The Royal Canadian College of Organists, Kingston Centre

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The Royal Canadian College of Organists
Le Collège royal canadien des organistes
KINGSTON CENTRE
NEWSLETTER
Opus 50 - December 2002

From the Chair

Each year the time leading up to Christmas seems more and more busy. (Is it age creeping up?) With two musicians in the household preparing services and concerts, and two families vying for parental attention, the days just don't seem long enough! I know that our situation isn't unusual, because after all, this is the time when congregations and families expect the most from us.
When life becomes too hectic that's the time I love to go and practice - preferably in the late afternoon. Even at St Andrew's by the Lake (sanctuary on Sunday, badminton and exercise-class venue on weekdays) there is an atmosphere of peace when the altar is set up and the banners are hung and the Christmas tree lights are on. That hour and a half that I give myself on Saturday is a time for reflection and practice and is really very precious. It reminds me again and again why I am a church musician.
I hope that you and your families find peace and happiness this Christmas season, and that you will start the New Year refreshed.

From the Editor

Things never move as fast as we had hoped (or else they move faster, like summer). The original intention had been to issue the Newsletter in the first week, or at most ten days, of the month of publication. Partly this has been out-dated by the Executive's decision to hold its normal monthly meeting in the second week of the month, which means that the final arrangements for upcoming programmes are not normally available in time for so early a date of issue.

But then, of course, personal matters intrude: obligations and distractions pile up, with the inevitable result for the plans of mice and men. Two such, in particular, have affected your Editor this time around, The first is, perhaps, a cause for modified rapture: I at last have an e-mail address! (For those of you who are equipped to handle such marvels, my address is .) You computer buffs may think that this was a simple matter - and perhaps for you it was. But not for me. First, I tried to get hooked up at my office, where the computer is relatively new; but both Cogeco and Bell insisted that I should have to pay commercial rate, which is of course outrageous. To have it at home meant buying a new computer, since my friendly ancient machine at home, on which I have always produced the Newsletter, was too old-fashioned to support the Internet. Well (I am cutting a very long story very short here), I finally decided to take the plunge, and the new machine was delivered last week. Two days later a bright young man arrived to link the computer up to cable. He left me with a connection that didn't in fact work, and absolutely no information - not even, for example, whether I had been assigned an e-mail address, or how I could find out, or how to use it when I found it. When I muttered something to this effect he said "Well, we could give you the set-up but it would cost another sixty dollars." I won't bore you with the rest of the machinations by which I finally got hooked up, genned up and fed up - I have now actually sent and received some e-mails; I'll only add that when I finally got around to starting to type this column, I found that my favourite Newsletter font, Lucida Casual, was no more, and that when I tried to change the font for one I liked better than what they provided, the machine turned 'things never move so fast' into '000000000000000'. It took an hour's telephone tutorial to sort that out, and now here I am. (Feeling rather pleased with myself.)

The second event is, that I am now the doting owner of two adorable ginger kittens, Carlo and Randy. Since they came from the Humane Society, which had rescued them from abandonment, they were in sorry shape when found, and have needed a lot of treatment; Randy even lost an eye. This seems to faze him not at all: he rushes round the room like his brother, and never collides with anything (except his brother, and that's on purpose).

However, they still need a little treatment - a pill or two - to complete their return to health; and it was with some interest that I read a short treatise on how to pill a cat, which turned up on someone's computer off the Internet. In case you possess, or one day may think of acquiring, a cat, I shall give you the benefit of this instruction. Of course, it's not got much to do with the organ, but who cares? We should never turn down a bit of free enlightenment.

How to give a cat a pill

1. Pick up cat and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby. Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cat's mouth and gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth, pop in the pill. Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.
2. Remove pill from floor and cat from behind sofa. Cradle cat in left arm and repeat the process.
3. Retrieve cat from bedroom; throw away soggy pill.
4. Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm, holding rear paws tightly with left hand. Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right forefinger. Hold mouth shut for count of ten.
5. Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Call spouse from garden.
6. Kneel on floor and with cat wedged firmly between knees, hold front and rear paws. Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into cat's mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cat's throat vigorously.
7. Retrieve cat from curtain rail, get another pill from foil wrap. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered figurines and vases from hearth and set to one side for later repair.
8. Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with head [cat's] just visible from below armpit. Put pill in end of drinking straw, force [cat's] mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw.
9. Check label to make sure pill not harmful to humans. Drink one beer to take away taste and apply Band-Aid to spouse's forearm; remove blood from carpet with water and soap.
10. Retrieve damn cat from neighbour's shed. Get another pill. Open another beer. Place cat in cupboard, close door onto neck [cat's] to leave head showing. Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band.
11. Fetch screwdriver from garage, put cupboard door back on hinges. Drink beer. Fetch bottle of Scotch. Pour one shot and drink. Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of last tetanus shot. Apply whisky compress to cheek to disinfect. Toss back another shot. Throw tee shirt away and fetch new one from the bedroom.
12. Call fire department to retrieve effing cat from tree across the road. Apologize to neighbour who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid cat. Take last pill from foil wrap.
13. Hog-tie the little bastard. Tie front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind tightly to leg of dining table. Bring heavy duty gloves from shed. Push pill into mouth followed by a large piece of steak filet. Be rough about it. Hold animal's head vertically and pour a large glass of water down throat to wash down pill.
14.Consume remainder of Scotch. Have spouse drive you to Emergency; sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill fragments from right eye. Call furniture shop on the way home to order a new table.
15.Arrange for S.P.C.A. to collect mutant cat from hell and call pet store to see if they have any hamsters. I am happy to be able to report that my daughter Hilary, being a Registered Veterinary Technician, pills my two for me, quite successfully, by the first and more conventional method. I leave it to her. Anyway, I have no use for hamsters.

The College Service

Sunday October 27th saw history made in the Kingston Centre; for we held, I believe for the first time, a College Service on the pattern of the one which takes place annually at the National Convention. Indeed it had a flavour also of the College Convocation, for recalling the fact that we have never given formal public recognition to our increasing, and increasingly distinguished, group of scholarship winners, we decided to present the current scholarship holders with certificates before the Service began.
The Service was held at St Paul's Anglican Church on Queen Street, by kind invitation of the Rector, the Revd. David Ward, who conducted the service and preached the sermon. I must admit that, as a one-time Anglican, I agree with those who extol the beauty of Cranmer's evensong, which suited the noble proportions and fine acoustic of the church we were in. Many things contribute to the overall impact of this service, of which the glorious language is of course foremost (it is a constant - the music is variable!). It is not its occasional quaintness that compels one: 'Prevent us, O Lord, in all our doings with Thy most gracious favour, and further us with Thy continual help' is a sentence which might tolerate a substitution for 'prevent', to avoid needless obfuscation; but try to think of another locution equally graceful in rhythm and equally apt to express the right idea. It is possible to translate the old words into a modern idiom which is both intelligible and euphonious; unfortunately it is not often done; and new texts which we are invited to sing are all too often banal, clumsy, ungrammatical and even theologically suspect. (But that is another story.)
On this occasion the music did full justice to the words. The centre-piece was Healey Willan's setting of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in D major, supported by a setting of Psalm 150 by C.V.Stanford and Let all the world to Harwood's tune as the office hymn. For the anthem the choir performed a simple but effective piece by David How, called Day by Day. The other two hymns were - appropriately - Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness (Uttingen) and Now God be with us (Christo fons jugis). The choir was something of a wonder - almost thirty volunteers assembled earlier in the afternoon to practice the music, and impressed the rest of us both by their number and by the degree of perfection which, under David Cameron's expert guidance, they achieved in so short a time. Robert Hunter Bell accompanied the Choir on the organ.
Dr Ward's homily was based on a passage from the Old Testament of which, I must confess, I did not take a note of the source, which of course now escapes me. But the theme was calculated to make an impression on a gathering such as ours. The passage contained a list of names of certain individuals who were called upon to make a particular contribution to the music of an important service, and it brought vividly to our attention the role which each of us plays in Divine worship. We are people of varying talents and degrees of training, working in different religious traditions, but united in the desire to bring to the worship of God the best music and the best performance of which we are capable. For my part, it caused me to reflect with profound gratitude on the opportunity I have been given to turn to account the musical experience of boyhood and early manhood, towards and since the end of my career in philosophy, to contribute for over a quarter of a century to the music of St Mary's Cathedral. We all come to our musical positions by various routes, and being unable to bring a budget of impressive musical diplomas to the front door, I thank the good Lord that he allowed a back door to be left ajar. "God moves in a mysterious way" to call us to His service.
Part of what constitutes the concrete call to service is the provision of opportunities, and that brings us back to the incidental purpose of this event - the honouring of our scholarship holders, and reminds us forcibly of the tremendous value of our scholarship programme, which I am sure is sometimes responsible for turning devoted pianists into even more devoted organists. It is sad that, of the seven current scholarship holders who were invited by letter to attend, only two in fact attended. (Perhaps next year we should give thought to an earlier and more imaginative form of invitation.) But what a contribution those two made! Jill Mingo and Mark Krowicki, who supplied the preludes and postlude to the service, gave us some fine playing: a Bach Trio Sonata and Messiaen's Desseins éternels from Jill, and a Bach Chorale Prelude and the Fugue from Mendelssohn's Sixth Sonata from Marek as prelude and entrance music; and a delightful and rarely heard climax, the Fugue in C written as a duet for organ by Samuel Wesley, played by both organists as a postlude, which drew well-deserved applause. These two gifted organists must be among the stars of those whose development our scholarships have aided. We wish them, and confidently predict, great success in their future musical careers.
Our warm thanks to all who took part in this splendid enterprise, and especially to Dr Ward for his hospitality and apposite wisdom, to our readers, Joan Egnatoff and Carol Ramer, and to our colleagues Robert Bell and David Cameron for organizing and helping to perform the musical programme. This College Service should certainly become a cherished annual tradition.

Dave Wickerham in Concert

by Carol Ramer
I attended a concert on Saturday, November 30th, at the Church of the Redeemer featuring concert organist Dave Wickerham. The concert was sponsored by the Kingston Theatre Organ Society, which, as most of you know, has been responsible for restoring the grand 27-rank Kimball Theatre Organ located in the church.
Dave Wickerham is a fabulous organist. I was absolutely amazed at his musicality, his dexterity (there are a huge number of tabs, which make every noise from bird-call to siren), his playing ability, and his wide range of repertoire which covered a great swath of musical styles. And, folks, no score in front of this guy!! His improvisations were second to none. I remember the organ builders and audience swooning over Hector Olivera in Calgary at the 1995 R.C.C.O. Convention. Mr Wickerham would make Hector's improvisations sound primer level.
Mr Wickerham comes from the United States, and resides with his family at Las Vegas. He has a very busy concert career. He studied organ at an early age with Roseamond Crowley, one of the few remaining descendants of the Louis Vierne line of organists. He then pursued studies in Organ Performance for six years at the University of Tucson, Arizona, on full scholarship, under Dr Roy Jackson. He makes his living doing exactly what he loves best, as is obvious in his mastery of the instrument.
Do I sound like a fan? Well, I am now. If you ever have a chance to hear this talented and enthusiastic player, go for it. And hurray for the Theatre Organ Society for bringing such players to Kingston, and thanks to Jim Zehr, a member of our Executive, for inviting us to this concert.

Twelvth Night Party

You are cordially invited to the Centre's Twelfth Night Party, which is at 7.30 p.m. on Friday, January 10th. It will take place again this year at St Thomas' Church, Reddendale, by kind invitation of Nora Vincent. The idea is that light entertainment in a relaxed atmosphere will be provided by those of you who are talented and bold enough - poems, songs or whatever, especially if it will make us laugh. Carol Ramer is co-ordinating the event (and perhaps contributing to the entertainment.). Let her know if you have an offering. Coffee, tea and punch will be provided; you are asked to bring a sweet or a savoury to share (after-dinner snacks, not main courses), and anything special you like to drink. We had a good time last year - but a few more people will make it better still!

Members' Concert by Charles Balme

Bev Koski and her telephone team found enough people interested in this event to make it a go. Thanks, Bev and committee. It seems that we have about a dozen people interested in making music, including Spanish and other organ music, songs, piano, jazz and who knows what else.
Joan Egnatoff has very kindly used her influence to make First Baptist Church (corner of Sydenham and Johnson Streets) available for this event. This church has marvellous acoustics, a nice-sounding two-manual organ (pipes augmented with electronic stops), a large upright piano, and an adjacent well-equipped hall where we can hold the social part of the gathering.
The plan is to hold the event on Sunday, February 16th, starting at 2.30 p.m. with music for about an hour or so, and wrapping it up with a social hour when we can catch up with one another while enjoying afternoon tea or coffee and light snacks.
In a few weeks I will telephone those of you who expressed interest in providing music to find out what you would like to play, so that I can produce something of a programme. In the light of the above numbers, performers should count on providing four or five minutes of music, modest variations either way being no problem.
Should any others want to make some music, do contact me (Charles Balme) at (FAX/phone) 382-8640 or (e-mail) .

An Italian Recital

In 1960, a child called Massimo Nosetti was born in Alessandria in Italy. Twenty-one years later, he was already titular organist at the Basilica of Santa Rita in Turin. Since that time he has come to play an important part in the world of organ music. He studied organ, composition, choral music and conducting at the National Conservatories of Milan and Turin, and later studied the organ with P.Pidoux and J.Langlais. From as early as 1979 until 1994 he was Director of Music at Turin Cathedral, and his interests in church music and aspects of organ construction have found outlet in membership of both Diocesan and National Commissions for Sacred Music.
Signor Nosetti has an active life also as performer and composer. He frequently gives recitals in all European countries, as well as Canada, the United States, Mexico, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. He has made a number of CDs, and recordings for radio companies in several countries from Vatican City and Germany to Japan. He has also composed extensively for organ, choir and orchestra.
William O'Meara, whose talents most of us are acquainted with, suggested to Signor Nosetti that he ask to be invited to Kingston, and the Executive has arranged that he give a concert at Chalmers Church on Sunday, March 2nd 2003, at 8.00 p.m.. This event will contribute to the celebration of the completion of the rebuild of the Chalmers organ. David Cameron had prepared an interesting article on the Chalmers organ and its rebuild, which he kindly offered for publication in the September Newsletter. As there was unfortunately not room in that issue, he is preparing an updated version which we hope to publish in March. Both the recital and the article should be well worth your attention. Unfortunately we do not have Signor Nosetti's programme at the time of going to press.

Student Recital

This will take place at Chalmers some time in March. It is organized by David Cameron. Participants will be, in the first place, current scholarship holders, whose teachers will, we hope, encourage them to take part; and secondly, past scholarship holders who are not at present taking lessons but would like to do the concentrated work necessary for readying a performance (good for the soul, not to speak of the hands and feet!). We will let you know when the date is fixed.

Organ and Cello Concert

The long awaited concert by Matthew Larkin, who was some years ago Assistant at St George's and is now Organist, appropriately enough, at St Matthew's Church in Ottawa, and Wolf Tormann, the Principal Cello in the Kingston Symphony, will take place on Friday May 30th at Chalmers, as a further event in celebration of the rebuild. Hopefully, the March issue will contain full details of the programme.

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Supply Organists

Robert Hunter Bell is available for deputy organist duty at weddings, funerals and other church services. Please call him.

Michael Goodwin is available for all church services (experienced in Anglican liturgy), also weddings and funerals. Please call.

Ross Trant is available as a supply organist (when home) for Sundays and special services, especially in the Quinte area. Telephone: e-mail .

A Blessed and Joyous Christmas to you all!

OPUS 50 December News Letter