If you are an organist, you’ve probably run across an organ stop called “Vox Humana,” which in Latin means “human voice.” According to Wikipedia, “The Vox humana is a short-resonator reed stop on the pipe organ, so named because of its supposed resemblance to the human voice. As a rule, the stop is used with… Read More Les Voix Humaines
This morning I was at my old stomping grounds, Iolani School, where I was the Chapel Organist for 20 years, and played for daily chapel services. Since I retired in 2015, the school has gotten so big (in enrollment as well as in number of buildings on campus), that it’s no longer possible to have… Read More They clapped!
It’s not often that there are organ recitals in Hawaii. The Hawaii Chapter of the American Guild of Organists sponsors one recitalist per year, and that person plays a concert in Honolulu and another concert on a neighbor island. But this week, there will be TWO organ recitals on Oahu! Tomorrow night, the new organist… Read More Organ concerts galore
Tomorrow at the Sunday service at Nuuanu Congregational Church, I’ll be playing a hymn I’ve never heard of before … and you’ll never guess what the tune name is? It’s KATHERINE. For some reason, the church always puts my name next to the hymn name, so this is how it’s listed in the bulletin: Weird,… Read More Katherine
The latest bulletin board in the courtyard of the Lutheran Church of Honolulu focuses on the history of the music program with special focus on the Rudolf von Beckerath organ and organ concerts which have been held at the church since 1975. You may or may not know that Carol Langner, whom I call the… Read More Queen of the Bulletin Boards
Maybe you, like I did, read the story in the Washington Post this morning, “On Martin Luther King Day, nine facts about him that may surprise you.” Of course, this is the fact that jumped out at me: His mother was also assassinated Just six years later, his mother, Alberta Williams King, was also assassinated.… Read More Martin Luther King Jr.’s mother
Well … yes. Another way to spin the story! A few days ago, I received an email from Karl Bachman, the organist and music director of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church with the title, “National News.” Last Friday on several television stations there was an article about the Albany, New York airport that was cleaning out… Read More Oahu organist makes the news
In case you’ve never heard of “Winterreise.” according to Britannica.com , “Winterreise, (German: “Winter Journey”) (is a) cycle of 24 songs for male voice and piano composed in 1827 by Austrian composer Franz Schubert, with words by German poet Wilhelm Müller. Schubert was reviewing the publisher’s proofs of the cycle in the weeks before his… Read More Winterreise “tour de force”
At last night’s concert by Thomas Yee and Tyler Ramos my ears perked up when I overheard two women, strangers to me, talking to each other before the concert. “I remember Carl Crosier was the organist here for many years then he retired. He died from cancer but his wife Kathy plays the organ.” I… Read More Overheard
“Three sensei…” That’s what Thomas Yee said in this picture of himself, his former student Tyler Ramos and me after their wonderful concert tonight “An Evening of Music for Piano and Four Hands.” It was the first First Mondays concert of 2023. [In case you don’t know, sensei in Japanese means teacher or instructor. However,… Read More Three sensei