News of Note
AOC organs now on YouTube
You can now see and hear two Andover Organ Company organs on You Tube. Let us know if you add or find others.
Hesston Mennonite Church, Hesston, Kansas - Andover Organ Company,
Opus 116 - 2008:
Kenneth Rodgers, Organist gives an excellent tour of the organ and its parts: www.youtube.com/watch
"The Devil's Bagpipe, or God's Voice? The Organ in Historical Context" by John E. Sharp, from Hesston College, explains why for 425 years MC Mennonites rejected instrumental music in favor of "the living sounds of the human voice"--a cappella singing.
www.youtube.com/watch
Westminster Presbyterian Church, Clinton, SC - Andover Organ Company,
Opus 99 - 1990:
W. Leigh Fleury, Organist , Variations on Old One Hundreth by Hubert Parry:
www.youtube.com/watch
W. Leigh Fleury, Organist , Prelude in C Major BWV531 by J.S. Bach:
www.youtube.com/watch
Andover Organ Company Newsletter 2007
The AOC newletter describing 2007 activities is now here on the website in PDF format. You will need Adobe Reader to get the newsletter. If you have Reader, click here.If you need Adobe Reader, click the logo to download it for free:
A brief list of NEWSLETTER CONTENTS for your navigation:
Page One: Dedication of Andover Organ Opus 114 in Christ Lutheran Church, Baltimore.
Pages Two and Three: On the Floor describes work on Opus 116 for Hesston Mennonite Church, Hesston, Kansas; St. John the Evangelist, Wellesley Hills, MA; Christ Church, Episcopal, Charlottesville, VA; Restoration of the Thomas Appleton Organ, United Methodist, Nantucket, MA; Opus 117 in the design stage.
Pages Four and Five: Opus 115 Church of the Nativity, Raleigh, North Carolina, installation and dedication, with photos and pipe list.
Page Six and Seven: Happenings, AOC CD's Available, and Recipes from AOC's Open Houses.
Page Eight: Pipe Organs do NOT Need to be heated: Save on your heating costs and maintenance bills ; Transitions - Fay Morlock, Michael and Kathy Eaton family, designer Robert Ford.
Upcoming Recitals - 2008
Cochran Chapel, Phillips Academy, Andover MALunchtime Organ Concert Series- free and open to the public Wednesdays at 1:15 PM. Performed on Andover Organ Opus 85.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008, 1:15 p.m.: Phillips Academy organ students
For more info: visit www.andover.edu or call 978-749-4130
Middleton Congregational Church, 66 Maple Street (Route 62) Middleton MA
Sunday May 4, 4:00 PM: Festival of Pipes, An Organ Dedication Ceremony presenting the newly restored 1875 George H. Ryder organ. Andover Organ Company Opus R9A. For more information, you will need Adobe Reader. If you do not have it, see above. More Information.
The Bach Concert Series 2007 - 2008 Season
Christ Lutheran Church, Baltimore, Maryland.
To be performed on Andover Organ Opus 114.
All concerts are free and open to the public. Concerts are held at Christ Lutheran Church, 701 S. Charles St in the Inner Harbor. Free parking for the concerts is available in the garage on East Lee St (adjacent to the church).
All concerts begin with an illustrated lecture demonstrating Bach's musical language by Maestro Dimmock. New this season, each concert will also include a major organ work by one of the region's leading organists on the new Andover Organ.
For additional information, visit the website: http//:www.bachinbaltimore.org
Friday, March 21, 2008 at 7:30 PM
Bach St. John Passion (with full orchestra!)
Sunday, April 6, 2008 at 4 PM
Bach Cantata 53; Schlage doch, gewünschte Stunde & Cantata 54; Widerstehe doch der Sünde
"Air" from Orchestral Suite BWV 1068
Jonathan Moyer, guest organist
Sunday, May 4, 2008 at 4 PM
Bach Cantata 4; Christ lag in Todesbanden
Henry Lowe, guest organist
Sunday, June 1, 2008 at 4 PM
Bach Cantata 67; Halt im Gedächtnis Jesum Christ
Andrea Boudra, guest organist
Happenings
On Friday, February 29th John Morlock, Ben Mague and Don Olson boarded a plane to Wichita, Kansas, en route to Hesston, about 20 miles north of Wichita, to attend the dedication festivities of our new Opus 116 for Hesston Mennonite Church and Hesston College. The new Church building is located on the campus of Hesston College, a Mennonite College, and the Church and College share the facilities.
We had been invited to stay at the home of Mary Ann and Hugo Boschmann in North Newton, right next to Hesston. Mary Ann is one of the organists of the Church and the Chair of the Organ Committee. It is a beautiful home and large enough that we each had our own room. Cheryl Hershberger, one of the Church's Pastors, joined us for the evening meal at the Boschmann's.
The celebration began on Saturday evening with the Hesston College Partner Dinner for contributors to the College. Following the dinner, we adjourned to the Church where Hesston Professor John Sharp gave a short talk entitled: "The Devil's Bagpipe or God's Voice?" outlining the history of instruments, organs in particular, in the Mennonite worship service. (Youtube video) The talk was followed by a tour of the organ by Kenneth Rodgers. (Youtube video) Both the talk and the tour can be viewed on youtube.com, by searching on "Andover Organ" or "Hesston College." (or by clicking the links above)
Student organists Naomi Tice and Oliver Kropf played several selections and Stephanie Wyse and Jasmine Martin sang solos accompanied by the organ. The program ended with Ken Rodgers playing the piece may be exchanged by Don Locklair and Johann Gottfried Walther's Concerto in B Minor.
The Sunday morning worship service was the official dedication and opened with student organists Oliver Kropf and Naomi Tice. Church organists Mary Ann Boschmann and Marna Burckhart along with violinist Julie Krehbiel played the "Gathering Music." In the Mennonite service the hymns are sung in four parts a cappella by the congregation and are not usually accompanied by the organ. During the "Children's Time" in the service, the organ was introduced to the children by Ken Rodgers and each child was given a drawing of the organ to color. The two bell choirs joined the organ and congregation in two hymns, Hymn to Joy and My Shepherd Will Supply My Need. Mary Ann Boschmann played postludes by Haydn and Schroeder.
During the Sunday evening dedication concert, the combined choirs of the College and Church opened the program with Gustav Holst's Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence, followed by the hymn When the Morning Stars Together, and then they were joined by a brass choir in Come Christians, Join To Sing. Ken Rogers then showed the organ to its best advantage with works by Boehm, Bruns, Mendelssohn, Vaughan Williams, Mäteling, and ended with Two Jazz Preludes: Bossa Nova (Wunderbarer König) and Afro-Cuban (In dir ist Freude). A reception followed the concert and Andover people gave tours through the organ for many of the audience members. It was a weekend to remember.
CURRENT PROJECTS UNDERWAY
Please see the 2007 newsletter at the top of the page for reports of updates and current projects. Return to newsletter.
Maintenance Notes
If your organ is not yet on our maintenance list and you would like service or tuning, please call Maintenance Director Fay Morlock at 978/686-9600.
If you are slated for maintenance in cold weather, please make sure heat is up at least four hours prior to tuning so the pipes will stabilize at Sunday morning temperatures or the temperature during performance. Please do not schedule any other activities in the room during tuning, such as seasonal decorating, rug cleaning, or Junior Choir, as complete silence is needed.
Andover CDs Available
CD Recording Update
Thomas Heywood's new recording "Grand Organ Gala" of the E.&G.G. Hook & Hastings organ in St. Joseph Cathedral, Buffalo, New York on the Pro Organo label has just been released. Included on the CD are Mozart's "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" and Beethoven's "Egmont Overture" in arrangements by Mr. Heywood along with organ works by Hollins, Best, Bach (Fantasia and Fugue in G Minor), Guilmant. Heywood's own "Humoresque for Pedal Trombone" is something to behold. The disk concludes with Heywood's inprovisation on "The Star Spangled Banner".
The CD is available at leading record stores, and the Organ Historical Society. It can be purchase from Andover for $15.00 which includes shipping.
GERMANIA
German Romantic Organ Works of Otto Dienel
Edward Zimmerman plays the Organ works of Otto Dienel (1839-1905), prominent member of the Berlin school of organ composers. Dienel studied organ with August Wilhelm Bach at the Royal Institute for Church Music in Berlin. Bach was also the organ teacher of Mendelssohn. Volume 1 contains Grand Sonatas No. 1 and 4 along with 17 Chorale Preludes. Volume 2 contains Grand Sonatas No. 2 and 3 along with 14 Chorale Preludes. The Sonatas are played on the E.&G.G. Hook (1861)/George S. Hutchings (1894)/Andover (1988) organ in The Cathedral Church of St. John, Providence, RI. The Chorale Preludes are played on the restored E.&G.G. Hook, Opus 389, 1866 in South Parish Congregational Church, Augusta, ME. Dr. Edward Zimmerman is a graduate of the Eastman School studying with Russell Saunders. He is currently Associate Professor of Music at Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL. Cost $16 each or both for $25, includes shipping.
Music for the Christmas Season
Improvisations by Earl L. Miller, organist (1946-1989). AFKA Records, Compact Disc, SK-547, no SPARS code, TT=67:30. Distributed by Andover Organ Company, P.O. Box 36, Methuen, MA 01844, Tel. 1.888.ORGANCO. Cost $16 includes shipping.
Andover Opus 111, Inaugural Recital
University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Robert Burns King, Organist. Andover Organ Company 1999, AND 101, TT=62:18. Available from Andover Organ Company, P.O. Box 36, Methuen, MA 01844. Tel. 1.888.ORGANCO. Cost $10 includes shipping.
Thomas Murray's Hook Documentary
issued by the Organ Historical Society on LP records has been reissued by AFKA records in a CD format. The 2 CD reissue was sponsored by Education Committee and the 2001, A Boston Odyssey Convention Committee of the American Institute of Organbuilders. The organs featured are: E.&G.G. Hook (1827) in the Essex Institute; The Northfield Hook, Opus 48, 1842; The Hinsdale Hook, Opus 93, 1849; The Jamacia Plain Hook, Opus 171, 1854; The Church of the Immaculate Conception Hook, Boston, Opus 322, 1863/1906; The Holy Cross Hook, Opus 801, 1875. The recording is available through the OHS at the OHS Catalog or call 804/353-9226.