POE Diary
Days 1 & 2 (Sunday and Monday, 25 - 26 July)
Wow! What a great bunch these 24 POE students are! (From LA, OK & TX)
They all arrived on time Sunday afternoon and got checked into the dorm.
Then we had orientation and then off to a catered Texas BBQ dinner at the Kelly Alumni Visitors Center near the TCU stadium.
All were animated and excited.
Then off to hear Stephen Tharp on the Ed Landreth Hall auditorium organ.
We had 151 in the audience, and Stephen did a great job showing off the organ.
The reception was a hit, with the audience "hanging around" and socializing.
Monday morning all went to their organ lessons.
We have 12 outstanding teachers and each teacher is assigned 2 students.
Monday afternoon were some workshops at University Christian Church,
starting with a demo of the organ with our member, Kyla Rosenberger,
playing "Rex, King of the Instruments," and our member, John Sauvey,
baritone solo and opera singer, doing the narration.
Afterwards, there were presentations on how to practice,
transitioning from piano to organ, and beginning organ repertoire.
After dinner, the POE faculty presented a recital on TCU's Carr Chapel organ.
Before and after dinner, all students had time to practice their assigned lessons.
The general public is invited to attend the silent movie/theater organ program
presented by our member, Robert MacDonald, at First Presbyterian Church
in downtown Fort Worth on Wednesday evening at 7:30 pm.
Day 3 (Tuesday, 27 July)
Students were excited as they rode the bus early Tuesday morning
to Broadway Baptist Church to see, hear and play the largest organ in Texas.
Our member, Jeff Brummel, demonstrated the 191 rank, 5 manual Casavant organ.
He showed off the 10,615 pipes!
Then students took their place at the console to take a spin.
Two pairs of students sat on the bench and performed duets!
Others surprised the faculty how quickly they were picking up
what they had been taught in such a short time.
After lunch, the students went with their teachers for individual lessons
at various venues in Fort Worth. Later that afternoon,
all students convened in TCU's Ed Landreth auditorium for classes by
on hymn playing, accompanying, improvisation and an introduction to
advanced organ repertoire
(what they can expect to play as they progress in their study of organ literature).
After dinner, our member and organ builder, Dan Garland,
gave the students a tour of the pipe chambers of the 4 manual Garland organ
installed in University Christian Church. Students not only got
a first hand look at the various families of pipes -
principals, flutes, strings and reeds, but also how the blower,
windchests, tremulo and other mechanisms work in a modern day organ.
The day concluded with the students practicing their assignments.
Day 4 (Wednesday, 28 July)
A VERY busy schedule today! The morning was for individual lessons at the various churches and at TCU.
The afternoon started with a bus trip to St. Vincent's Cathedral in Bedford.
The organ is a large 3 manual tracker instrument built by local organ builder and our AGO Chapter member, Roy Redman.
Our member and organist for the church, Barbara Burton, introduced the organ to the students by playing several pieces.
This was the students' first encounter with a mechanical action organ.
Then Roy demonstrated how the organ works and the sounds it makes.
Following that demonstration, our member, Dong-ill Shin,
presented an organ concert showcasing the many stops of the organ.
Then the bus took the group to the Redman organ shop, housed in an historic building on the east side of downtown Fort Worth.
Roy and another of our members and also a local organ builder, Ross King,
showed the students the equipment used to build organs, pipe structures,
how leather is used, how pipes are tuned and voiced, and many other aspects of organ building.
A highlight of the organ factory tour was that the students could play a fully completed organ in the erection room (three stories tall).
The organ, an antique tracker organ built by an English builder,
has been completely restored and is ready to be taken down and installed in a Catholic church in Lindsay, Texas.
The organ is so antique that it is one that still has a hand operated pump to supply wind to the pipes.
Students had fun pumping while others played.
After dinner, it was off again on a bus ride.
This time to First Presbyterian Church where our chapter member, Robert MacDonald,
treated the students to an authentic silent movie, "Liberty,"
featuring actors Laurel and Hardy.
Robert, who was a staff organist at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan
where he played the mighty Wurlitzer theater organ there,
dazzled everyone with his expert musical interpretation of the movie's action with sounds from the 5 manual Garland organ.
The organ was built by our member, Dan Garland, who has an organ building shop in Fort Worth.
To start the show,
Robert astonished the students as he began playing an overture with the organ rising on its elevator operated platform.
Then there was an old-fashioned sing along before the movie started.
Following a reception with balloons, popcorn and raspberry lemonade,
it was time for a bus trip back to TCU where the students finished off the evening
by practicing their lessons in preparation for the student recital.
The recital will be in TCU's
Ed Landreth Auditorium on Thursday evening, July 29th, at 8:00 pm
(rescheduled from the originally announced 8:30 pm).
Days 5 & 6 (Thursday and Friday, 29 30 July)
The students started Thursday morning with much anticipation about the evening -the time for their group recital.
The morning was devoted to individual lessons with their teachers at the various churchs and schools participating in POE week.
After lunch, everyone boarded the bus for a trip to the Fort Worth Cultural District and a tour of the Kimbell and Amon Carter art museums.
It was interesting to see and hear the students' reaction to various paintings and their comparison of the visual and musical arts.
Then it was back to practice for the recital, dinner and more practice.
The recital began at 8 pm in Ed Landreth Auditorium featuring the Moller 4 manual,
80 rank pipe organ.
A little over 80 attended the recital - students' parents and guests,
the POE faculty and staff, and some Fort Worth AGO Chapter members.
The students presented:
Trio on "Let All Things Now Living," by D. Freudenburg.
"Full Organ Fanfare," by John Barr.
"Offertory," by D. Zipoli.
"Two part inventions (D minor and C major)," by J.S. Bach.
"March," by R. Dinda, and "Adoro te devote," by John Barr.
"Prelude in C Minor," by J.S. Bach.
"Vivace," by S. Heller.
"Emerald Green," by R. Dinda.
Fanfare and meditation on "My Country, 'Tis of Thee," by M. C. Bradshaw.
"Pipings," by J. Southbridge.
"Fugue (Psalm 120)" and "Verso in G Minor," by Fischer and Zipoli, respectively.
"Prelude in C Minor," by J.S. Bach.
"Processional," by C. Mawby, and "Prelude in C," by J.S. Bach.
"Fanfare in C," by D. Paxton, and "Amazing Grace," by W. Held.
Trio on "Angels We Have Heard on High," as arranged by Leupold.
"Prelude," by D. Schack.
"Prelude in F," by J.S. Bach.
"Prelude in G Minor," by J.S. Bach.
"Introit," by Gordon Young.
"O Come, O Come Emmanual," as arranged by R. Hudson.
"Prelude and Fugue in G Minor," by J.S. Bach.
The audience was very amazed at how much these students accomplished over the week,
considering almost all had not had any previous organ experience.
Immediately following the recital,
the POE Director, Dr. Joseph Butler,
handed out POE completion certifications to all of the students.
Dr. Butler thanked all that helped make POE week happen:
the parents who enrolled their children, the faculty who taught them,
the volunteers who attended to a myriad of details,
and the donors who financed the week.
Then, to celebrate the recital and POE week,
all retired to the lobby of Ed Landreth Hall and enjoyed a large cake
decorated in TCU's purple and white school colors and inscribed:
Congratulations POE Graduates!
Friday morning, students had their last breakfast in the TCU students' cafeteria,
checked out of the dormitory and were picked up by their parents.
A wonderful end to a very busy week learning much about the organ,
its construction, the repertoire and the techniques for playing.
We are certain they have all been inspired to continue studying and learning to play the organ.
