Dean - American Guild of Organists--Eastern NY - Bizland.com

Charles Jones
Dean
339.6297
cjonesnj@earthlink.net
Todd Sisley
Sub-Dean
462.2405
tsisley@agohq.org
Edee Silva
Recording Secretary
877.8032
hymnodee@gmail.com
Michael Ricchiuti
Treasurer and Registrar
810.7499
smr4364@gmail.com
Maury A. Castro
Corresponding Secretary
272.2771 xt. 14
maury@unitedprestroy.org
NEXT ISSUE
February 2011
SUBMISSION
Deadline: January 25
Submit material to
Maury A. Castro, editor, at
maury@unitedprestroy.org
January 2011
FROM THE DEAN
As the rest of the world revels in the music, shopping, decorations and general folderol
of December, we sacred musicians know the real secret joy is coming later: January! A
time to relax, refresh, and begin some new personal projects. I also have another secret
personal joy that I would like to share with you at the start of this new year. They say
that the best things in life are free. This month, I would like to share with you four
incredible sources of free, public-domain organ music. These digitized collections
provide a wealth of treasures. I'm sure, as you explore, you will discover many new
gems for use in your work and for your own personal enjoyment.
1. Sibley Library, University of Rochester
https://urresearch.rochester.edu/viewInstitutionalCollection.action?collectionId=63
Put "organ" in search box; Over 900 items, mainly romantic and early 20th century,
several collections and 20th century "chestnuts"
2. International Music Scores Library Project
http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:For_organ
If you get the main page, under Petrucci Library, click "browse by instrumentation or
genre," then "instrumentation" on top
3. Free Sheetmusic Library
http://www.bh2000.net/score
Music of Bach/Buxthehude/Handel/Froberger/Pachelbel - large files!
4. Free-Scores.com
http://www.free-scores.com/index_uk.php3
select "digital" in box on very top that says "All Site"
select "organ" in Instrument box directly under the oblong picture
click "Go" under that second box
There are certainly many sources of digitized content on the web, but I have found the
preceding to be the largest and most comprehensive. Remember, as with all things in
life, you get what you pay for, so there are issues, including outdated editions, and
searching is sometimes cumbersome. I personally allow myself to become lost in free
browsing of the content on these sites, and have found some amazing things. If you
wish, you may deconstruct the url's and go back to the main (continued on page 5)
Chapter Website: http://agony.bizland.com

CHAPTER EVENTS
Members and Friends Concert, St. Pius X of
Loudonville (23 Crumitie Rd.), January 23, 4:00 pm.
Charles Jones, host. Celebrating the Year of
Collaborative Music, we will meet for a reading
session followed by a brief recital of music for organ
and "others." Do you have a favorite duo you've
always wanted to play through with someone, but
haven't had access to a player? Here's the opportunity!
Several instrumentalists will be joining us, including a
violinist, pianist, and brass player, to read through a
piece that you bring. Our guests will also be
performing a prepared work with chapter members.
If you would like to bring a friend and perform a
prepared piece at the end, please contact Program
Chair Todd Sisley at 518.462.2405 or e-mail:
tsisley@gmail.com.
Organized Rhythm (Clive Driskill-Smith, organ;
Joseph Gramley, percussion), Union College
Memorial Chapel in Schenectady, February 16, 7:30
pm. Admission: Members, free; General, $10;
Seniors/Students, $7. www.organizedrhythm.com.
Find concert posters to download and print at the
chapter website (see Clarion front page).
Student Scholarship Winners Organ Recital,
Annual Meeting and Lunch, St. Peter’s Episcopal
Church, Albany (107 State St.), May 21, 11:00 am.
Neil Keen, host organist. Luncheon and annual
meeting to follow at Jack’s Oyster House across the
street.
OTHER EVENTS
John Walthausen, Organ Recital, Troy Savings Bank
Music Hall (30 Second Street), January 11, noon.
Bach, Franck and Widor. Admission is free. Concert
is part of the Music at Noon Concert Series for which
audience members are invited to bring lunch.
www.troymusichall.org.
January Jubilee, Christ Congregational Church,
Silver Spring, MD (9525 Colesville Rd.), January 15.
The AGO is presenting this day-long conference. The
non-denominational conference will be a festival of
workshops that will focus on organ and choral
repertoire, handbells, service planning and playing,
the digital organ, public and pastoral relations — all
designed to improve the skills of organists working in
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part-time church positions. The cost is $15, which
includes a box lunch. Complete information is online
at www.agohq.org.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
The ENYAGO choral library is being liquidated.
Currently housed at First United Methodist Church,
Schenectady, the contents of the library are being
made available to any interested parties for free.
The list of titles may be accessed by visiting the Guild
Events section of our chapter's website. Materials
available until January 31. For more information or to
view the library, contact Dominick Giaquinto at
374.4403 xt. 104.
Organ Study Scholarships: If you know of a young
person who might be interested in studying the organ
but could use a scholarship to make this a reality, go
to the chapter website to download an application for
a scholarship from the chapter. You may also contact
Mary Bon and Neil Keen at 439.9238 to receive a
hardcopy. Applications are reviewed and awarded on
an ongoing basis.
A Resource for Organ Enthusiasts:
www.organlive.com is an Internet audio station
dedicated to the music of the classical organ. The
broadcast is completely free to anyone with a
broadband internet connection. The station is also
listed in the classical radio stations on iTunes. For
more information, contact Brent Johnson at
comments@organlive.com or 314.496.1278.
Free: Five rank Moller Pipe Organ. Contact Donna
L. Gatz, Dean, Chautauqua Chapter of the AGO, at
dlgatz@windstream.net or 716.969.0797.
For Sale: Reed Organ, Chicago Cottage Organ Co.
single manual, 61 keys, 12 pulls, knee-swells. Walnut
parlor organ with top. Ornate case and keyboard in
outstanding condition. Some restoration needed.
Organ currently in Middlebury, VT. For stop list,
photos, further info, contact: lboyer01@nycap.rr.com.
For Sale: Allen TH1 electric two-manual and pedal
organ, in excellent condition; good for home practice
instrument. Measures 52" x 43". $250 or best offer.
Call Charles Jones, 339.6297.

IN MEMORIAM
Hugh Allen Wilson, professor of music emeritus and
internationally known organist, harpsichordist, and
conductor, died December 18, 2010 at his home,
Allenhurst, on Lake George in Bolton Landing. He was
85.
Wilson taught at Union College in Schenectady
from 1962 to 1996. He began as a part-time associate
professor of music and organist-in-residence, and later
became a full professor, director of the Union College
Choir and the Men’s and Women’s Glee Clubs, and
chairman of the Department of Arts.
On June 28, 1977, he conducted the Men’s Glee
Club in a performance at the White House for Jimmy
Carter’s first State Dinner, honoring Venezuelan
President Carlos Andres Perez. Earlier that year, the
group had toured Venezuela to much acclaim. He also
brought the Union College Choir on a tour to Greece
and Crete in 1989.
He received the Faculty Meritorious Service
Award from the Alumni Council in 1974. Throughout
his career, he gave more than 1,000 public
performances as organist, harpsichordist, and
conductor.
Besides his work at Union College, he was
music director emeritus of the First Presbyterian
Church in Glens Falls, conductor emeritus of the Glens
Falls Symphony Orchestra, past president of the
Marcella Sembrich Opera Museum in Bolton Landing,
and a member of the Eastern New York AGO Chapter.
He was founder and co-conductor of the Bolton
Festival of Music in 1948, founder and first dean of the
Adirondack AGO Chapter; co-founder of the
Adirondack Studio of Song in 1951 (which later
became the Lake George Opera Festival). He was a
member of the Kraeuter Trio, the Festival Orchestra,
the Princeton Chamber Orchestra, the Paschler-Wilson
duo, and concertized with violinist/composer George
Green. He performed as harpsichord soloist and
continuo player with several principal chamber
orchestras including the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra
with Karl Münchinger, the Princeton Chamber
Orchestra, the Boston Classical Orchestra, and the
Soviet Emigre Orchestra. Other performances included
a recital on the French-Classic organ at St. Thomas
Church in New York City in 1971, and a recording for
the Ford Foundation of 17th- and 18th-century music
on the same organ that same year; the inaugural
Connoisseur Concerts series at Saratoga Performing
Arts Center in 1972; Honegger’s King David at Alice
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Tully Hall in New York City with narrator John
Houseman in 1975, and at the National Cathedral in
Washington, D.C., in 1983; the debut of an organ
concerto written for him by Union College professor
Edgar Curtis in 1966; a series of concerts with members
of the National Symphony Orchestra and flautist David
Barg in 1982; and Mozart’s Requiem and Coronation
Mass with the Glens Falls Symphony in 1990.
Born on February 17, 1925, he was the only son
of Clarence Edway Wilson and Anna Allen Wilson. His
mother was an accomplished pianist; Wilson said he
grew up thinking everyone’s mother played all the
Brandenburg concertos from memory. Through her, he
became involved in the musical community of Bolton
Landing and Lake George. His first professional
position was as choir director-organist for the St.
James’ Episcopal Church in Lake George when he was
just 14.
He attended Yale College, graduating Phi Beta
Kappa, summa cum laude in 1946. At Yale, he studied
organ with H. Frank Boyzan, theory with Paul
Hindemith, and musicology with Leo Schrade. He
attended Yale Graduate School, where he studied
musicology from 1947 to 1949. He also studied organ
with Marcel Dupré in France and harpsichord with
Gustav Leonhardt in Holland.
Besides his musical pursuits, he enjoyed
gardening at his lifelong home on Lake George.
He is survived by many loving friends, colleagues in
the musical world, and his longtime companion,
Marshall Ford, of Bolton Landing. Memorial donations
may be sent to the Hugh Allen Wilson Choral Music
Endowment Fund at Union College, 807 Union St.,
Schenectady, NY 12308. A spring memorial service is
being planned.

POSITIONS AVAILABLE
St. John's Episcopal Church, 405 Vliet Blvd.,
Cohoes, NY 12047. 237.6013.
stjohnscohoes@nycap.rr.com. Part-time organist/choir
director to develop music ministry, lead small choir,
and play organ during Sunday worship as well as feast
days and special events. Will work with rector to
select music for service. We focus on traditional
music but are open to more contemporary Christian
music. Compensation: $6,250.00. Contact Mother
Gerry Clemmons.
Parish of St. John the Evanglist and St. Joseph,
P.O. Box 256, Rensselaer, NY 12144-0256. Small
urban parish seeks liturgical musician, 10-15
hours/wk, two weekend masses (one Saturday vigil,
one Sunday morning) and a Sunday evening mass
approximately once a month, along with all the usual
holy days. Three manual gallery organ with 41 pipe
ranks and numerous digital and orchestral voices in a
reverberant space. One manual and pedal digital
instrument in a transept. Skills for digitally enhanced
pipe organ a plus, salary commensurate with
education and experience. Send resume to The Rev.
R. Adam Forno, Pastor, at the above address.
Union Presbyterian Church, 1068 Park Avenue,
Schenectady, www.unionpres.org. Mid-sized church
seeking part- time organist/pianist for Sunday
morning worship, choir rehearsal, special seasonal
services. Weddings and funerals available with first
refusal. Musician must be comfortable with
traditional, classical and contemporary music styles.
Sight-reading, flexibility and adaptability required.
Recently refurbished 3/34 manual Pipe Organ. Salary
competitive, based on experience. Position opens
January 1. UPC is a Christian Community committed
to providing welcoming and inviting worship services
with rich musical experiences. Contact: Amy Brule,
Music Coordinator at 374.4464 or upc@nycap.rr.com.
AT THE BENCH: NANCY FRANK
If you are currently serving as an organist, where
is that, and how long have you been there?
I am currently serving as organist at the First
Presbyterian Church in Albany where I have enjoyed
playing the organ for over 37 years.
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When and how did you first feel inspired to study
the organ?
I began my musical studies with piano lessons at the
age of 7, and started taking organ lessons when I was
12 years old and in the 7th grade. At that young age I
mistakenly thought that playing the organ in church
would be an easy
way to earn money
– one hour on
Sunday morning
and one hour at
choir rehearsal –
how hard could it
be? Reality set in
when I began my
first organ job at
the age of 14 in
Saginaw, Michigan
at a small Lutheran
Church. It was there that I learned that it takes a lot
more time and work than I had ever imagined
preparing for choir rehearsal and a church service
every Sunday morning. Nevertheless, I quickly fell in
love with the organ and now I cannot imagine my life
without it.
Of all the organs you’ve heard and/or played,
which instrument do you wish you could play every
week?
I am really the most happy playing the organ where I
am at First Pres. The congregation is very supportive
of me and the music program. Recently the organ was
completely
renovated and a
number of new
stops added,
substantially
enhancing the
sound. I really
enjoy the thrill
and satisfaction
of playing this
big 4-manual
68-rank Casavant organ. Even after 37 years, I am still
discovering new and interesting ways of combining
stops and making the music come to life.
What are your favorite pastimes?
Reading, cooking, enjoying a nice evening with
friends and family, and playing with our grandson,

six-year-old Jake, who is the delight of my life. On
nice warm days during the summer, I just love
relaxing out on the deck in our backyard with a good
book.
Of ALL music available, what recording would
you want if stranded on a desert island?
Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor as
performed by pianist Emil Gilels (1916-1985) with
Eugene Ormandy and The Philadelphia Orchestra.
This is a 33 rpm record which my husband Wes has
cleaned up and converted to a CD. As performers,
we’ve all experienced that rare moment when every
note and every nuance we’re feeling all come
together. Usually this happens when I’m by myself
practicing and no one else is listening – rarely does
this happen during an actual performance. This
recording, performed live in 1965, is one of those rare,
wonderful moments. When I listen to this recording, I
have to sit down, and marvel at the breathless beauty
of the music. I find myself actually holding my breath
in awe and wonder.
FROM THE DEAN (continued)
page of these sites to browse the wealth of resources
for other instruments and content in music history and
literature. There are, of course, the sites that provide
5
paid access to printed sheet music -
sheetmusicplus.com, musicnotes.com, and many
others. Next month, I will share some of my favorite
websites related to sacred music and the art of the
organ.
Please notice further in this letter the reflection on the
life of our long-time member, Hugh Allen Wilson. We
send condolences to his longtime companion,
Marshall Ford. We also bid a fond farewell to our past
dean, Barbara Adler, who has moved to Utah to live
with her children and grandson. Please come back to
visit, Barbara!
Lastly, we hope to see you at our January 23
"Members and Friends" program at St Pius church in
Loudonville (see p. 2). We are also looking forward
with much delight to the "Organized Rhythm"
program on Wednesday, February 16, at Union
College Chapel (see p. 2). Rave reviews precede Clive
Driskill-Smith and Joseph Gramley in their organpercussion
performances.
I wish you a wonderful and joy-filled new year of
music and musical adventures!
~ Charles Jones