While I was in Europe a month ago, I was contacted about the organ music library of long-time Hawaii Chapter American Guild of Organists member, Donald Matsumori who died on May 17, 2019. His family was trying to clear his house and some people suggested that I might have students who could make use of the organ music. The large box has been sitting in my music room ever since I returned home.

Tonight I decided to finally look through the box and see what was there. I’m leaving for North Carolina tomorrow afternoon for Joey Fala’s wedding and had the brilliant idea that perhaps he would appreciate getting some free organ music.

As I looked through the stacks of music, I realized that Donald had inherited music from other people who had used to live in Hawaii and had either left or had died.

For example, there was a bunch of English organ music on which was stamped the name Lewis Rowell, who used to be a music professor at the University of Hawaii—I knew of him but did not know he was an organist! A quick Google search listed him as an emeritus professor, aged 85, at the Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana.

I also found organ music on which was written the name Katherine Knight. I remember seeing her name on the music mailing list years ago, with an address as the Waikiki Kapahulu Library. I had no idea she was an organist!

Here is her obituary which I found online: Katherine Anne Knight was born on May 15, 1928 in Sanford, North Carolina, United States. Daughter of Floyd LaFayette and Dorothy Noble (Ward) Knight. Bachelor of Fine Arts, Queens College, Charlotte, North Carolina, 1949. Postgraduate, Union Theological Seminary, 1951. Master of Science in Liberal Studies, University North Carolina, 1961. Teacher music, Sanford, North Carolina, 1949-1955. Admissions counselor Queens College, 1955-1959. Reference assistant Hawaii State Library, Honolulu, 1961-1968. Librarian Waikiki-Kapahulu Library, Honolulu, 1968-1985. Past president, board directors Waikiki Health Center, Honolulu, 1984. Deacon 1st Presbyterian Church, Honolulu. Died March 30, 2000 (aged 71).

I even found the “Suite Gothique” by Leon Boëllmann with the name of my long-time friend, Barbara Walz on it! She’s been Barbara Adler for over 40 years and lives in upstate New York. She probably forgot that she loaned the music to Donald Matsumori!

I myself have been the recipient of the organ libraries of maybe two dozen people who have either left Hawaii or died. But now since I already have a lot of the same music which I found in the box of Donald Matsumori’s music, I’m happy to pass it on to students and other organists. I’ll be bringing some of the Louis Vierne, César Franck and Olivier Messiaen music to Joey tomorrow and the rest of the contents of the box to our first meeting of the season for the Hawaii Chapter American Guild of Organists.

It feels good to recycle organ music!