AGO Members Recital

My first time playing on a mechanical organ was for the American Guild of Organist's member recital. I played the G minor prelude and fugue from Bach's Eight Little Preludes and Fugues.

When I came to practice on the organ before the recital, I was surprised at the weight on the keys. Electric action organs have almost no weight but mechanicals have more weight for every stop and coupler that are turned on. It's similar to an electric piano verses an acoustic piano.

After I overcame the different weight so that every note could actually be heard because I was pushing down hard enough, the connection between me and the organ felt more real than with an electric action organ.

Also, since my head was right below the swell box, I could feel the music like someone was playing a saxophone right by my head. It was LOUD! The music vibrated in my chest and make me check to see if my ears were still there after I was done playing.

Overall, playing on the tracker organ was exhilarating and I would love to play on another one very soon.

After I played, the master of ceremonies interviewed me to let the other AGO members get to know me. I wasn't told what type of questions I would be asked until right before the concert started, so I had to think on my feet. I'm pretty sure it went well though. :)

The whole organ is in that box

My view

The program

The sanctuary was gorgeous with great acoustics!

My performance

First Organ Recital and Some Vocabulary

My first organ recital was thrilling! 

I played on the magnificent organ at First Church of Christ, Scientist in Denver. It is a three manual organ with 69 ranks and 3360 pipes.

Some Vocabulary/concepts to learn:

A manual is another name for a keyboard that is played with hands, most organs have two but the largest organ has seven of them.

A rank is a set of pipes that are controlled by stops. If one stop is pulled, then the manual or pedals will activate one pipe for each key pressed. If two stops are pulled, then one key will activate two pipes. The same way with three stops; one key will activate three notes, and so one. Usually, many stops are pulled to create the unique blend of sound that is easily identifiable as an organ.

A Facade is the most prominent feature of an organ. It houses a few pipes that are aesthetically arranged. However, most of the pipes are behind the facade and unable to be seen. 

The organ Facade with the words, "God is Love" above

The Dome Ceiling

My teacher and I on the organ bench

A video of the performance

First time Leading a Church Service's Worship

The normal organist was going on vacation and needed a stand-in. I was volunteered to help out and the rest is history.

It was a sleepy congregation. Or maybe I just couldn't hear them because I was boxed in by the facade. I also accompanied a soloist on the piano, it was a beautiful hymn and the soloist was a very confidant, congenial singer.

I don't know the exact stops and ranks because the church is somewhat in the the dark-ages of technology and doesn't have a website. It had a delay in the pedals but not in the manuals. The delay took a bit of getting used to, but once that was overcome, the organ had a raw, powerful sound that completely enveloped me.

The organ has some stops that generate electrical sounds, and some stops that activate pipes. The pipes' tuning varies with the weather. Cool vs. warm temperatures or damp vs. humid conditions will change the way the pipes play. Since the electrical stops don't vary with weather, they had to be tuned to the pipes. I had to pull one electric stop and one pipe stop, then play a key and adjust the tuning knob till the edge vibrations of the two pipes's notes were moving at the same rate. It was pretty neat to tune such a large instrument. :)

The main facade

The view from the bench

Your's truly and the view form the choir loft

An Intro to Me

How to begin? The first blog post sets the stage for what is to come and introduces the author right?

As of this post, I've played pipe organ for not quite a year along with playing piano for eleven years and experimenting on many other instruments.

I have four siblings and my mom instilled a love of music in all of us at a young age.

My primary instruments are piano, pipe organ, voice, and mountain dulcimer. However, I dabble in many other string instruments. 

I decided to start this blog to share with the world or maybe just my friends the wonderful organs that I am privileged to play on. 

The name of my blog was created by a friend who has a knack for thinking of unique names. Thanks Seth. :)

The organ I practice on in all its Christmas finery