Organist Rhonda Sider Edgington will be playing a concert March 22 at 3:00 pm in Hope Church, with new and unusual combinations of instruments and sounds. Featured will be the world premiere of a work for organ and marimba, written by Holland resident Steve Jenkins. Another highlight will be collaborations with a number of local musicians, including Brendan Bohnhorst (Holland Symphony) on tuba; Amanda Dykhouse (Holland Symphony) on violin; David Hall (Grand Rapids Symphony) on marimba; Julie Sooy (Holland Symphony) on flute; and Sarah Southard (Holland Symphony) on oboe and English horn. The music played will be varied – from pieces of the Baroque to the Romantic, the early 20th century, and contemporary music. Composers represented are from Germany, the US, and France.
Jenkins’ Suite for Organ and Marimba was composed originally in 2004 on commission, but it is being performed for the first time this month in Holland. Jenkins is organist and music director at Grace Episcopal in Holland and a pianist for ballet classes at Hope College. Edgington says about the piece and composer, “Steve is a smart, interesting, eclectic musician who plays and appreciates a wide range of music styles. Since his arrival in Holland in the mid-80’s, he has been found working for a number of area churches, playing in coffeehouses, at the Farmer’s Market, and was one of the original performers for Holland’s Street Performers Series. His Pentecost Suite for Marimba and Organ contains influences from many different kinds of music. The perceptive listener can hear traces of jazz, rock, minimalism, and liturgical organ music as well. It is a fun piece to play and I’m looking forward to sharing it with others in this recital.”
The Suite for Organ and Marimba was the original impetus for this concert, which then grew from the germ of that idea into this collaboration with a number of friends and colleagues, including some unusual pieces which Edgington doesn’t have the chance to play as part of weekly worship services at Hope Church. One piece for organ and tuba, by contemporary American composer Daniel Pinkham, is titled “Dragons and Deeps”, and exploits the powerful sonorities of the organ and tuba together. Another, for organ and English horn, is a set of variations on the well-known hymn Amazing Grace. Certain sections are quite melodic and lyric, while other sections involve extended techniques for the English horn player, and are more dissonant.
Admission to the concert is free and all are welcome.