Yesterday was Sunday and eleven of us in our tour group were sitting in the pews at Hallgrímskirkja, the iconic Lutheran church in Reykjavik. Of course I quickly scanned the bulletin to see that the organist was playing two works by J. S. Bach: Wenn wir in Höchsten Nöten sein from the Orgelbüchkein for the… Read More The church universal, except for …
My lack of sleep caught up with me as I nearly missed a 7:30 am deadline to have our luggage set out in preparation for leaving Amsterdam. It was a good thing I had packed my suitcase the night before because when I opened my eyes and looked at my phone, it said 7:28 am!… Read More Maastricht
Because our tour director wanted us to see part of the Aalsmeer flower auction which started at 3:00 am, we had to leave our Amsterdam hotel at 7:15 am, arriving about 8:00. The Royal FloraHolland is the largest international trading platform for plants and flowers—we entered only one of eight massive warehouses. The total area… Read More Aalsmeer and Delft
Joan Ishibashi and I took a direct train to Cambridge this morning where we had a joyful reunion with Ian McFarland and Ann Lillya, former Honolulu residents and parishioners of the Lutheran Church of Honolulu. Ann played oboe in the Honolulu Symphony and Ian worked at Music Center of Honolulu. They moved to Aberdeen, Scotland from… Read More A day in Cambridge
Tonight was former student Joey Fala’s final graduate recital at Woolsey Hall, Yale University, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Music degree. Being here has been the greatest thrill of my life, as it must have been Joey’s greatest thrill of playing on this magnificent organ. First, about the organ: The… Read More Absolutely magnificent!
Today marked the opening service of the 289th Three Choirs Festival, and I could not help but think the Brits do it best—the pomp, the pageantry and the sheer grandeur of it all. In many ways it was like the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, with the entrance procession lasting 20 minutes! As we… Read More Who can match the Brits?
When I first flew into Iceland yesterday, my first thought was, “This sure looks like the Big Island of Hawaii!” You see, Iceland is also a land of volcanoes and lava flows, and like the islands of Hawaii, most everything has to be imported. It means that all goods, food, etc. are frightfully expensive! On… Read More Iceland’s Golden Circle
On Thursday at 3 pm, I left my Honolulu condo for the airport, and it wasn’t until Friday afternoon about 3:15 pm that I walked into my New Haven hotel. Luckily I got upgraded to first class on the long first leg to Chicago, and watched four movies. The extra legroom with the lie-down seat (except… Read More The legendary Woolsey Hall organ
The weather has been absolutely spectacular here in Erfurt where we have spent the last three nights. We’ve come here because Martin Luther lived here as an Augustinian monk from 1505 to 1511. We walked here from our hotel, the Radisson Blu, to the old part of the city, and visited the monastery church with its… Read More Luther in Erfurt
A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing. Well, what else would you expect a bunch of Lutherans to sing after visiting the Wartburg Castle where Martin Luther spent translating the Bible into German? Our tour leader, Dr. Michael Krentz, argued that this beloved hymn could have been a song of comfort, rather… Read More A mighty fortress