Larence
Curry's Prelude on "Dies Irae." Both Charles and Pieter were shown
playing the Albany carillon on the Channel 13 news broadcast.
The fourth annual Keyboard Explorations junior high school
summer music camp was hosted by the Iowa State University Music Department from
June 17-22, 1996. Participants had the opportunity to learn about various kinds
of keyboard instruments and had hands-on experiences in playing them. Eight
participants studied carillon under ISU University Carillonneur Tin-shi Tam.
Two carillon concerts were performed by students towards the end of the week.
After over a decade of silence, inactivity, and exposure to
the elements, the 23-bell carillon located on the property of Schulmerich Carillons, Inc. in Sellersville, Pennsylvania, rang again in a recital given by Lisa Lonie (Trinity Church, Holland, PA) on September 21. Approximately 250 listeners attended the recital which marked the end of a five-day sales and service conference. The carillon, cast in 1928 by Gillett and Johnston, was moved to its present location in 1952 from Belmont College in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1979, Frank Law, carillonneur at Valley Forge, began a nightly summer recital series in Sellersville which continued for six years.
The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America has awarded
Second Prize to two composers in its 1996 Carillon Composition Competition. (No
First Prize was awarded.) The winning compositions were Nocturne
style='font-style:normal'> by Ennis Fruhauf, of Santa Barbara, California (USA)
and Prelude con Fughetta by
Marcel Siebers, of Cuyk, The Netherlands. Both compositions were given their
première performance by Todd Fair, of Amsterdam (Netherlands), at the
congress of the GCNA on June 4, 1996 at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church,
Cohasset, Massachusetts. Both composers received a cash prize, and both pieces
will be published by the guild in the near future. Another competition is
planned for January of 1998.
A new carillon composition, Winter Song
style='font-style:normal'>, by Roy Hamlin Johnson, was given its
première performance by John Gouwens on June 26, 1996 on the carillon of
the Town Hall in Norwood, Massachusetts, at the congress of the Guild of
Carillonneurs in North America. The new piece was commissioned by the Johan
Franco Composition Committee of the GCNA and is published by the guild. Many of
Dr. Johnson's earlier compositions are staples of the repertory of
carillonneurs throughout North America, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.
This is the sixth carillon composition to the commissioned by the GCNA.
Brian Swager is carillon editor of THE DIAPASON.
In the last few weeks of his papacy, His Holiness Pope John Paul II conferred on Adrian Patrick Gebruers the very special honor of Knight of the Order of St. Gregory the Great, in recognition of outstanding service. The scroll was formally presented by Most Rev. Dr. John Magee, Bishop of Cloyne, at a ceremony in St. Colman’s Cathedral, Cobh, Ireland, on Sunday May 29, Feast of Corpus Christi. Gebruers’ association with church music began at the tender age of seven as a boy soprano in the Cathedral Choir. In 1970, he succeeded his late father Staf (himself the recipient of the Papal Cross of Honour “Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice”) as organist, choirmaster and carillonneur. In addition to being director of music at St. Colman’s, he is also lecturer in carillon studies at the music department of University College Cork.
In 1998, he was elected president of the World Carillon Federation and is also honorary president emeritus of the British Carillon Society and a founder Vice-President of Eurocarillon. He is a member of the Guild of Carillonneurs of North America.
On Thursday, March 31, 2005, carillonneur Janet Dundore passed away at the age of 84. During her funeral service, Janet’s family spoke eloquently about her life, comparing it to the dynamics of a carillon bell, that once struck, the sound cannot be dampened. Janet’s association with the carillon—its music, programming, audience, organization—all reflected her unswerving, undampened desire to bring music to people’s lives.
Janet was internationally recognized as a proponent of carillon. She served as president of the Guild of Carillonneurs of North America during some turbulent years. To encourage members to stop arguing, she handed out Tootsie Rolls to keep their jaws “occupied.” In recognition of her lifelong contributions to the art of the carillon, the GCNA presented her with Honorary Membership and the Certificate of Distinguished Service. In addition, The University of California, Berkeley, awarded her the Berkeley Medal, the university’s highest and most prestigious award, in recognition of her efforts which had “manifestly benefited the public well beyond the demands of tradition, rank, or direct service to the University.” St. Thomas’ Church, Whitemarsh, bestowed the title of Carillonneur Emerita on Janet upon her retirement in 1999 following 26 years of service to the church.
Janet was the first carillonneur at St. Thomas’ Church, Whitemarsh, Pennsylvania. Besides her position at St. Thomas’, Janet also served as carillonneur at Trinity United Church of Christ. When Trinity moved from North Philadelphia to its present location in Bucks County, she was adamant that the parish not leave their bells behind. To this day, the open tower, which showcases all 49 carillon bells of Trinity, is a Bucks County landmark and a testament to Janet’s vision that bells can be heard and seen.
For over 30 years Janet was carillonneur of the Miraculous Medal Shrine in Germantown, Philadelphia, one of the oldest carillons in the United States. For decades, Janet played Monday night novena services at the Shrine, bringing music not only to the faithful, but to an entire neighborhood.
Janet studied carillon with Frank Law of Valley Forge and Leen ’t Hart at the Dutch Carillon School in Amersfoort, The Netherlands. She performed carillon recitals throughout the Americas and Europe. Together with her husband, Dwight, Janet traveled the world in search of carillons and their players. She was a respected scholar, teacher, and authority on audience development. Her no-nonsense approach to programming still reverberates in our ears: “Always end a recital with something familiar so the audience knows when to clap!” She took great pride in the Tuesday evening audiences gathered in the grove at St. Thomas’ Church to listen to the carillon.
Perhaps Janet’s legacy with carillon bells can be summed up with a simple analogy: She pointed towards the sky and showed us how to fill it with music.
John Courter, organist and carillonneur at Berea College and retired professor of music, died June 21, at the age of 68. Courter joined the Berea College faculty in 1971. After retiring from teaching in 2007, he continued to serve as college organist and carillonneur. In addition, he was organist at Union Church and had been a long-time contributor to the music of St. Clare Catholic Church, both in Berea.
A native of Lansing, Michigan, Courter earned a bachelor’s degree in choral music education from Michigan State University in 1962 and a master of music degree in organ in 1966 from the University of Michigan. He had also studied at the North German Organ Academy and held diplomas from the Netherlands Carillon School.
During his 39 years at Berea, Courter contributed to the musical life of the campus and larger community. He taught organ, piano, chime, and carillon performance, church music, and music theory, and was a former director of the Harmonia Society. A well-known organist in the region, he was dean of the Lexington AGO chapter. He was involved in the renovation of the Holtkamp pipe organ in Gray Auditorium at Berea and the recent restoration of the 10-bell chime in Phelps Stokes Chapel. He was the driving force behind Berea’s 56-bell carillon, the largest in the state of Kentucky.
In 1995 Courter received Berea College’s Seabury Award for Excellence in Teaching, and in 2006 received the Elizabeth Perry Miles Award for Community Service for his numerous contributions to the campus and community as a musician and for volunteer service with Madison County’s public radio station. In 1993, he was awarded the Berkeley Medal for Distinguished Service to the Carillon as a performer and composer. He was a Fellow of the American Guild of Organists and a member of the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America.
Courter won several international prizes for his carillon compositions, and his works have been published in Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States. He has written works commissioned by the Palace of Government in Barcelona, the cities of Utrecht, Kampen, and Almelo (the Netherlands), the Arts Council of Ireland, the University of Michigan, and Grand Valley State University.
In 2005, Courter established the Summer Carillon Concert Series at Berea College, which continues to bring international carillonneurs to Berea’s campus. In his will, Courter provided for the ongoing maintenance of Berea’s carillon, which will be dedicated as the John Courter Carillon during the college’s homecoming this fall.
John Courter is survived by two brothers, two sisters, seven nieces and nephews, nineteen great-nieces and nephews, and special friend and caregiver at the end of his life, Rev. Dr. Theresa Scherf. A memorial service took place June 24 at Union Church in Berea. There will be a special memorial concert later this year.
David Sanger, concert organist, teacher, and past president of the Royal College of Organists, was found dead on May 28. Born in London, Sanger was educated at Eltham College and the Royal Academy of Music, and also studied privately with Susi Jeans, Marie-Claire Alain, and Anton Heiller. He became well known as an organ recitalist when he won first prize in two international competitions: St. Alban’s, England in 1969 and Kiel, Germany in 1972. He recorded over 20 CDs, including the complete organ works of César Franck at the Katarina Church in Stockholm for BIS, and Vierne’s six organ symphonies for Meridian. He acted as consultant on a number of organ projects, including the new Cavaillé-Coll-style instrument at Exeter College, Oxford, and new, restored, or rebuilt organ projects at Bromley Parish Church, Haileybury College, St. Cuthbert’s and Usher Hall in Edinburgh, Sheffield Cathedral, and Trinity Hall, Cambridge.
Sanger also composed music for organ, and for strings and choirs. He authored an organ method book in two volumes for beginners, entitled Play the Organ, which has become the most widely used in Britain in recent years. Together with Jon Laukvik he edited the organ works of Louis Vierne, comprising 13 volumes in a boxed set, published by Carus Verlag, Stuttgart. From 1980–89 David Sanger was professor of organ at the Royal Academy of Music in London, serving as chairman of the organ department from 1987–89. Between 1989–97 he was a consultant professor at the Royal Academy of Music.
Kenneth Vernon Turvey died March 4 in Huntsville, Alabama. He was 81. Born in Dayton, Ohio, his first organ studies were with Frank Michael, and during high school, with Parvin Titus at the University of Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, to which Turvey made a 50-mile bus trip each week for lessons, and where he completed bachelor’s and master’s degrees. After finishing his degrees in 1951, he served in the Army during the Korean War. In 1955, Turvey began a 50-year career as music director for the First United Methodist Church in Huntsville. He also pursued doctoral organ studies with Oswald Ragatz at Indiana University. Turvey served for 42 years as director of the Huntsville Community Chorus, and conductor of the Decatur Civic Chorus for 17 years. He also taught at Athens State University and the University of Alabama in Huntsville, and was a co-founder of the Huntsville AGO chapter. Kenneth Turvey is survived by his wife, Janet, five children, seven grandchildren, and a great-grandaughter.
Jerry P. Whitten, 82 years old, died February 7 in Memphis, Texas. Born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, he received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Oklahoma, studying with Mildred Andrews, and a master’s degree in sacred music from Union Theological Seminary in New York City, studying with Vernon de Tar. Whitten was employed by Tarpley Music Co. in Pampa, Texas, for 43 years, and served as organist-choirmaster at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Pampa for 15 years. Jerry Whitten is survived by his wife Nancy, four stepchildren, three step-grandchildren, three brothers, and two sisters.
