1 The Official Newsletter The Official Newsletter of the Tallahassee Chapter of the American Guild of Organists VOLUME V, NUMBER 5 December 2013 DEAN Jonathan Hehn jonathan.hehn@gmail.com SUB-DEAN Joe Kraus jkraus@fsu.edu SECRETARY Carol Marchant sesquialt@embarqmail.com TREASURER/REGISTRAR Ed Self edwardpself@yahoo.com MEMBERS AT LARGE Mitchell Crawford mlc3068@gmail.com William Scarboro whs1325@yahoo.com Anthony Warrington windkeys@gmail.com WEBMASTER William Scarboro NEWSLETTER EDITOR Patty Herrington pherrington@fsu.edu Dear AGO Members and Friends, DEAN'S MESSAGE This holiday season is proving to be a bittersweet one for me. I have recently accepted a position as Minister of Music and Worship Arts at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Tampa, which means that our family will be leaving Tallahassee after Christmas. While I am excited about this opportunity to serve a new congregation, I am sad, and a bit apprehensive, about moving away from the city whichh we have called home for more than a decade. The decision to accept this position came after a long process of discernment which included many days of prayer and thought about my commitment to the Tallahassee AGO. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each of you for helping to make the AGO what it is, and for your service to each other and the community. It was through the invitation of long-time chapter member Patty Herrington that I first became involved in the AGO in 2002. Since then, as chapter member, member-at-large, sub-dean, and now dean, I have extended the invitation to others in the community who I felt would benefit from joining this community of organists, choir directors, students, teachers, and scholars. Now that I am leaving you all, I hope that the hospitality first shown to me ten years ago will be extended to other new members through your efforts. Until the next election of officers, you will be in the competent hands of your board led by sub-dean, Joe Kraus. I look forward to staying in contact with all of you, and will doubtless be back to visit Tallahassee frequently. My phone number and e-mail address will remain the same, so please stay in touch at 850-980-2812 or jonathan.hehn@gmail.com. Peace, "The deadline for newsletter submissions is the 15th of the month prior to publication."
2 UPCOMING AGO EVENTS December 2013 No AGO programs or meetings; please attend other local musical events. Sunday, January 5, 2014 Annual Chapter Epiphany Party Time: 6:30 p.m. Location: 1324 North Duval Street, home of sub-dean Joe Kraus (just around the corner to the left, off Seventh Avenue.) Make plans to attend the chapter s annual Epiphany Party, this year being hosted by chapter sub-dean, Joe Kraus. Dinner starts at 6:30 p.m. Please bring an appetizer or heavy hors d oeuvres (enough for a couple dozen people), your choice of drink (if not provided), and music to share. Wine and soft drinks will be provided. There is a Steinway grand piano, but no organ, so plan your music-making accordingly. Feel free to bring other instruments to play, and of course, your voice to raise in song. Feel free to bring a friend or significant other also. Parking: There is always parking further south on North Duval (toward town), and parking will also be available in the Lakeview Baptist overflow parking lot, which is across Seventh Avenue from the church building. Sunday, February 16 - Organ Concert by Gail Archer Time: Location: 3:00 p.m. First Presbyterian Church, Tallahassee A lecture-recital on North German Keyboard Music of the 17 th and 18 th centuries. Dr. Archer serves as college organist at Vassar College, and, as a member of the faculty of Barnard College, directs the Barnard-Columbia Chorus in performances of choral masterworks with orchestra, and the Barnard-Columbia Chamber Choir, which specializes in a cappella choral literature. OTHER UPCOMING EVENTS Tuesday, December 3 rd, at 7:30 p.m., the 25th Annual Handel s Messiah Sing-A-Long will be presented by the Tallahassee Music Guild at Faith Presbyterian Church. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children. All proceeds go to scholarships for music students. For more information, call 893-5274. Christopher Garven and AGO dean Jonathan Hehn will be the guest organists and conductors. ***************************************************************************** On Friday, December 6 th, The FSU Early Music Ensembles will present a Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at 7:00 p.m. at St. John s Episcopal Church. This service, marking the end of the fall term, will include the traditional nine readings, as well as seasonal carols and music from the Old and New Worlds. On Saturday, December 7 th, at 4 p.m. at First Baptist Church, Ring in the Season will be presented by the handbell choirs of Crawfordville United Methodist, Fellowship Presbyterian, First Baptist, Good Shepherd Catholic, Thomasville Road Baptist, and Capitol Bells. Admission is free.
3 The Tallahassee Community Chorus, along with all the other choirs and choruses of The Florida State University College of Music, will present its annual Seasonal Celebration on Saturday, December 7 th at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, December 8 th at 6:00 p.m. in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall. Admission is free. Seven Hills Guitar Series presents a Youth Showcase, featuring young guitarists age 6-18, on Sunday, December 6 th, at 3 p.m. at St. John s Episcopal Church. The concert will conclude with a guitar quartet by Maximo Diego Pujol performed by a freshman guitar ensemble from the FSU College of Music. Admission is free. Holy Comforter Episcopal Church, 2013 Fleischmann Road, will present a service of Advent Lessons and Carols on Sunday evening, December 8 th, at 5:30 p.m. Childcare will be provided. The Tallahassee Civic Chorale, Dr. Leslie Heffner, director, will present An English Christmas Festival featuring Benjamin Britten s A Ceremony of Carols on Tuesday, December 10 th, at 8:00 p.m. in Turner Auditorium at Tallahassee Community College. Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and non-tcc students, FREE for TCC students with ID. St. John s Episcopal Church holds a weekly Service of Compline on Sunday evenings at 8:00 p.m., led by St. John s clergy and a Compline Men s Choir. The 30-minute service includes beautiful music and scripture. Services will continue through December 8 th, with a holiday break until resuming on January 12 th. Membership in the Compline Choir is open to any interested person (for information, contact Mike Norris at morris.mr@gmail.com). The Tallahassee Symphony will present A Simply Sinatra Christmas with outstanding Sinatra interpreter, Steve Lippia, on Friday, December 13 th and Saturday, December 14 th, at 8:00 p.m., in Ruby Diamond Concert Hall. For tickets, go to tallahasseesymphony.org/concertsandevents. St. John s Episcopal Church will present a service of Advent Lessons and Carols on Sunday, December 15 th, with a concert by harpist Agnes Hall at 6:30 p.m. and the service, featuring the adult and children s choirs, at 7 p.m. Childcare will be provided; a reception will follow. Westminster Oaks, a retirement community on Dempsey Mayo Road, will present a service of Advent Lessons and Carols on Monday, December 16 th, at 7 p.m. in McGuire Hall. Leading the service will the men s choir of Good Shepherd Catholic Church, directed by Larry Gerber. Good Shepherd Catholic Church children s and men s choirs will present a service of Advent Lessons and Carols on Tuesday, December 17 th, at 7 p.m. The Savannah, Georgia, AGO Chapter invites area AGO chapters to an organ crawl in Savannah, on Saturday, January 25, 2014. There are six organs in the historic district and surrounding area. For further information, contact Jim Adams of the Savannah AGO at jima313@aol.com.
4 MEMBER NEWS For the latest news regarding our esteemed dean, Jonathan Hehn, see the Dean s Message at the beginning of this issue of the AGO Newsletter! WEBSITE UPDATE I recently completed the renovations to our chapter website (www.tallahasseeago.org). This included moving the site to a new content management system (CMS) which will allow for easier upkeep of the site and enhanced useability. While most of the content remains the same, the site now has integration with our Facebook page and a better and more visible events calendar. One item I would like to mention is the Members section of our website. Included in this section is an area for chapter documents such as our board meeting minutes, budgets, member directory, and chapter operating procedures. The chapter documents section is protected to keep the general public out, so you will need to create an account on our site in order to view these documents. To create an account, go to: http://tallahasseeago.org/wordpress/wplogin.php?action=register. Once you have created an account and I have approved your account, you will be able to access this section. As always, I welcome your comments. You may send them to me at webmaster@tallahasseeago.org. Webmaster, Will Scarboro ********************************************************** JOB OPENINGS First Presbyterian Church, Bainbridge,Georgia, is looking for an organist. Please contact choir director Mike Inlow for details at todd38@aol.com. Trinity Anglican Church, Thomasville, Georgia, is looking for an organist/choirmaster starting January 1, 2014. For information, contact the church at trinityanglican@rose.net. SACRED MUSIC FELLOWSHIPS MYRON MUNDAY FELLOWSHIP IN SACRED MUSIC Trinity Methodist Church, in cooperation with The Florida State University College of Music, is pleased to announce the Myron Munday Fellowship in Sacred Music, open to undergraduate music students studying sacred music or a related field at The Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. In addition to an annual scholarship of $2000 and an additional book allowance, fellows will be offered professional training in the areas of music, liturgy, theology, and administration. The purpose of the fellowship is to train students in the various aspects of sacred music ministry, in order that they may be equipped to serve the Church as leaders in the future. It offers students a chance combine the tremendous resources of The Florida State
5 University College of Music with practical educational opportunities provided by an excellent and diverse parish music ministry. This fellowship begins in the Fall of 2014. For more information and to apply, please contact Dr. Jonathan Hehn at jhehn@tumct.org. GRAY MEMORIAL FELLOWSHIP IN SACRED MUSIC Gray Memorial United Methodist Church, in cooperation with The Florida State University College of Music, is pleased to announce the Gray Memorial Fellowship in Sacred Music, open to undergraduate music students studying sacred music or a related field at The Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. In addition to an annual scholarship of $3000 and an additional book allowance, fellows will be offered professional training in the areas of music, liturgy, theology, and administration. The purpose of the sacred music internships at Gray Memorial United Methodist Church is to provide competent musical leadership for the congregation, and to train students in the various aspects of the sacred music ministry in order that they may be equipped to serve the Church as servant leaders in the future with competence in music and in liturgy, theology, and administration. This fellowship begins in the Fall of 2014. For more information and to apply, please contact Rev. Ron McCreary at rmccreary@flumc.org. Both of these fellowships are open to both prospective and current FSU students. Information on the FSU sacred music degree and specialized studies programs can be found at www.music.fsu.edu. ********************************************************** Listen to PIPEDREAMS -Sundays 7:00-9:00 p.m. on WFSQ (91.5 FM) Dec. 8 Dec. 15 Dec. 22 Dec. 29 Jan. 5 - A Swiss Mix -A sample of the Swiss organs to be explored during the upcoming PIPEDREAMS tour of Switzerland in May 2014. - An English Christmas Festival, featuring choirs and organists sharing beautiful repertoire drawn from many years of British holiday tradition. - An American Organists Christmas performers, composers, arrangers, and instrument builders join in providing music for the holiday season. - An International Holiday visions of sugarplums dance in our heads during this sampler of international holiday confections. - The Organist s Yearbook highlights from recent recordings, concerts, prizewinning performances, memorial tributes, etc. ADD YOUR VOICE If you have information on upcoming events, news about chapter members, information about open choral or organ positions, corrections to previous newsletters that you'd like to share, or anything else of musical interest, please e-mail these items to the newsletter editor, whose e-mail address is listed on the first page of every issue of The Tallahassee Organist. PLEASE SEND US INFORMATION ABOUT EVENTS TAKING PLACE IN YOUR CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS AND ANYWHERE ELSE THAT YOU KNOW ABOUT. PLEASE INCLUDE ADMISSION (IF ANY), CHILDCARE (IF PROVIDED), AND ANY OTHER PERTINENT DETAILS. ****************************************************************************