“It’s what musicians do.” That’s what Marie Lickwar said on Wednesday night, when I was at the Lutheran Church of Honolulu, my former parish, along with scores of others. It was a benefit concert for the victims of the Maui wildfires, and was presented by jazz and classical musicians in addition to members of the… Read More Music for Maui
For some reason, the viola has become a butt of many jokes. According to Wikipedia: Viola jokes are jokes directed towards violas and viola players. Viola jokes are thought to have originated in the 18th century, when viola parts were often simple and thus amenable to untalented musicians. Some examples: Pity the poor violist. Except… Read More Not a viola joke
Last night, I went to the first of the two-concert series, Echoes and Refrains, and of course, I recognized a lot of people from my life before—when I was the organist at the Lutheran Church of Honolulu for 35 years. Of course, I go to the church four days a week to teach organ lessons… Read More Ear candy
Fantastic Early Music Hawaii concert at LCH tonight! Congratulations and thank you to Scott Fikse for leading the charge, Katherine Crosier and the orchestra for great music and the singers, notably Naomi Castro, Keane Ishii, Karol Nowicki, Sarah Lambert Connelly, Mitchell Moriwaki, Bowe Souza, Taylor Rei Ishida, and Georgine Duncan Stark for a wonderful performance!… Read More Standing ovation for Perfect Purcell
At last night’s Advent Procession at the Lutheran Church of Honolulu, certainly one of the most haunting selections was the anthem “Who is this?” by John Ferguson, which featured the “a cappella” choir with Anna Womack on viola. It begins with the viola playing “O sacred head now wounded.” The piece then alternates between the viola and the… Read More Who is this?
Last night I attended a fiftieth birthday concert for composer Donald Reid Womack, which made me appreciate the cultural and especially the musical diversity of our life in Honolulu. Last night’s program showcased Don’s work from the past ten years in which he explored the fantastic instruments of East Asia. When I read in the program… Read More Musical fusion
What a week itʻs been! but now that it’s Monday as I write this, we can feel the afterglow of the Glorious Gabrieli concert on September 29th, which on all accounts, was a glorious success. A bunch of LCHers were either involved in the concert (Darel & Georgine Stark, Karyn Castro, Jeremy Wong, Miguel Felipe,… Read More Glorious Gabrieli was glorious!
The 5:00 pm Family Candlelight Eucharist on Christmas Eve will showcase musical performances by our youth, called F.R.O.G.S. (Families Revering Our God in Song), or FROGS. Years ago when Pastor Fritz Fritschel was an Assisting Pastor on the LCH staff, he always used frog puppets to help tell the Children’s Sermon. And oh, all those… Read More FROGS on Christmas Eve
Who could have known that a set of workshops on early music could be so much fun! This afternoon at LCH, Ensemble Mirable heard local performers in a set of masterclasses on ensemble, harpsichord and baroque guitar. As Mark Russell was telling one of his students, it meant that the tables were going to be… Read More Early music sound bites
Dear People of LCH, This day, one long anticipated, has finally come. What a wonderful journey these past 38 years have been for me. When I think back to the countless regular and special worship services and the many church concerts that I have been involved in, I thank God for this wonderful opportunity to… Read More A message from the Cantor