[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU5CSjXgcWs] This organist is only ten years old and is playing Paul Manz’ “Toccata on Veni, redemptor gentium.” This coming Sunday, I’ll be playing Paul Manz’ “Toccata on Veni, redemptor gentium” (Come now, Savior of the heathen) as the postlude. We were first introduced to the works of Paul Manz by Dale Fisk, an organist… Read More Lutheran composer, Paul Manz
This All Saints Sunday, as we remember those who have died, two of the pieces I’m playing are especially associated with funerals: Vor deinen Thron (Before thy throne I now appear) by Johann Sebastian Bach and the Swedish hymntune Tryggare kan ingen vara (Children of the heavenly father). I’m embedding a video of the Bach… Read More Music for the end
Worshippers at the 10:30 service at LCH will probably recognize the name Bruce Bengtson from the Sunday bulletins. This Sunday the choir will be singing another of his Alleluias (Gospel Acclamation). Bruce has been organist and director of music at Luther Memorial Church in Madison, Wisconsin since 1978. We met Bruce over twenty years ago… Read More Our friend Bruce
I think one of the most enjoyable aspects of being in an organization like the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians is the fellowship with our colleagues—people in the same boat. We’ve been members since their first national conference in 1987, which coincidentally met in Seattle. I think I’ve been to something like 12 national and… Read More Old Home Week
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xl0N7JM3wZk&w=560&h=349] In addition to having extremely poor internet connection at Seattle University, our free time at the conference was just about nil, so I had no time to write about our wonderful experiences at the ALCM conference. The conference is now over and we’ll be going home today. So now I’ll just write about… Read More Lady Gaga at ALCM, right!
It’s Day Two at the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians’ conference in Seattle, and the day began with the alarm going off at 6 am. It was sure a short night! Carl was asked to be the reader at Morning Prayer today and was supposed to be at St. Ignatius Chapel by 7:40 am. I… Read More The song goes on
We finally arrived in Seattle, arriving about 5 hours late due to United Airlines cancelling our flight from San Francisco (and breaking two of our suitcases to boot). The afternoon was spent at Pike Place Market shopping for our dinner for Peter Hallock where we stayed the night. So when the alarm rang at 6am… Read More The Seattle marathon has begun!
Imagine my surprise to get a notice from the national Association of Lutheran Church Musicians office this afternoon that the latest issue of GraceNotes, the quarterly publication, is now available online. I clicked on it, and lo and behold, there was a photo of our Bach Mass in B Minor performance on the front cover!… Read More LCH makes the big time!
I can’t believe it, but we are getting ready to go on another trip. AGAIN. Next Friday we’ll leave for Seattle, WA for the national biennial conference of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians. Carl and I have attended ALCM conferences nearly from the beginning of its founding in the late 80s. I think I counted… Read More The next big push
This Sunday, June 26th, John Alexander will be away attending a niece’s graduation and he asked Carl to conduct the 8 am ensemble. That means you’ll have to put up with me playing the piano. Sorry! On the schedule will be the Alleluia Mass, written by the folk duo, The Braeded Chord aka Sharon Dennis… Read More Alleluia Mass this Sunday