Last night Central Union Church and the Hawaii Chapter American Guild of Organists honored Nyle Hallman on the occasion of her 90th birthday. Ten organists performed, including the birthday girl herself, who was rewarded with a sustained standing ovation. All three of her children were in attendance, plus Nyle’s sister and other family members who flew in for the occasion.
I couldn’t help but smile all during the singing of “Hymn Hallman,” the opening hymn sung to the tune LASST UNS ERFREUEN with a special text by Fritz Fritschel, commissioned ten years ago on Nyle’s 80th birthday. It is a complete curriculum vitae in five verses of Nyle’s life and career as an organist and harpist. Here is the text:
For nearly thirty years they played
Ecclesiastic music made,
Roy and Nyle
On this isle.
Their skills brought endless harmony
To Union’s faithful company.
With their choirs
All afire.
Roy and Nyle,
On this isle,
Brings a smile.
She sat at organs as a child
Pulling the stops while going wild
On the keyboard,
Like a surfboard.
Her feet and fingers fairly flew,
In major keys and minor, too.
On the keyboard
Like a surfboard,
Fairly sailing
Never failing.
E’er prevailing.
Once taught by Porter and by Sykes,
Coci, McCurdy and the likes
Worthy mentors
Known presenters
They taught her how to play her best,
Pipes, pistons, pedals and celeste.
Worthy mentor
Known presenter
Always giving
For the living
In thanksgiving.
Gave orchestra ephemeral flair,
With sounds of angels’ favorite air,
Fingers strumming,
Harp strings humming,
Her backseat prowess blessed the crowd,
With plucking sounds as on a cloud,
Here crescendo,
There glissando,
Now ritardo,
Soon allegro,
Ne’er pellegro.
Now for the notes as yet unplayed,
We raise our songs in accolade,
Let ‘er ring,
Let’s all sing.
Let music warm the hearts of all
New melodies the crowds enthrall,
Fancy fugues
Prim preludes
All the while,
Shades of Nyle,
All in style.
Margaret Lloyd, sub-dean and current organist of Central Union, recalled how ten years ago, the AGO proclaimed 2008 the year of the organ, and chapters were encouraged to celebrate the organ by giving concerts, especially featuring the organ with other instruments. That year, Nyle, along with Margaret Lloyd and symphony harpist, Connie Uejio (an organist in her own right) played a concert of organ solos and duets, in addition to solo harp music. Ten years ago, Margaret made an oblique reference about doing a similar concert for Nyle’s 90th—last night we did it!
After the rousing singing of the hymn (which was creatively and boldly played by Margaret), we three (myself, Jieun Kim Newland and Sachi P. Hirakouji) reprised our organ trio from last week’s Organists 1-2-3 concert for six hands by Vincenzo Panerai.
Jieun registered the four-manual Aeolian-Skinner organ for us with a minimum number of manual changes but with a maximum number of creative and inspired tonal colors, including the festival trumpets on the echo division and the 32′ Bombarde in the pedal. It was Jieun’s responsibility to hit the sequencer, my job to play the pedals, and Sachi turned the pages!
Next Karl Bachman played Max Drischner’s “Choral Fantasy on ‘Wake awake’ and Miki Yamamoto, a former student of mine, played Robert Hobby’s arrangement of “Amazing Grace.”
The first half ended with the fugue from “Toot Suite” by PDQ Bach, an organ duet performed expertly and humorously by my students, Sophia and Raphael Stark. I told them to really ham it up, because this piece cannot be played with a straight face! And that they did!
Karl Bachman then made his now traditional appeal for donations to the Hawaii Chapter’s Scholarship Fund:
The first thing we have to do is say congratulations to Nyle Hallman on reaching the ninetieth anniversary of her birth. 九十歳おめでとうございます。(Congratulations on the auspicious occasion of your 90th year.)
The next thing we have to do is remind everyone here that in addition to a birthday celebration, this concert is a benefit for the Scholarship Fund of the Hawaii Chapter—AGO. The way we make this a benefit is that on the check you are writing you designate the Hawaii Chapter—AGO as the payee and to the right of that you put the number ninety next to the dollar sign. Ninety seems like a good number this evening. And if you don’t like subtracting by nines in your check register, because it requires borrowing from the next column, just make it an even $100.
When Nyle Hallman began these Midsummer Night Organ Concerts she actually revived a tradition that went back to World War II when people used to gather outside on the lawn in the cool summer evening and listen to the organ during the government imposed black outs. Eventually the concerts became a fund raiser to help train future organists. This is now the twenty-sixth year of awarding scholarships that have trained organists now serving throughout the mainland and in Hawaii. Nyle, thank you for your initiative and support.
It was suggested that I not run down your entire resume so I won’t mention the twenty-nine years you and your husband Roy led the music program here at Central Union where you began the Honolulu Boy Choir which continued for forty years. I won’t list all the orchestras where you played harp on the mainland and here nor will I identify the famous entertainers with whom you worked at the best venues in Waikiki. Not going to do it, because your resume is still being written. Even today, you still share your talent as a musician and in so doing you continue to touch the lives of countless individuals who hear you.
Think about those hundreds and hundreds of people who came to worship here at Central Union when you were the organist. Sitting in these pews, preparing their hearts and minds for worship as they listened to you play the opening voluntary. Think about all who were inspired as you led them in the great hymns of faith. Think about all those also who had their faith strengthened by hearing the good news of God’s love in Jesus Christ as you supported the choir with the accompaniment to the anthem of the day. And while this happened they may have raised their eyes heavenward to the cross to be reminded that “Love Never Faileth.”
By your years of faithful labor you lived and shared that unfailing love through your talent, through your humble service, and through your actual love and care for so many touched by your life and music. That love works both ways. It is also the love God has for each and every one of us. He has richly poured out that love in your life by bringing you to this wonderful anniversary.
The letter to the Hebrews reminds us that, “God is not a God to overlook your work and the love which you showed for his sake in serving the saints, as you still do.” That sounds to me like God wants all of us to come back here in ten years to celebrate your next big anniversary. Count me in! Happy Birthday, Nyle, and many, many more returns! Thanks be to God.
Margaret read a note from a frequent visitor to Hawaii and long-time friend (she didn’t reveal the sender until the very end):
Dear Nyle,
I send you congratulations and loads of love and good wishes on this observance of yet another milestone birthday! Outside of your family members I doubt that anyone present this evening has known you as long as I have.
Years and years of uninterrupted personal and professional relationships with you and Roy have been both beneficial and a true joy for me. We share SO many memories from so many places and events.
I know you will continue amazing and moving people with your musical performances and your delightful personality and caring spirit.
Open the Crescendo Pedal and blaze on!
Ever,
Fred Swann
After intermission, Connie Uejio on harp and Margaret on organ, played a duet by Marcel Grandjany, “Aria in classic style,” then it was Nyle’s turn on the bench. She played Mark Brampton Smith’s “Partita on ‘Azmon’ ” and as I said previously, received a long standing ovation afterwards.
Mark Wong finished up the program with a performance of Henri Mulet’s “Tu es Petra,” in which he debuted a new computer program he wrote for his iPad which scrolled the music at the tempo it was played—without the use of a Bluetooth pedal to “turn the page.” Fortunately there were no glitches!
Here are some pictures I took of Nyle with her supporters and friends.
(L-R) The Rev. Paul Lillie (gave the invocation); Mark Wong; Connie Uejio; Kathy Crosier; Karl Bachman; Miki Yamamoto; Nyle Hallman; Margaret Lloyd; Sophia Stark; Raphael Stark; Jieun Kim Newland; Sachi P. Hirakouji. Photo by Greg Yamamoto (former Honolulu Advertiser photographer and father of Miki Yamamoto).
Happy birthday, Nyle! Many happy returns!
(P.S. The offering was over $2,000! Woo hoo!)