Rhonda Edgington, Assistant Director of Music
This summer, with the assistance of professional development funds from Hope Church, I was able to attend two different organ conventions. In June, I traveled to Burlington, Vermont for the annual national convention of the Organ Historical Society, a group devoted to appreciating and preserving the heritage of pipe organ building in this country. Vermont and New England are where this group was originally founded in the 1950’s.
Though I’ve been to quite a number of their conventions over the years, I really enjoyed being in the small village churches out in the middle of Vermont, where congregations have been cherishing their small pipe organs with pride and dedication for generations. One of the oldest organs we saw was from 1837, still in completely original condition, including hand-pumped bellows for the winding – never electrified!
I attended two days of this convention, which involves riding from village to village, visiting small churches, and hearing concerts on each instrument. We always sang a hymn during each concert, which is a great way to experience an organ. It was fun to reconnect with friends and colleagues, and I even met a German who has an American organ in his church in Berlin. I’d always wanted to meet him when living in Germany! It truly is a small world.
The following week found me in Kalamazoo for a regional convention of the American Guild of Organists. This convention draws a different crowd, more church musicians than pipe organ enthusiasts, and there were workshops on various practical topics interspersed with organ concerts. I attended with a few local organists from the Holland chapter of the AGO, and saw many colleagues I’ve know throughout my years of living in various Midwestern towns. Since our region covers Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio, people I knew from living in Chicago and attending Indiana University were also there.
The elaborate, big city churches of Kalamazoo and Battle Creek were a real contrast to the humble wooden village churches of Vermont. I heard inspiring concerts, connected with colleagues, had thought-provoking conversations about the future of our vocation, and came home with lots of new energy to practice!
Energy to practice is good, because I have quite a few concerts coming up out of town this fall. I will be in Sacramento, California in September to play two concerts at the Bravo Bach Festival; a solo concert and a collaboration concert with a trombone quartet called, “The Guidonian Hand” (the name is a geeky musician reference to an inside joke!). We will also be playing the same program in October in Saratoga Springs, New York. This concert will include pieces arranged for organ and trombone quartet, as well as some pieces written for brass and organ. Also in September, I will be playing a concert in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on a well-known German instrument at St. Paul’s Cathedral, as well as a re-dedication concert on the organ at my parents’ church in Pennsylvania, which recently had some work done on it.
It will be a busy fall, but I’m looking forward to seeing some new instruments and sharing music with new audiences. Thank you, Hope Church, for your support of all my musical endeavors!