Hampton Roads scores organists guild convention

By Carrie White

Correspondent

Call it the ode to the underappreciated musician, and it'll be playing on an organ near you next week.

"Organists play a large role in the community that is often undervalued," says John Dixon, co-chairman of Hit the Stops in Hampton Roads: American Guild of Organists Mid-Atlantic Region Convention, which the Hampton Roads chapter is hosting Sunday through Wednesday.

"Think about it - at weddings and funerals, you expect to hear an organ, but you don't often think about the organist." These are "talented musicians who have studied hard despite the knowledge that they won't get paid much," Dixon said.

Hosting the convention is quite a coup for Hampton Roads, Dixon said. "Usually, big cities are asked to apply to host the convention - last time it was in Baltimore, for instance. But in the last 15 years, we've had some very nice organs installed in this area, and we caught people's attention."

Dixon is co-chairing the event with Martin Sunderland of Chesapeake, organist at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Hampton.

Their efforts, along with help from the national group and the more than 150 convention attendees, will bring about 3-1/2 days of workshops, competitions and performances all over Hampton Roads. The convention will kick off with a choral festival at Epworth United Methodist Church in Norfolk at 7 p.m. Sunday.

Henry Faivre will be the featured organist.

"It is an evensong worship service. We've tried to make it as inclusive to all faiths as possible." The 16-person choir was handpicked by Charles Woodward (music director at both St. Paul's Episcopal Church and Ohef Sholom Temple in Norfolk), Dixon said.

"And, of course, the congregation, which will contain many talented musicians, will sing. When you have a talented audience as well as a phenomenal choir, it really raises the roof. It's an amazing sensation."

Workshops, while open to the public, will be geared toward musicians.

In addition to the dozen or so organ performances, the Virginia Children's Chorus will sing at Ohef Sholom at 11:15 a.m. Monday, Dean Shostak will perform on the glass armonica, or bowl organ, in the Kimball Theatre in Williamsburg at 2 p.m. Tuesday, and the quartet Tapestry will give a handbell concert at Monumental United Methodist Church in Portsmouth at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.

The music, primarily of the classical genre, includes works written up to 350 years ago and six premieres, one written by Dixon himself. Dixon, in addition to composing, is also executive director of Ghent's Academy of Music and organist for Providence Presbyterian Church in Kempsville.

A highlight of the convention will be a performance by organist superstar Cameron Carpenter at First Presbyterian Church in Virginia Beach at 8 p.m. Monday.

"Cameron is flamboyant," Dixon said. Indeed, his performances are a full-body workout, with his feet and legs moving almost as quickly as his fingers. "He plays 'The Raiders of the Lost Ark,' and you wonder, 'Where is the orchestra?' But he is creating all the sounds himself."

The final concert, held at Christ and St. Luke's in Ghent at 6 p.m. Wednesday, features Alan Morrison, chairman of organ studies at Philadelphia's prestigious Curtis Institute of Music, debuting "Variations on a Theme by Ludwig Diehn," by Mary Beth Bennett.

Dixon stresses that the convention "is not just for organists. We want to enlarge the audience for organ music. We want to make sure that as many people from the public can come and hear and enjoy these fine performances."

Carrie White, caramine2@aol.com