Sunday Song: Mother Knows Best

Mother Knows Best, El Capitan Theatre Organ w/ Rob Richards and Alex Zsolt. Filmed January 15, 2011 as part of Pipes and Pops Wurlitzer Weekend.

Making Mistakes

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“Perfectionism can be a paralyzing curse; but self satisfaction is intolerable. Humility is a virtue.”

~Miriam Clapp Duncan

Last week on this blog's facebook page I mentioned that I didn't play my organ examples flawlessly in my presentation at Super Saturday.  I know I've mentioned things like this in the past as well.  I thought I'd write an article dedicated to making mistakes today.

By nature I am a huge perfectionist.  One thing I love about music, is that you can be perfect.  A quarter note lasts for one beat.  A metronome marking can be set so that your tempo is exact.  This concept of perfection is one of the many reasons that I ultimately preferred the organ over the flute.  When you play the flute, everything can be subjective, from your embouchure, to your hand position, to where your tongue is in your mouth, to your tone quality.  The organ removes many of these subjective variables, at least as they relate to tone quality!

I used to beat myself up, over and over, when I made mistakes in a worship service.  I remember praying with my whole soul that I would just not make any mistakes, but they'd come anyway, despite the numerous hours I spent practicing.

How frustrating!

I used to think that I had to be perfect!  That if I presented myself as a trained organist, there was no room for error, ever.  I hid my human side, instead presenting an airbrushed image of myself.  I didn't let anyone get to know the real me, because it wasn't who I ultimately wanted to be.

Slowly, things changed. In the first place, this perfection was unattainable, despite my intense practice hours. Then I attended the BYU Organ Workshops and saw that those with significantly more training and experience than me didn't take themselves too seriously.  I vividly remember Linda Margetts, Tabernacle Organist, putting her organ shoes on her hands, moving the organ bench out of the way, getting down on her hand and knees, and playing the pedals with her hands to illustrate a concept.  Learning that these great organists were willing to show a human side gave me permission to show others that I'm human as well.  I learned that I don't have to be unattainably perfect all the time.

I read a quote recently that I want to share here, but despite many attempts, I haven't been able to find it!  The gist of it is as follows:  A music teacher was conversing with his student, who asked, "But what if I make a mistake?"  The music teacher replied, "That is why people come to your recital--to hear your mistakes.  A perfect performance is boring.  Mistakes add a human element to your performance, and that is why people listen."

When I played for BYU Women's Conference last year, I had spent months preparing my hymns, but I knew my nerves would kick in, and I most likely would make some mistakes.  I remember sitting in the huge Marriott Center, pondering and praying during some classes prior to my accompaniment, wondering if, perhaps, I should have just played the hymns straight from the hymnal, instead of utilizing various techniques to help better share the spirit of the hymns I was playing. I knew I could play the standard hymns more consistently than if I changed them up a bit, and really started to second-guess myself and my decisions.

As I was worrying in my mind I had the thought, "who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?"  I realized that despite my imperfections, the spirit I brought with me and the preparation I made was exactly what was needed in that audience at that time.  Yes, I ultimately did make some mistakes.  But I also touched hearts, and that is the purpose behind all of my efforts.

Now, instead of praying for a perfect performance, I pray that I will have the Spirit with me, and that I will touch the hearts and lives of those who are listening to me play.  I pray that my preparation will be adequate, and that I will prepare those in attendance for worship.

Now, this realization doesn't give me permission to skip my preparation, or to do anything less than my very best.  It just means that it's okay if my very best isn't utter perfection.

I've learned that my lot in life is to do all that I can do, and the Lord will magnify my efforts--not in spite of, but because of my mistakes.

(If you liked this article, you may also be interested in reading Florence's article entitled, Practice Makes Perfect Comfortable)

Today is World Organ Day!

Today is World Organ Day! Click here for a list of concerts that are being held today.

Sacred music regulates the Notre Dame cathedral’s life since its construction and the organ has been there since the beginning. First in the choir only, then hanged in the nave, an organ was built on the gallery in 1401 and became after many restorations and reconstructions, one of the most famous organs in the world: The Great Organ of Notre-Dame de Paris.Thanks to it, Organ music regulates the cathedral life since its early times. It is to pay tribute to this music that during the 850th anniversary, on May 6th 2013 will the World Organ Day 2013 be held.

This global event is completely new. It will consist in more than 850 concerts which will make the repertoire of Notre-Dame de Paris ring out in places of worship and concert halls on the five continents. Due to time differences the concerts will stretch on more than 24 hours, giving this event proportions without precedent.

The concerts are coordinated by Notre-Dame de Paris 2013 association in partnership with several organists associations but independently organized by each place of worship or concert hall. In order to introduce or help the widest audience to rediscover the beauty of organ music, many media-related means will be displayed to give more visibility to this instrument which is sometimes unrecognized by the general public.

Take some time today to share the organ with others.

You may not be able to attend or perform in a recital, but there are other things that you can do to promote and celebrate the king of instruments, the organ. Perhaps you can play your favorite piece for a friend or family member, introduce someone to a new prelude piece, make posts on Facebook concerning World Organ Day, post links to your favorite organ repertoire, or offer to give someone a free organ lesson. There are all kinds of possibilities!

Sunday Song: Vierne's Symphonie II

It's past time for a new Sunday Song!


Johann Vexo play Louis Vierne: Symphonie II at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris


From the YouTube description:  Johann Vexo is the Organist of the Choir Organ and in this video plays the Great Pipe Organ in Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. This was recorded as an "extra" while recording a CD of him on the pipe organ in the cathedral. The work is Louis Vierne's Symphonie II in e minor, Opus 20; composed in 1903 and dedicated to Charles Mutin.

Monday is World Organ Day

Monday is World Organ Day. This global event is completely new. It will consist in more than 850 concerts which will make the repertoire of Notre-Dame de Paris ring out in places of worship and concert halls on the five continents. Due to time differences the concerts will stretch on more than 24 hours, giving this event proportions without precedent.

The concerts are coordinated by Notre-Dame de Paris 2013 association in partnership with several organists associations but independently organized by each place of worship or concert hall. In order to introduce or help the widest audience to rediscover the beauty of organ music, many media-related means will be displayed to give more visibility to this instrument which is sometimes unrecognized by the general public.  Click here for more information.

Music in Heaven

 

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At the UVAGO Super Saturday Organ Training Workshop, our keynote speaker, Carol Dean, said, "I know there are pipe organs in heaven, because I wouldn't be happy there if there weren't."  Later, the dean of our chapter reiterated that statement, by saying her late husband is building her pipe organ, and she told him she won't join him there until it is ready for her.  My eighty-year-old grandmother, who has been a ward organist for almost sixty years, missed those statements, but attended the final two classes.  Afterwards, she asked me for organ lessons, because she wants to "be ready." Although she wasn't there for the earlier statements, she echoed their sentiments!

The concept of music in heaven is something that I've had on my mind a lot throughout my life. It is common acceptance in the Christian world that angels sang at Jesus Christ's birth, for how could such a miraculous event be celebrated any other way?

Handel is said to have exclaimed after finishing the Hallelujah chorus, “I did think I did see all Heaven open before me and the great God Himself.”

John Taylor, an early Mormon prophet said:

“We have no idea of the excellence of the music we shall have in heaven. It may be said of that, as one of the Apostles has said in relation to something else—‘Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive of those things which are prepared for those who love and fear God.’ We have no idea of the excellency, beauty, harmony and symphony of the music in the heavens.”

Can you imagine?  I know many of us, as church musicians, have probably had divine experiences with music.  I know there has been more than one time in my life where I have felt the heavens open and experienced divine music from above.  In fact, in my recent article, I mentioned that "as organists, we have the opportunity to invite people to worship, to help them call upon the choirs of heaven, and help them join their voices in an experience of spiritual outpouring."

This is my goal for every congregation of every denomination.  This is why I created my blog, so that in some small way I can help church organists facilitate this outpouring.

Have you ever experienced a musical communion with heaven?

How to Beautify Hymn Accompaniment

As organists, we have the opportunity to invite people to worship, to help them call upon the choirs of heaven, and help them join their voices in an experience of spiritual outpouring.  In order to do this, it requires us to do more than just rely on some presets and a quick run-through of the hymns. 

We need to be prepared, or we can't help our congregations worship!  In the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord said, “The song of the righteous is a prayer unto me.”  If you are not LDS, you might instead be familiar with a saying often attributed to Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, “He who sings, prays twice.”  It is our responsibility, as organists, to inspire our congregations to sing, and facilitate this communion with Heaven.

A  New Experience Every Time

Something I learned in the past that's really stuck with me is that we need to make singing the hymns a new experience for our congregation every single Sunday--a new experience every single time they sing a hymn.

I attended an organ workshop some years ago, where I heard  a similar introduction to this hymn, and it was a changing moment in my life.  I remember it very clearly, and it was in a registration class of all places.  I had never before felt that much excitement about singing a hymn!  As the organist played I found myself sitting up straighter and experiencing this well-known hymn for the very first time.  (I linked to the sheet music here.)

And now I desire everyone to have that same experience.  It literally changed my life!  So I'm sharing this message with all who will listen.

In his forward to Festive Hymn Introductions, Dale Wood writes:

“Hymn playing should never become a routine and commonplace thing.  A conscientious organist must continually inspire the congregation and not allow the singing to become monotonous and prosaic.”

If we do not prepare ourselves for each and every Sunday, instead relying on our past experiences in playing the hymns, how can we expect the congregation to be able to have a new experience each and every week?

It doesn't have to be very difficult.  The introduction I just shared doesn't have to become the norm for your congregation. In fact, if it did, it would lose its impact.  So let's explore are some techniques that will help inspire our congregations to sing.  These first seven items are foundations that I've mentioned before, but they are so important that I wanted to mention them anyway.  Work on these first, before proceeding to the additional techniques:

• Find love and joy in your calling as organist. The spirit in your heart is conveyed through your music.
• Be prepared! Practice the hymns, spend time studying the hymn texts, and select appropriate registrations, then play with confidence.
• Play appropriate, well-prepared prelude music. This is not the time to quickly run through the congregational hymns. Prepare the environment for congregational singing.
• Play hymns at their proper tempo. Invest in an inexpensive metronome, or download a metronome app for your phone. Hymns should not drag!
• Adequately support your congregation with the organ's volume. If you're too soft, the congregation will feel uncomfortable singing out. If you are too loud, they won't be able to hear themselves sing. (But when in doubt, err on the loud side!) If you're unsure, ask those who sit in the back to give you feedback on the organ's volume following the service.
• Change registration to follow the mood of the hymns and to follow the hymn text. Don't use the same registration from week to week or from hymn to hymn.
• Be sensitive to the hymn text: Breathe—or don't breathe—with the text. Keep the message of the hymn intact, and read or sing along with the verses.

Again, these things are important and build the foundation, but they're not the focus of this article, so let's jump into additional ways we can beautify hymn singing, to be used in moderation:

• Alter the introduction. It doesn't have to be anything huge, just do something a little bit differently to help prepare the congregation to sing. Make sure it is very clear to the congregation when to begin singing. Some options include:
• soloing out the melody
• accumulating the voices (start with soprano alone)
• utilizing pedal point
• adding suspensions and/or passing tones
• beginning with a fanfare
• using something based on a published arrangement
• Play all the voices on one manual during the second-to-last verse, or play the pedals but remove all 16' stops. If you generally don't play pedals, remove the bass coupler for this verse. Add the pedal, 16' stops, or bass coupler back for the final verse, which increases the impact of the deep pedal tone.
• On a soprano/alto section of a hymn, mirror the soprano an octave lower on a verse, or use a pedal point on a verse to support those men who continue to sing the melody.
• Utilize a reed or other solo on a different manual, such as the fanfares in God of Our Fathers, Whose Almighty Hand.
• Solo out a voice of the hymn:
• solo the soprano, especially on an unfamiliar hymn by using use the melody coupler, a publication like The Organist's Upper Hand, or writing it out;
• solo out the tenor (loco or 8va) on a hymn with a beautiful tenor line;
• raise the alto up an octave to highlight a nice alto line.
• Change keys prior to the final verse. Make sure the congregation will hear and recognize the new key before beginning to sing. A quick way to change keys up ½ a step is to step down with the pedal from the tonic two whole steps, playing the V7 of the new key on the second one.
• In appropriate places during one verse of a hymn add non-chord tones such as:
• passing tones, which “fill in” the space between two primary notes;
• neighboring tones, tones that step up or down, then back to the chord tone;
• suspensions, which prolong a consonant note while the harmony changes, usually on a strong beat, and then generally resolve down by step to the third of the new chord;
• Add a pedal point. A pedal point is either the dominant (usually) or the tonic, played in the pedal and sustained throughout harmonic changes in sections of the hymn.
• Use a different version of the hymn from an old hymnal, such as the chorus of There is Sunshine In My Soul for one verse (watch out for different key signatures).
• Add an end of phrase fanfare or elaboration in an upbeat hymn throughout a verse.
• Utilize a short interlude between verses—begin the interlude before the congregation would feel the need to sing.
• Use a free accompaniment on the final verse of a familiar hymn. Announce in advance for the congregation to sing that verse in unison. See Don Cook's handout here.

Begin Slowly

Don't immediately rush in and start playing a free accompaniment every week! Make a small change here and there, always evaluating whether or not it was effective, if the congregation responded favorably or not, and what you could have done to better share the Spirit of each hymn.

Make sure that you don't draw undue attention to yourself, or detract from the hymn itself. Everything you do as organist should be to share the message of the hymns more fully with your congregation. Nothing should be showy or unnecessarily elaborate, or the members of the congregation will focus on the organist instead of the music. Again, always be well-prepared. If the organist is not well-prepared, members of the congregation will feel unsure about singing.

Alexander Pope said in the 18th century:

“Some to the Church repair, not for the doctrine but for the music there.”

Let us strive to make music the crowning element of each of our worship services. May we enhance the music so that we can help the members of our congregation better worship our Savior through song.