Musings of an Organ Teacher

(This article was originally published in the February 2017 edition of the church newsletter.)

As some of you know, I've been the organ instructor at Allegheny College for the past few semesters, following in the footsteps of a dear woman named Rebecca Borthwick-Aiken.  My students aren't music majors who are already proficient organists: those kids opt for conservatories like Juilliard or big-city colleges like Duquesne.  Instead, I end up with science and humanities students who have some piano lessons under their belt and want to try the organ mainly out of curiosity.  Guiding them through their first introduction to the organ has proven surprisingly rewarding.  At the same time, though, it highlights how many people (even some fairly sophisticated musicians) underestimate the difference between the organ and the piano.
 
But wait — they both have keys, so aren't they basically the same?  In short, no!  I won’t bore you with technical details here, but physically and musically speaking, the two instruments must be approached entirely differently. Seating an excellent pianist at an organ console unprepared is going to result in a lot of clunky, awkward playing, since the organ lacks the 'sustain' pedal which smoothes out the piano's sound.  (To connect notes and chords together, organists dip into a bag of techniques that pianists seldom bother with.)  In fairness, I should note that the reverse is also true: trained organists pounding on the piano can make some very un-musical music.  I'm occasionally guilty of this myself!
 
There’s also the matter of registration: the art of knowing which sounds to choose for a particular piece of music.  Before my students can even start to make those decisions for themselves, they must learn the names of all the fancy knobs and tabs on the organ console and what each of them does.  This alone can take months to get a feel for.  By contrast, the piano undeniably makes up for in simplicity what it lacks in variety.

And we haven’t even mentioned the pedals, the aspect of organ playing my beginning students find the most unnatural.  I tell them it’s not unlike learning to ride a bicycle.  It may be confusing, awkward, and frustrating at first…but if you keep trying, something eventually just ‘clicks’ and you’re off to the races!  After a few lessons they can play some notes without looking, and by semester's end their pedal scales are reasonably smooth.  The final step is adding pedal notes while the hands are busy doing something else; that level of coordination is the work of at least one lifetime!
 
Until next time,
Kevin

Christmas Organ Recital

Kevin Dill, organist
on the 2500 pipe Schlicker organ
with guest soprano Sonya Eagles-Dill

Tuesday, December 20, 2016
11:45 AM
First Presbyterian Church, 890 Liberty St, Meadville

Handel Overture to the Occasional Oratorio
Vaughan Williams Sweet Was the Song, from Hodie
Wackenthaler L'Adoration des Bergers
Traditional, arr. Dill Mitt Hjerte Alltid Vanker
Bedford A Christmas Suite

This recital is presented as part of First Presbyterian's 'Lunch @ First' series, which offers programs on a variety of topics on the third Thursday of each month. Admission to the recital is free, with a $5 lunch available afterwards.

Advent and Christmas at First Presbyterian

November 27: Advent I
8:30 & 11:00 Worship with Holy Communion
Preaching: Rev. Larry Peters

December 4: Advent II
8:30 & 11:00 Worship
Preaching: Rev. Dr. Brian Jensen
12:00 'Chili, Cornbread, & Carols' in Fellowship Hall

December 11: Advent III
8:30 & 11:00 Service of Lessons & Carols
(with the French Creek Brass Quintet at 11:00)

December 18: Advent IV
8:30 & 11:00 Worship
Preaching: Rev. Dr. Brian Jensen

December 20: Lunch @ First
Organ recital by Kevin Dill, 11:45 AM
with guest soprano Sonya Eagles-Dill
(Recital admission is free; a $5 lunch is available afterwards)

December 24: Christmas Eve
7:00 PM Family Service
10:00 PM Choral Candlelight Service
Preaching: Rev. Dr. Brian Jensen

December 25: Christmas Day
11:00 Worship (no 8:30 service this Sunday)
Preaching: Rev. Dr. Brian Jensen

Reformation Sunday

The First Presbyterian Church of Meadville marks Reformation Sunday with a celebration of its Scottish heritage at 8:30 AM and 11:00 AM on October 30th.

At the forefront of that morning’s worship will be elements of historical Presbyterianism, including prayers by 16th-century clergyman and reformer John Knox. Knox is regarded as the founder of the Church of Scotland, the ancestor of the Presbyterian Church in the United States. The church's 22-voice Chancel Choir will be joined at the 11:00 service by bagpiper Allyson Crowley-Duncan of Edinboro University, offering choral and instrumental music by Scottish composers.

While the Presbyterian church looks forward to the realities and issues of the 21st century, it simultaneously draws on the rich traditions of a specific time and place. The aim of Sunday’s service is to honor our heritage, and to ask ourselves how that heritage might shape our church as it strives to do the work of Christ in this world.

Organist Kevin Dill in Recital

Kevin Dill, organist
The Cathedral of Saint Peter, Erie (corner of 10th & Sassafras)
Sunday, September 18, 4:00 PM



Vivaldi, arr. Bach Concerto in D minor
Dill Three Etudes
Dupont Meditation
Correa Braga Batalla on the 6th tone
Ward Humoreske
Hesse Prelude, Andante, & Fugue

free admission

...And We're Back!

The new keyboards, built by P&S organ supply of England, feel more like the keyboards of a tracker organ: requiring the organist to play 'into the keys' rather than just tap them. Mark Fischer finished the installation in time for the Sunday service --great job, Mark!



Next up on the docket: removing all seven ranks of reed pipes and sending them to Connecticut, where the firm of Broome & Co. will clean and revoice them. This work should commence shortly after Christmas.

Introducing our choral scholars

The First Presbyterian Church of Meadville is pleased to announce the following recipients of its Pletcher Choral Scholarships for the 2016-17 academic year:

Lauren Ottaviani, soprano, from Zelienople, Pennsylvania;
Allie Condon, mezzo-soprano, from New Haven, Connecticut;
Kyle Donnelly, tenor, from Gibsonia, Pennsylvania;
John Knobel, tenor, from Carlisle, Massachusetts;
Troy Dinga, bass, from Ford City, Pennsylvania.

Established by a bequest from the estate of Ralph and Mabel Pletcher of Meadville, these scholarships are awarded annually to Allegheny College students in order to gain musical experience by singing in the church's 22-voice Chancel Choir. Singers are chosen on the basis of their vocal range, music-reading ability, and commitment to the art of choral singing.