Utah Valley Chapter of the American Guild of Organists
Newsletter • February 2022
Engage, Support, and Uplift Every Organist!
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In this issue:
- Sub-Dean's message
- January's event at the Salt Lake Tabernacle
- "German Organs" event postponed
- Super Saturday by SLCAGO THIS WEEKEND!
- Feb. 12: Bach—by Popular Demand - recital by James Welch
- March 18: Bach & Baroque recital
- The "Lighter Side" of the organ
- Welcome to our new members!
- Utah Valley Pipe Organs project
- Just for fun... stoplist terminology
- Eccles Organ Festival
- AGO National Convention in Seattle, Washington, July 3-7
- Piping Up! - organ concerts at Temple Square
- Year of the Young Organist
- We value your membership
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Sub-Dean's Message
Heidi Rodeback
Dear Friends,
It was wonderful to see so many of you in the Salt Lake Tabernacle last month, an event that was at once humbling and exalting. Who wouldn’t be humbled by the organ’s 11,623 pipes, 147 voices, and 206 ranks? Who could fail to be inspired by Dr. Harmon’s noon recital and tribute to Martin Luther King, or by the rhythms, voices, and spirit he coaxed out of the organ? Our thanks to all who came and played, to all who labored behind the scenes, and to the service missionaries who hosted.
Our next chapter event will be the annual Bach birthday recital, to be held at 7 pm on March 18 in the Provo Central Stake Center. This year, as we did last year, we are expanding the evening to include both Bach and Baroque. We are also making it a hybrid event by allowing organists to record and submit videos from their home organs for upload to the UVAGO YouTube channel. To perform in person or to submit a video, please contact Miranda Wilcox at miranda_wilcox@byu.edu.
Please note that February’s activity—German Organs—has been postponed for logistical reasons. We’ll let you know when we’re able to reschedule. In the meantime, keep practicing, and we’ll look forward to hearing your Bach in March!
Heidi Rodeback
801-404-2494
heidi.rodeback@gmail.com
heidirodeback.com
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January's chapter event...
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Last month, UVAGO members and friends enjoyed a fabulous noon recital, performed in the Salt Lake Tabernacle by Neil Harmon, followed by an organ crawl in the pipe chambers of the Tabernacle organ and five minutes of fame on the organ bench by many brave organists from our chapter. Our thanks to all who came and played, to all who labored behind the scenes, and to the service missionaries who hosted. It was a very nice adventure! (Photo by Kari Nay)
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Attention!
Feb. 19 Event Postponed
The UVAGO event on German Baroque organs, scheduled for February 19, has been postponed until a later date this year.
In the meantime, there are two events taking place in February that you will not want to miss!
- Super Saturday on Friday and Saturday, February 3 & 4, sponsored by the Salt Lake City AGO chapter
- Bach by Popular Demand - A recital on February 12 by James Welch, featuring of some of the finest organ music of the greatest multi-tasker of all time: Johann Sebastion Bach!
More information below. Read on....
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Super Saturday by Salt Lake City AGO...THIS WEEKEND! All registration fees have been waived!
Super Saturday workshops and presentations will be held Saturday, February 5. Optional pre-registration is available or register that day in person beginning at 8:00 a.m. Classes begin at 9:00 a.m. Registration fees have been waived. Please share this information with your organ and musician friends. To view the workshops and classes for Saturday, click or touch the blue button below. |
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The Salt Lake City chapter of the American Guild of Organists presents Dexter Kennedy in concert in the Libby Gardner Concert Hall at the University of Utah.
| Kennedy will perform the complete organ works of César Franck in two recitals on Friday evening, February 4, at 7:00 p.m. and Saturday afternoon, February 5, at 2:00 p.m. |
| Both recitals are free and open to the public. |
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Another event coming up soon in February...
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UVAGO chapter member James Welch will present a concert of some of Bach’s finest works for the organ and will show how Bach was one of the greatest musical multi-taskers of all time. All are invited.
Saturday, February 12, at 7:30 p.m.
Edgemont Stake Center, 303 West 3700 North, Provo
At this point, the concert will be in person, not live-streamed.
To view the complete program and fascinationg program notes, click or touch the blue button, or visit WelchOrganist.com.
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James Welch will perform on February 12 at the Provo Edgemont Stake Center: Rodgers hybrid (combination of pipe ranks and electronic voices), late 1980s. Photo by Jay Goodliffe
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Upcoming Chapter-Sponsored Events
The UVAGO board has planned in-person events for the rest of the AGO year. Please "bring a friend" to introduce other organists to what our local chapter has to offer.
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March 18: Bach & Baroque Recital
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March 18: Bach & Baroque Recital (in person and virtual)
7:00 pm, Provo Central Stake Center, 450 N 1220 W, Provo
Play a piece by Bach or another Baroque composer on the Bigelow organ at the Provo Central Stake Center. Performers may also submit a video of a piece played on an organ of their choice that will be published on the chapter's YouTube channel. To play a piece in person or to submit a video, contact Miranda Wilcox at: miranda_wilcox@byu.edu.
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Preparing for our event in May 2022
The “Lighter” Side of the Organ
In honor of the AGO’s Year of the Young Organist, the Utah Valley Chapter will host a recital dedicated to the “lighter” side of the organ in May 2022. The date and venue details are being finalized.
Organists are invited to prepare pieces that highlight the instrument’s humorous, schmaltzy, toe-tapping side to perform at the recital. This is the perfect opportunity to dust off the works you have longed to play but never had an excuse to learn. Even if you don’t want to play for the recital, we encourage you to learn a “less-traditional” piece just for the fun of it!
If you are unsure where to start, chapter member, James Welch, has prepared a list of “lighter” pieces that may spark some inspiration. We hope to see you at the recital in May! (Time and location to be announced.)
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Welcome to our new members who joined the chapter in January!
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Sydney Swiderski
Provo
Rob Swenson
Pleasant Grove
Dr. David C. Hobson
Provo
Timothy Jackson
Holladay (Dual membership)
Nathanael France
Riverton (Dual membership)
Rebecca Brand
American Fork
Mike Olson
Provo
Don Harvie
Lindon
Douglas Heder
Pleasant Grove
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Mike Olson
I used to be an organ major at BYU. I have since switched majors, but I still enjoy playing piano and organ occasionally for my own fun and for church things. I used to be an AGO member and decided to take up the free year of youth/young organists membership. I'm a pretty standard returned missionary member of the Church, still unmarried/single and attending BYU. It's a wonderful place to be. I'm grateful to be a member of the chapter.
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Don Harvie was born and raised in San Diego, California. Piano lessons began at age seven and continued for years. He was active in vocal groups at his high school, singing and accompanying. He graduated from BYU in Music Education in 1977. Don enjoyed a career in music for 34 years at Northridge Elementary School in Orem, including directing the Northridge Chorus. After school hours he taught piano lessons. Don retired in 2014 and has spent the last four years studying organ with Mike Carson. Don discovered that even after all the years of piano, the organ is a whole other world. Don and his wife, Judy, are the parents of four children and 11 grandchildren who all live in Utah.
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Douglas Heder is a husband, father of five, and an executive producer for Warner Bros in the gaming division. This past summer (2021) he and his family left their home of 20-plus years in Los Angeles, California to find a little more space in the mountains of Utah. In addition to the time he spends as accompanist for his ward, Doug is an avid backpacker, a student (and occasional teacher) of Latin, and is pursuing a Masters Degree in Classics through Memoria College.
Doug's enthusiasm for the organ began when he was a senior in high school in his hometown of Salem, Oregon, as a student of William Fawk. As an undergraduate at BYU, Doug continued to study organ performance under the tutelage of Parley Belnap. Doug is thrilled to join UVAGO and looks forward to continuing his development as a performer of and love for this magnificent instrument!
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Rebecca Brand
I learned to play the piano and organ as an adult. I started taking lessons and used my practice time at night to get my children asleep. When my son, Dallin, was around three years old he would ask me to play the organ so he could go to sleep. Danny and I have nine children and 16 grandchildren. We live in American Fork. Danny owns CrossFit Lehi and I'm the Principal Broker of Brand Real Estate and Investment Group. I play the organ in the Mt. Timpanogos Temple as a Service Missionary and in my ward and stake.
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Utah Valley Pipe Organs
Thank you to those who responded about the "Utah Valley Pipe Organs" project that was sent out about a week or so ago. James Welch and Mike Carson are compiling a list to identify all of the pipe organs in Utah County. They have had a great response and encouraging support from many of you, providing them with details about the organs, the buildings, and, in the case of Latter-day Saint chapels, the stakes and/or wards that reside there. At least a half-dozen pipe organs have been reported that we didn't have on the spreadsheet. Some of you have even sent photos. Thank you!
Just for fun...
Chapter member Blaine Olson submitted a stoplist for the pipe organ in the...
Provo Grandview South Stake Center: 11-rank Wicks, 1972. Stop switches are rockers. Specification (as per rockers) follows:
PETAL:
32' Country Bourbon, 16' Bourbon, 8' School Administrator, 8' Go t' Heck, 4' Basic Coral Reef, 4' Fluke, 16' Trump Pet, 8' Trump Pit, (blank), Grape 8, Swill 8, Swill 4
SWILL:
8' Couple Float, 8' Bejeweled Antler, 8' Heavenly Bejeweled Antler, 4' Couple Float, 2 2/3' Nasty, 2' Salivating Octopus, 8' Tromp Pit, (blank), Quaker, Swill 16, Unibomber Off, Swill 4
GRATE:
8' School Administrator, 8' Good Heck, 8' Bejeweled Antler, 4' Ironed Pic-a-nic Pest, 4' Knocked Corn, 2' Flack Float, 1 1/3' Larry Goat, Concoction II, 8' Tromped Pet, (blank), Grate 16, Grate Unisex, Grape 4, Swill 16, Swill 8, Swill 4
He continues: "After the rebuild, I was hoping to see they had added an 8' Geico Diaperbasin and a 32' Nautilus HQ... and an 8' Arrogant Middle Fiddle... and Wicks almost always puts a unified 16-8-4-2 2/3-2 Smokestack Whistle (also known as a Roar Float, because of its mean growl)... and what about a Floating Popeye? (That would be an Air Sailor). The Fourniture IV is a very common Concoction stop... as is the Threeniture III, the Twoniture II, and the Fivenuitire V. Sometimes you even encounter a Sixniture VI or a Seveniture VII."
Thanks, Blaine, for your very unique and (if you don't know him) dry delivery. You make the organ fun for everyone!
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The 28th season of the Eccles Organ Festival continues Sunday, February 13, at 8:00 p.m. at the Cathedral of the Madeleine with a recital by James Kennerley, Municipal Organist of Portland, Maine.
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National Convention 2022
Seattle, Washington, July 3-7
Convention Coordinator: Michael Monnikendam
206-399 5046 (mobile)
St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church
4805 N.E. 45th St.
Seattle, WA 98105
Email
Convention website
Pictured: The Flentrop Organ of St. Mark's Cathedral, Seattle, Washington
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The National Convention of the American Guild of Organists is held biennially in even-numbered years and reflects the diverse aspects of the Guild and its official work across the country. Held as a function of the national organization in partnership with a selected chapter, it represents a coalition between the national leadership and the host chapter’s leadership. This joint venture combines the talents and creative strengths of each, and represents the larger vision of the whole membership and its needs.
The AGO holds both national and regional conventions. The regional conventions are held during the summers of odd-numbered years. For more information on national and regional conventions, please visit the AGO website, www.agohq.org.
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The five accomplished Tabernacle and Temple Square organists, Richard Elliott, Andrew Unsworth, Brian Mathias, Linda Margetts, and Joseph Peeples, plus occasional guest organists, are featured in this online concert stream:
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One year free Guild membership for all current, lapsed, and new members under the age of 30. In an effort to grow the community of younger musicians in the pipe organ field, the American Guild of Organists has declared this year the “Year of the Young Organist.” Through the sharing of performances by young musicians and the publication of resources, we hope to bring more visibility to the new generation of musicians.
National AGO events and new initiatives to be held throughout the year.
Click here or use https://www.agohq.org/free-membership/ for more information and to sign up for your free year of membership (under age 30).
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We Value Your Membership
The chapter appreciates your continued support of its mission to "engage, support, and uplift every organist." If you already have a membership, you may receive an email reminder when it is time to renew it. Your contributions enhance the chapter's ability to sponsor monthly organ events each year. Please reflect on how your associations in the guild have supported and uplifted you, and consider joining or renewing today!.
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Do you have Facebook?
So do we!
"Like" our page to stay in touch with people, events, and important information regarding the Utah Valley Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.
Photo by Kari Nay
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