American Guild of Organists

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AGO Taiwan Chapter Sponsors Organ Competition

The American Guild of Organists Taiwan chapter sponsored the country’s first organ competition on July 20, 2104. , Six finalists were selected to compete on that day. There were nearly 300 people present at the competition. The first-round judges were Maw Sheng Chen and Nigel Potts, and the judges for the final were Felix Hell, Kitty Yang, and Lynn Kuo. Schantz Organ Company was the major sponsor for this event. First-prize  was awarded to Esther Yu; second prize went to Kyle Lee, and third prize and audience prize went to Yung Hsien Lee.

Taiwan-Competition-winners

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New Haven to Host 2015 Northeast Regional Convention

Marquand Chapel at Yale Divinity School, St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, and Yale’s Woolsey Hall are three of the venues where concerts will be performed during the Northeast Region’s 2015 Convention. New Haven, Connecticut is the host city.

Featured artists include Diane Meredith Belcher, Peter Richard Conte, Ahreum Han, Martin Jean, Thomas Murray and Scott Perkins. Choirs include the Elm City Girls’ Choir, Trinity Choir of Men and Boys, and the Choir of St. Paul’s, Fairfield, CT.

The convention runs from June 28 through July 1, 2015.

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2015 AGO West Regional Convention features the Spreckels organ

The  San Diego AGO chapter is hosting the 2015 West Regional Convention. San Diego is home to the fhe famous Spreckels organ, one of the world’s largest outdoor pipe organs. This unique treasure is turning 100 this year.

Other convention highlights include an organ master class by Douglas Cleveland, a workshop on improvisation by John Karl Hirten, and a discussion of communications and marketing for organists led by Matthew Burt.

Other venues will include St. Paul’s Cathedral, Clairemont Lutheran Church, St. Brigid Catholic Church, Balboa Park Village Church, San Dieguito United Methodist Church, First United Methodist Church of San Diego, All Souls’ Episcopal Church, Paradise Valley Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Point Loma Community Presbyterian Church, First Presbyterian Church and the Balboa Theatre.

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Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Magazine Features Pogorzelski-Yankee Organ Installation

The Fall-Winter 2014 issue of IUP Magazine features an article on the installation of the Pogorzelski-Yankee Organ on campus. Ever since the organ program began at Indiana State Normal School under Mary Hays Dill in the 1880s, the school has relied on the generosity of local churches for access to organs for teaching and performance.

Read the full article, including a video of the installation, of this organ that is, in the words of Christine Clewell, assistant professor of organ, “as original as a Mona Lisa.”

Pipe Dream

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St. Louis to host AGO 2015 North-Central Convention

In 1763, Pierre Laclede sailed from New Orleans up the Mississippi River to find a suitable location for a trading post in the Upper Louisiana territory. He found an ideal setting on top of a limestone bluff and named it for Louis IX of France. In 2015 St. Louis will serve as host for the AGO North-Central convention, scheduled from June 22-24, 2015.

Featured performers include John Benke, Christopher Marks, Anna Myeong, Thomas Murray, Barbara Raedeke, and Daryl Robinson.

Featured locations include Christ Church Cathedral, the Fox Theater, Sheldon Concert Hall, and Third Baptist Church, among many others.

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AGO Awarded $20,000 Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts

The American Guild of Organists has been awarded a grant by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to support educational programming in 2015 and new music commissioned for the AGO National Convention in Houston, Texas, June 19–23, 2016. The $20,000 NEA “Art Works” grant will support Pipe Organ Encounters for youth and adults, performances and workshops at all seven AGO Regional Conventions, the Guild’s professional certification program for organists and choral conductors, and new music commissions. While the Guild has benefitted from NEA support for the past five consecutive AGO National Conventions, the 2015 grant represents the first support the Guild has received for its educational programs and regional conventions.

“This grant covers the full breadth of the AGO’s educational activities for current and prospective members as well as our programs of outreach to the public,” stated AGO Executive Director James Thomashower. “The NEA’s funding sends an uplifting message to the entire organ community: our instrument and its music are vitally important to the American people. The award validates the AGO’s ongoing efforts to ensure that music for the organ is created by talented composers, performed by skilled musicians, and appreciated by the widest audience possible. It is an honor for the Guild to be recognized by the NEA, the most prestigious independent federal agency in the United States responsible for funding and promoting artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation.”

NEA Chairman Jane Chu added, “I am pleased to be able to share the news of our support through Art Works including the award to the American Guild of Organists. The arts foster value, connection, creativity, and innovation for the American people. This grant demonstrates those attributes and affirms that the arts are part of our everyday lives.” Art Works grants support the creation of art, public engagement with art, lifelong learning in the arts, and enhancement of the livability of communities through the arts. The NEA received 1,474 eligible applications under the Art Works category, requesting more than $75 million in funding. Of those applications, 919 were recommended for grants for a total of $26.6 million. For a complete listing of projects recommended for Art Works grant support, please visit the NEA website.