While the numbers of people were few, the enthusiasm was unmistakable of those who were brave enough to come out to a concert in these frightening times of the coronavirus pandemic. There was no problem keeping a “social distance” from other audience members in the large sanctuary. I’m speaking about yesterday’s absolutely phenomenal organ recital… Read More WOW! Absolutely phenomenal!
Organist Monica Czausz is in Hawaii this weekend (and is my delightful houseguest!) and when she arrived at the airport, she was greeted not only with a flower lei but also a comprehensive schedule of her time here, accounting for all of her practice time but also who was taking and picking her up from… Read More “That’s what we do”
Last night was the opening Welcome Dinner for the Hawaii Chapter American Guild of Organists, and look at the big crowd we had! People literally came out of the woodwork—and for some people, it’s been DECADES since they have attended a meeting of local organists. (By the way, not everyone was in the picture! Some… Read More They came out of the woodwork!
Karl Bachman generously invited Hawaii organists to a cocktail and pupu reception for my former student Joey Fala and Sarah Jones on their honeymoon! Back row: Paul Lillie, Guy Merola, Mark Wong, Karl Bachman. Front row: Sarah Jones, Joey Fala, Erin Richardson Severin, Steven Severin (Karl apologized for the lighting!) Sarah’s mom, The Rev. Susan… Read More Meanwhile, back in Hawaii
One constant in our Hawai’i Chapter American Guild of Organist concerts is the “spiel” given by Karl Bachman at intermission to encourage people to give offerings. I always look forward to hearing these little “sermonettes” — filled with humor, and sometimes I’ve gotten a shout-out. Here is an excerpt from yesterday’s concert with Adam Pajan:… Read More A HUGE leap of faith!
Do you know what a “palindrome” is? It’s a word or phrase that reads the same backwards or forwards. Some single word examples are redivider, deified, civic, radar, level, rotor, kayak, reviver, racecar, redder, madam, and refer. Here are some famous palindromic phrases: Eva, Can I Stab Bats In A Cave? A Man, A Plan,… Read More Madam, I’m Adam
Fourteen years ago, our Hawai’i Chapter of the American Guild of Organists took a leap of faith when it decided to present organist Paul Jacobs for a concert. I had been absolutely wowed by Paul’s performance at St. Ignatius Loyola in New York City and vowed to have him come to Hawaii for a concert.… Read More A leap of faith
Q. What is a 100%, sure fire guaranteed way to have your audience give your concert a standing ovation? A. Program the Hallelujah Chorus as the final piece. Better yet, invite the audience to sing along! Whether or not the audience did join the singing, the Oahu Choral Society concert did indeed end with a… Read More Guaranteed standing ovation!
61 people “liked” my post when I asked this question on my Facebook page with some photos. Only one person, Susan Haas, seemed to know what I was up to when I showed off my dining table. If you count the number of plates, you will come up with the number nine—which is how many… Read More Guess who’s coming to dinner?
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… Read More Nyle’s night