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You can often hear the organ.

June 6, 2012 by

Klais-organ in Kleve, Germany, Photographer: Fabian Zohren

This morning, in preparation for teaching a piano class, I was flipping through a [very old] piano method book. I have a thing about old music books.  A line from one of the pages of this book served to suggest its ancientness even more than the copyright date or the retro formatting:

“You have often heard the organ played at church…”

As if it’s a given.  Perhaps at some point, but certainly not these days.

If the king of instruments is something you don’t get to see or hear – or feel – often, here are some opportunities in Minnesota this week.

  • Wednesday morning, June 6 – my practice session in Brooklyn Park.
    Just kidding.

For reals:

  • Saturday, June 9, 4:30 pm – a public chamber/organ concert 
    Mount Olive Lutheran Church (3045 Chicago Avenue South) in Minneapolis
  • Sunday, June 10, 4:00 pm – (this one sounds super cool)  Bach’s Cantata 75
    Mount Olive Lutheran Church (3045 Chicago Avenue South) in Minneapolis
    Members of the community are comming together to create this performance conducted by one of my former instructors, Kathy Romey.
  • Tuesday, June 12, 12:10 pm – Katie Burk plays the 22-rank Reuter organ at
    Trinity Lutheran Church (222 6th Avenue SW) in Rochester, MN. *Free*
  • Also at 12:10 on Tuesday, June 12 – Kristina Langlois plays the 41-rank Moeller-Hendrickson organ at
    Grace Lutheran Church (320 E. Main Street) in Mankato, MN. *Free*
  • Wednesday, June 13, 12:15 pm – Steve Gentile plays the 71-rank Henderickson organ at
    Wayzata Community Church (125 Wayzata Boulevard East) in Wayzata, MN. *Free.*
    This is the only church listed here that I have actually been to.  Though I did hear the organ in the past, I did not appreciate it enough to know how to keep any memory of it in my head.  I look forward to freshening up the experience next week.

I’ll be honest.  As I’m just a beginner organist I hardly know the significance of the specifications I just listed above. I do know enough, however, to have utmost respect for this profound instrument and the artists who play it.

If none of these times work for you, there is a long list of further events throughout the summer at the Pipedreams events page.

Regardless of whether or not “You have often heard the organ played at church,”  you can certainly oft hear it around Minnesota in the near future.