Summer has traditionally been a time of respite for church musicians from the busyness of services, rehearsals and concerts—and for many years my husband and I traveled to conventions and conferences of the American Guild of Organists and the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians. At these conventions, we would hear world-class performances by organists and choirs, attend worship services, take part in workshops on a wide range of topics, browse publisher displays of sheet music and recordings, and of course, enjoy the company of fellow musicians.

This summer, however, most if not all musical conferences were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and for the first time in about 48 years I’m stuck at home, grounded for my own safety.

The American Guild of Organists national office has attempted to fill this void with the free presentation of AGO Organfest 2020, a weeklong celebration of the organ as we may have all experienced had the national convention in Atlanta, Georgia, not been cancelled.

Here is the information about AGO Organfest 2020:

The American Guild of Organists is thrilled to announce the first online OrganFest, which will take place July 20-24. Each evening’s broadcast will premiere a new work which had been commissioned for the 2020 National Convention in Atlanta, accompanied by interviews with the composers.

Featured performers will be Jens Korndörfer, Amanda Mole, Alan Morrison, Thomas Ospital, and Catherine Rodland. Additional recorded performances by recent international organ competition winners will be presented, and short presentations will share exciting news and updates from the AGO.

The daily YouTube premiere (8pm Eastern) and accompanying Festival website will be available at no charge.

OrganFest 2020 promises to be an exciting way to showcase our beloved instrument and the great work of the AGO. Please share this information widely with your music-loving friends.

While we are saddened by the cancellation of many musical events this spring and summer, including our National Convention in Atlanta, we look forward to celebrating the future of organ music together online next month.

I just watched the first night of performances and strongly encourage you to experience this thrilling video, which reminds me so much of the type of experience we would have shared at the American Guild of Organists national convention. The theme is “Beauty in the midst of chaos.” I found it a real treat, and I hope you do too! These performers are “the best of the best” in the organ world!

Tonight’s performers were:

Aaron Tan, winner of the 2018 National Young Artists Competition in Organ Performance. He is a Canadian organist, engineer and pianist and has won many prizes. He is currently studying at Yale University and serves as the Organ Scholar at the Church of the Resurrection in New York City.

Thomas Ospital, titulaire of the grand organ at St. Eustache in Paris and Professor of Keyboard Harmony at the Conservatoire National Supérior de Musique de Paris.

Atlanta Master Chorale, directed by Eric Nelson, organist Jonathan Easter. I wondered whether the recording was done during COVID or before; the choristers seemed “socially distant” from each other but no one wore masks.

There was also an interview with composer June Nixon, as her work for two trumpets and organ was commissioned by the AGO. She was interviewed by Chelsea Chen, fabulous organist who played a concert here in Honolulu.

I strongly encourage you to view this first concert of the week, and here is the link to Monday’s concert. You won’t be disappointed— I promise! The rest of the week’s concerts can be viewed here.

Hurray for the organ!