The mission of the American Guild of Organists is to foster a thriving community of musicians who share their knowledge and inspire passion for the organ. The vision of the American Guild of Organists is to engage, support, and uplift every organist. As of July 1, I have a new responsibility—I’m the Membership Chair of… Read More My AGO peeps
For the next two Sundays, I am playing the organ for Karl Bachman at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod) while he is visiting family on the mainland. As I began practicing the music for the liturgy, I got a real sense of déjà vu. That is because the music that is being sung for the Ordinary… Read More Lutheran déjà vu
A few years ago, Karl Bachman of the Hawaii Chapter American Guild of Organists took visiting organist Nathan Laube to dinner in a local Honolulu restaurant. When the waiter asked why he was here, Nathan answered that he was here to play a concert on the pipe organ. You got it, the waiter had no clue what… Read More Orgelkids coming to Hawaii!
It’s been three days since Joey Fala’s triumphant concert last Sunday, and people are still commenting and raving about his performance to me. Last Friday, Karl Bachman, the Dean of the local Hawaii Chapter of the American Guild of Organists, arranged for Joey to be interviewed by Gene Schiller of Hawaii Public Radio. Joey certainly… Read More Organist on the radio!
My heart is full of joy after tonight’s concert which was the culmination of a fifteen year journey that the community of Honolulu has taken with Joey Fala, a kid whose passion for the pipe organ led his fifth grade homeroom teacher to speak to me about it that many years ago. “Kathy, you have… Read More Beautiful program, beautifully played
Last night I hosted (with the help of the Executive Board) the Hawaii Chapter American Guild of Organists on the eighth floor party facility of my building. It was a welcome home reception for our homeboy, Joey Fala, whose passion for the pipe organ began when he was in preschool at Holy Nativity in Aina Haina, and… Read More Our homeboy, Joey
Founded in 1966, the Honolulu Chorale, one of the longest-performing community choruses in the state of Hawaii, will hold its Annual Musical Event and Joe McAlister Award Dinner at the Honolulu Country Club tomorrow night. This year’s honoree is our colleague, John Renke, and you’ll never guess who was asked to be the speaker! Egad, little ‘ol… Read More Jubilate! honors John Renke
Please read this letter from Karl Bachman, dean of the Hawaii Chapter American Guild of Organists: Ordinarily the leaving of a church organist or the ending of a choir program in a congregation is a non-event for all except the members of that particular church, but we in Hawaii are now experiencing a change that… Read More Three little words
Today I attended Samuel Lam‘s last service as organist of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. I’ve known Sam for years now ever since he moved back to Hawaii in 1985 after getting his doctorate at the University of Michigan and living in Ann Arbor, MI. Sam grew up in Honolulu and graduated from Hawaiian Mission Academy. I… Read More Mixed emotions
The May issue of The Diapason finally arrived, and I eagerly scanned through the pages to find the write-ups about the Class of 2016: 20 leaders under the age of 30. I found what I was looking for starting on page 26. The Diapason’s second annual “20 under 30” selections came from a field that… Read More So unbelievably proud