In my last post, “A leap of faith,” I wrote about the beginnings of our Annual Organ Concert series, and how it all started with the concert with Paul Jacobs in 2006. Since then we have hosted twelve more annual organ concerts of “rising stars” — you can see a list of the artists here. We in the Hawaii Chapter of the American Guild of Organists pride ourselves on “picking winners” and showing aloha to our guest organists. That means not only greeting them at the airport with a lei, providing a comfortable homestay and transportation to the concert venue for a guaranteed 15 hours of practice, and furnishing all their meals during their stay. We have also scheduled a radio interview with Gene Schiller on Hawaii Public Radio on Friday, March 15 at 9:10 am.

Beginning Thursday and for the next five days, I’ll be hosting organist Adam Pajan while he performs the first ever multi-island concert tour presented by the Hawaii Chapter American Guild of Organists. (I’m in charge of all his breakfasts!) Adam will be playing three recitals: Sunday, March 17 at Central Union Church, 2:00 pm; Thursday, March 21 at Christ Lutheran Church (Hilo), 7:00 pm; and Saturday, March 23 at St. John’s Episcopal Church (Kula, Maui) at 6:00 pm. His program will include works from Bach and Schumann to Gershwin, Smyth and Gjeilo.

First of all — how to pronounce his last name. As I understand it, it is pronounced “page-un.” He is Instructor of Organ and Shop Technician at the University of Oklahoma’s American Organ Institute, where he teaches students in organ performance, organ technology, and church music. I can’t tell you how unusual this is: to be an organist as well as to know “what’s underneath the hood” — an organ technician. It means that not only can he play — he can also tune the organ himself, as well as make repairs! Check it out in this video which was made at the Longwood Gardens International Organ Competition in 2013. Adam received the Firmin Swinnen Second Prize.

In the video he is shown directing his church choir, and then he gives you a brief tour in an organbuilder’s workshop. I do highly recommend that you watch the video—you’ll find it fascinating!

Adam received his DMA in 2014 under John Schwandt following studies at Furman University and Yale University, earning the BM and MM degrees under the tutelage of Charles Tompkins, Martin Jean, and Thomas Murray respectively. His performing career has taken him across the United States and to Germany multiple times, playing in the cathedrals of Mainz, Magdeburg, Fulda, and Altenberg and other historical churches; and to England at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, and the Cathedrals of Wells and Bristol.

In addition to the Longwood Gardens competition, Adam has been recognized as the first prize recipient in three national competitions (Albert Schweitzer, Arthur Poister, and Ruth and Clarence Mader). He was named one of The Diapason’s “20 Under 30” of 2016, an award established to acknowledge individuals who are “setting the pace for the future of the pipe organ, harpsichord, carillon, and church music.” His playing has been heard at conventions of the American Institute of Organbuilders, Organ Historical Society, American Guild of Organists, American Liszt Society, and multiple times on American Public Media’s Pipedreams. An enthusiastic church musician, he serves as Organist and Choir Director at St. Mark the Evangelist in Norman, Oklahoma, Artistic Director and Conductor of the Oklahoma Master Chorale, and is a former Dean of the Southern Plains Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.

Last weekend was a “triple-header” for me, in that I attended three musical events beginning with Fiddler on the Roof, a high school musical production at the Hawaii Theatre by the students of Iolani School. The Thursday night performance was especially for retired teachers. I can’t tell you how impressed I was with the production, the singing, and especially all the dance routines by these talented students. Sitting in my row were Cindy Scheinert and Nohea Chang, two Iolani School teachers who were instrumental in my former student, young Joey Fala‘s development. Cindy was Joey’s fifth grade homeroom teacher who connected the two of us, and told me about how Joey’s parents were going crazy with his desire to play the organ.

I saw lots of familiar faces at Saturday night’s Early Music Hawaii concert, “Intimate Voices,” with the sackbut, cornetto, violin, organ and theorbo ensemble “¡Sacabuche!”— the old Spanish word for “sackbut.” I was happy to hear our local musicians (Scott Fikse, Georgine Stark and Jieun Kim Newland) feel so much at home with the ¡Sacabuche! regulars: Lawrence Wiliford, tenor; Martha Perry, Baroque violin; Etienne Asselin, cornetto; Maximilien Brisson, sackbut; Linda Pearse, bass sackbut; and Daniel Zuluaga, theorbo. They were all true virtuosi and masters of their instruments! After the concert, we moved the continuo organ into position near the bigger Beckerath for the rehearsal of our Bach concerto duet concert, tentatively set for January 2020.

Finally, at Sunday’s Hawaii Symphony Orchestra concert, we heard a fabulous performance of pianist Ran Dang play Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2, in addition to Brahms’ first symphony, conducted by former Honolulu Symphony timpanist Stuart Chafetz. I remember fondly watching Stu play the timpani with such joy and elation years ago. He said in the pre-concert conversation that he “traded two sticks for one” and learned to play percussion at age five by banging two sticks against shoeboxes!