Number 9 May 2005

Editorial Comment Organists’ Workshop Being objective about this, we have to say that it was a great success. Sandra Maxwell gives an account of it in this issue. Most present completed the questionnaire (thank you to those who did) and the ratings (out of a total of 5) of the various sessions were:

Getting the best from an amateur choir 4.8; Singing session of ‘new’ hymns 3.8; Computer software 3.8; Display of organ music 4.0 The ‘bargain’ sales table 4.0 Organ recital 4.6 Chance to play organ 4.0

All indicated that such a exercise should be repeated, at least annually, and some respondents gave ideas for other useful talks. We were somewhat surprised that not very many availed of the opportunity to play the organ. Sadly there were two who wrote on the questionnaires that having heard experts Barley and Russell play, they were somewhat shy about performing. At an organists’ meeting when a ‘new’ organ is available to try, no one need feel intimidated about playing. It is always interesting to try out a ‘different instrument and there is much to be learned in doing so. Next time we shall expect great participation!

One request was for something on the care and storage of music, to help with extracting any desired item easily and quickly. Any volunteers to write a couple of paragraphs on how one does this?

Courses for organists There are several courses for organists/choir directors in the near future, and details can be found within. The RSCM Summer Course for Organists at St Giles Church, London is again reported on in this issue; everyone who has attended it (Editor included) has found it to be of great benefit. Another important RSCM event this year is the 2nd International Summer School and Conference in York City in August (see page 10). This looks to be a really useful event. Several Irish church musicians have already booked and there are still places available. Nearer home, the Charles Wood School in Armagh has much to offer; we have attended it on a couple of occasions over the years.

Childrens’ Choirs We have heard of a number of very successful childrens’ choirs in some of the churches of the diocese. We have also heard of a number of organists who would like advice and suggestions on running a childrens’ choirs. David Wilkinson (Rathfarnham) gave sound advice in one of last year’s Soundboards, but there must be a number of other organists who could do likewise. Can we request that they put ‘pen to paper’ and jot down ideas and strategies for a future article on running childrens’ choirs. All contributions welcome!

Committee Funding The Church Music Committee is appointed by the Diocesan Councils, who

give us an annual grant towards the cost of the Church Music Training

Scheme. We applied for 6500 in 2005 and were disappointed to receive

only 5000 (a repeat of the previous year’s allocation). Without realistic funding, we cannot do our job properly. The bishops and other leaders in the Church of Ireland are placing more and more emphasis in these times on the value of liturgy, music and worship in the life of our Church. But words are not enough. More resources, both human and financial are needed for these areas, nationally and at local level. Perhaps the parishes should help to strengthen diocesan funds. We will continue to draw

SOUNDBOARD A Newsletter for Church Musicians

What’s in this issue?

1. Editorial Comment

2. The Diocesan Church

Music Committee

3. How do we Promote Good

Hymn-singing?

4. Church Music in St

Patrick’s Dalkey

5. Surviving your First Year

at the Organ

6. Christ Church Leeson Park

7. A ‘Top Ten’ Funeral

Voluntaries

8. Two + One = Three!

9. The Pipeworks Festival

10. Courses for Organists

11. An Organist’s Crossword

12. Notes & News

SOUNDBOARD is published by the

Church Music Committee of the

Dublin & Glendalough Diocese of

the Church of Ireland. Views

expressed in signed articles, letters

and advertisements are not

necessarily those of the Editor or of

the Church Music Committee

Secretary:

Ms Ruth Maybury.

Editor:

Randal Henly.

The Committee serves church musicians in the dioceses of Dublin & Glendalough, Meath & Kildare, and a little further afield. Our mailing list now includes (we hope) all church musicians (Anglican, Methodist, Presbyterian) in those dioceses, and some church musicians from other traditions. The Committee always welcomes feed-back from church musicians, and suggestions. So, don’t be shy, let us know what you think.

Our e-mail address is churchmusicdublin@eircom.net. Otherwise, 183 Stillorgan Close, Stillorgan, Co. Dublin, Tel: (01) 283 1845.

Committee • Archdeacon Edgar Swann (Chairman), Rector, Greystones

Parish;

• Ruth Maybury (Secretary), Organist, Christ Church, Dún Laoghaire;

• David McConnell (Treasurer), Organist, Zion Church and the Church of the Three Patrons, Rathgar;

• Randal Henly, (Editor), Organist, St Mary’s, Howth;

• Peter Barley, Organist & Director of Music, St Patrick’s Cathedral;

• Judy Cameron, Organist, Enniskerry;

• Greg Fromholz, Director 3Rock Youth; • Kerry Houston, Organist;

• Rev. Alan Machett, Assistant Priest, Stillorgan & Blackrock;

• Andrew Mackriell, Director of St Patrick’s Cathedral Chamber Choir;

• Rev. Alan McCormack, Chaplain TCD;

• Donald Maxwell, Organist, Ballybrack;

• Rev Alan Rufli, Rector, Holmpatrick & Kenure;

• Derek Verso, Organist, Dun Laoghaire Methodist Church.

We help you! Will you help us? Very many church musicians benefit from the annual adjustment in the recommended minimum fees for organists. There will be a further increase from January 2006. The diocese subsidises the cost of the training scheme but the rest of the Committee’s programme, including the production of Soundboard, has to be self-financing. There was a good response to our annual request (last January) for a subscription. However, many have yet to reply.

If you value what we do, please send a cheque or your

credit card details to the Treasurer, David McConnell, 18

Villiers Road, Dublin 6. We suggest 30.

In succession to Tom Gordon, Peter Parshall has been appointed to the position of RSCM coordinator in Ireland. Mr Parshall is Music Development Officer at Christ Church Cathedral and is an organist and choir trainer. Prior to coming to Dublin he has been an Organ Scholar at Oxford, Director of Music at St Mary Magdalene Church Oxford, Director of Music at Westminster College Oxford, organ recitalist, music editor, and composer. He is based in Christ Church Cathedral, and may be contacted at (01) 6712426, Fax. 6798991 and e-mail: pparshall@rscm.com. He writes as follows.

The RSCM is an ecumenical organisation consisting of about 7000 active members and affiliates and 1500 supporting friends worldwide. Briefly, my role with the RSCM involves establishing the RSCM’s three core programmes in Ireland, especially the Voice for Life Scheme (which provides a framework for choral singers to develop their vocal skills, their musical understanding and their knowledge of repertoire), and the skills training (due to be launched at the International Summer School at York in August). As well, I want to build on the work begun by Tom Gordon, Mark Duley and Theo Saunders in the diocesan workshops for the launch of BCP 2004.

The three core programmes are: • The Singing Peoples (Singing in Church and Singing in the

Community, including Voice for Life); • The Musician in Church (Church Music Skills and

Leadership - a range of practical training schemes and awards in essential skills for organists, choir trainers and cantors);

• With Spirit and Understanding (Enabling Worship with Music — an educational programme to develop real understanding of music in worship).

All three core programmes embrace formal and informal learning through practice, experience and reflection, all related to the local situation. Education and training are undertaken formally through courses and programmes of learning, which can all lead to awards and qualifications. Informal and ongoing education and training are achieved through publications, advice and events offered by the RSCM, all of which seek to offer models of good practice and opportunities for individual and/or group development. At present it is the first programme that is most developed. The other two programmes are under development, and will be extended and formalised during the course of 2004-2005.

Obviously, there is a great amount to be done, and indeed, it will take some little while to activate the programmes outlined above, in Ireland. Three Cathedral Organists, Judy Martin, Peter Barley and Philip Stopford have already undergone training as examiners for the Awards Scheme (Bronze, Silver and Gold), which are the more formal assessments associated with the Voice for Life Scheme. I hope that other examiners will be validated in due course. There are, already, a number of choirs and individuals, both North and South, following the Voice for Life Scheme and I hope that, in due course more can be encouraged.

There are also plans afoot for a choral festival in Dublin before too long. Of course, there are many areas where I believe that the Dublin Diocesan Church Music Committee and the RSCM can work together very effectively, and I hope that there will be opportunity for dialogue in the near future. I will keep very closely in touch with you with details of upcoming events. I also have a (very nearly) full time job promoting the music at Christ Church, so I'm in the cathedral most days! On top of that, I'm kept quite busy as a deputy organist all over Dublin.

The Church Music Committee’s Vision All churches in the dioceses will place music, especially singing by everyone, at the heart of their worship. The music in each church will have its own style and its presentation will involve collaboration between clergy, music leaders and worshippers. The central diocesan authorities will affirm the key role of music in worship and will give effect to this by allocating a realistic level of resources of all kinds to the support of church music and musicians.

New RSCM Coordinator The Diocesan Church Music Committee

It is important that hymns illuminate some aspect of the act of worship of which they are a part. Committed, enthusiastic and sensitive singing is hardly possible if the hymns chosen are at odds with the theme and mood of the service. On the other hand, an opening hymn that points forward to a scripture reading, and a closing hymn that allows a response in faith and commitment to some aspect of the service draws the worshippers in and gives shape and a sense of purpose to the whole act of worship.

So the hymns need to be relevant, and therefore they need to be chosen with care. The Royal School of Church Music’s Sunday by Sunday series is invaluable for those of us following lectionaries, but its recommendations need to be used with intelligence. (The same hymn might well fit four consecutive Sundays, but should not for that reason be sung four times in succession!) The ideal must be for minister and musician to meet to discuss the music. Neither the typical non- conformist habit of a list of hymns being presented to the organist/choirmaster on Friday, nor the more Anglican habit of allowing the musician to choose the hymns is ideal. Two heads are better than one for identifying both opportunities and pitfalls.

A music committee? Well, perhaps; but we all know how much slower it can be to consult too widely! Wiser to create opportunities for general discussion on the selection of hymns from time to time, and for these to be taken on board by those making the final selection. Thoughtful communication of the aims and plans of those choosing the hymns is important. In the end though the choice of hymns needs to be something over which everyone feels some power of ownership. Those choosing hymns should not under-estimate the value of listening to people’s views over coffee after the service. (Incidentally, remembering that a particular hymn is someone’s favourite and letting them know that it has been chosen for next Sunday is always appreciated. Unless they are off to visit relatives, that is!)

Is the relevance of a hymn always obvious? Probably not, and there needs to be space for the occasional spoken introduction to a hymn that highlights some quality. Done too often though, this becomes merely tiresome.

Just one last thought on the theme of relevance. I once attended a service at a church where the hymns were all supremely relevant but also dreadfully dull. Occasionally it is wise to let go of relevance, and offer something that

people love to sing. Hide the worthy, relevant but somewhat dull hymn in the middle of the service! Start and end, whenever possible, with something well known and well loved.

And now we’re off! The carefully selected hymn is ready to be sung. But by how many? Is it to be accompanied? How musical is the congregation? How skilled is the accompanist? What are the acoustics like? So many issues will affect what ought to happen next. If worshippers are few in number and the acoustics poor, it can become a struggle to sing even the most familiar and well- loved hymn. The pace needs to be on the swift side, and the pitch on the low side. On the other hand, a large musical congregation led by a fine choir and singing in a warm acoustic with superb organ accompaniment can survive a more stately speed and a higher pitch. Even so, there are dangers in fixing the pitch of a hymn to suit the choir, however famous. Hymns are fundamentally congregational, with any choir in a supporting role.

The choice of pitch for a tune does not simply involve looking for the highest and lowest notes. Just as important is the general tessitura (i.e. the average pitch of the tune taken as a whole.) The problem with singing Hark the herald angels sing in the traditional G major is not just that the top note is an E, but that there are lots of them, and plenty of Ds too!

Articulation on the part of the accompanist is important. An organ never needs to breathe and can produce a stodgy mass of sound. Slight breaks between the notes can help to give ‘drive’ to the accompaniment, and this is particularly effective in a resonant acoustic.

The playover needs to be at the same speed as that at which the hymn is to be sung, and so articulated as to encourage the singers to want to sing. A playover in octaves can give a bright, commanding ‘this is going to be an important item in our worship’ sound.

Other instruments as well as piano or organ can be used to accompany hymn- singing; but there can be difficulties when the instruments available do not form a compatible whole. Special sensitivity is therefore needed when making arrangements for orchestral instruments. Many church musicians will find this beyond their abilities, in which case it is an excellent opportunity to draw upon the skills of a local music teacher. Simple arrangements that allow for much doubling of parts will help cover for missing players.

An organ or piano is not de rigeur, and some churches use pre-recorded music hymn accompaniments. Unaccompanied congregational singing is an under-used resource (helped by good acoustics). The pitch for unaccompanied singing needs particularly careful attention and should be set by someone able to consider the range of the tune in question.

Congregational rehearsals can be valuable, although almost no congregation will willingly offer itself for rehearsal. The ideal is probably the occasional unannounced rehearsal that is brief and starts at the time the congregation thought the worship was going to start. It needs to be cheerful (but not jokey) and very short!

Congregations need to value and actively befriend the organist/pianist or other accompanist(s). Organists in particular tend to sit apart and can find it difficult to judge whether they are too loud or too slow from where they play. Friendship can make it easier to offer suggestions or criticisms and for these to be received.

In all this it is important to remember that the organist/pianist may well be operating at or beyond the limit of his/her abilities, and doing a job for which no-one else is able or willing to volunteer. As a rule their work is under-rewarded in a financial sense, and so it is all the more important for rewards to come in other ways. The frequent expression of gratefulness can never be out of place when directed to someone who is serving the worshipping community with faithfulness and love.

This article is reprinted with permission, from the Newsletter of the Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland. John Barnard is a secondary school language teacher; he has been active in church music throughout his life, and is currently director of music at John Keble Church, Mill Hill, England. He is widely known as a composer and arranger of liturgical music, most particularly of hymn tunes.

3 How do we Promote Good Standards of Hymn-singing? John Barnard

First of all some bare facts: St Patrick's Church is situated outside the village of Dalkey, on a height and overlooking a vast expanse of Irish Sea. The limitless supply of fresh air is but one of many factors giving one the feeling that "it is good, Lord, to be here". The only service in which music is involved is on Sunday mornings at 10.15 a.m. The monthly pattern is: 1st Sunday, Eucharist; 2nd Sunday, Family Service; 3rd Sunday, Eucharist; 4th Sunday, Morning Prayer. When there is a 5th Sunday, the Junior Choir takes over the function of the Senior Choir.

Both choirs rehearse on Friday evenings: Juniors at 6.30; Seniors at 7.30. The Senior Choir has a potential membership of twenty, the Junior Choir, sixteen. The instances of 100% attendance are rare, it being a quite normal occurrence that at our Christmas Carol Service (which would be one of our more ambitious projects) I have my first and only experience of having everybody together. But this is the real world and I do not grumble. In theory, the senior choir sings SATB. In practice that is fully achievable only on 'special' occasions such as Harvest, Advent, Christmas, Palm Sunday, but alas not Easter, because so many folk are away. Sadly, Pentecost, which I would love to celebrate musically, suffers from a similar fate. So, it will be seen that our tackling of ambitious music tends to be confined to the 'special' occasions referred to above.

My Rector leaves the choice of hymns and other music entirely in my hands. This is a weird experience for me, never having been thus involved, in a church musical career stretching back most of 40 years. It takes me three to four hours to fully prepare a monthly list, poring over collects and bible readings to find the closest relationship that I possibly can between what is said and what is sung. While, the Rector performs an editorial function on the finished list, he rarely changes anything! Whether this is because I do my job superbly well or because he is easily pleased I cannot tell. That is for others to judge!

As to the content of choir practices and how I conduct them, I will try to accommodate that aspect in a proverbial, if somewhat capacious, nutshell.

If we mumble words there is no experience, whereas if we resound them they come back at us and tell us whether or not we believe them. In the process of resounding there are attendant matters of demeanour and tone of voice. If what we say with our lips and believe in our hearts, is to be shown forth in our church services we have to make sure that the words we utter are corroborated by face

“Making some silly point at a practice!”

and tone of voice. If, for example, we were to greet a fellow human being with words that expressed delight in the encounter, but at the same time delivered those words in drab tones and with expressionless faces then facial expression and tone of voice would invert the verbal expression of delight. Applying these concepts to church, then the Gloria (in which we celebrate God as being at the very pinnacle of our "hit" parade) will sound so different from the Agnus Dei (a cry for mercy). If this kind of differentiation is not made we are left with the feeling that every hymn has too many verses, because they all sound the same and all 150 psalms are repetitions of the same text because they all sound the same.

Yes, these are major preoccupations of mine at rehearsal or in service, preoccupations which have a huge impact on the notes we sing and on the way that we sing them; and so often experience has shown me that, when these matters concerning the close relationship of words, face, and tone of voice are ignored, we are left with something like what, I think, Aldous Huxley said: "Tedium Laudamus". Discussion of the implications of all this could continue endlessly. But, fortunately for the readers of this journal, the shadow of the editor (scissors in hand) looms large over any such tendencies on my part. I will conclude therefore with a comment on just two aspects of the problem of words and their rhythmical, intelligible and meaningful delivery.

At the age of 12 I had an English teacher, Maple Cook, who together with my Dad laid the foundations of the exuberant joy in words that has sustained me through life ever since. The class text for the year in question was called "Reading and Thinking" At one point there was a brief exposition of the importance of stress in deciding what a sequence of words actually meant. The

proffered example read like this: "Jack hung his cap on the peg". The student was invited to accent each syllable in turn, to the exclusion of the others. What emerged yielded up almost as many different meanings as there were words!

Secondly, "The Barchester Chronicles" is one of the most wonderful TV series I know. In one episode there has been a garden party. As it nears its end, an elderly priest is seen subsiding wearily onto a garden-bench, where his daughter spots him and comes over to join him. (It is germane to what follows that father and daughter had arrived at the party in separate carriages and from different directions.) She says to him "Are you going home?" He says to her "Yes, my carriage is called." She then says, "May I travel with you?" to which he replies, "My dear, you always travel with me". Taking that reply of his, without looking for any subtleties of expression, it could sound like a mild rebuke. " But he, in his reply, puts an unstressed and lengthy pause on the second syllable of "always", thus: "My dear, you always travel with me".

What could have been a trivial rebuke is transformed by simple means into an expression of deep love of father for daughter. The words are unchanged but the message is elevated from mundane to sublime. Finding such moments of illumination in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs is what preoccupies us at choir-practices, and when, having sought, we find, then nothing is too long, and our joy no one takes from us. Almost as a postscript I might add that amid all this high-minded seriousness there is, in both choirs, plenty of room for laughter, fun, relaxation and social excursions. It is indeed ".....good, Lord, to be here".

TIMES PAST

Church Music in St Patrick’s Dalkey Ken Shellard, Organist & Choir Director

For anyone who is starting out as an organist, the first steps may appear the most daunting, but they are not really, if you are well organised. This article contains some hints and tips on how to approach these first months.

Making the most of practice time Having played for pleasure, preparing hymns for a church service may be the first time you are faced with a dead-line for learning a piece of music. Applying some basic principals will ensure you use practice time efficiently. You will probably already be aware of these, but now that you have a dead-line, its time to apply them rigorously. Play through the piece with each hand separately. Identify any sections that are difficult and practice them repeatedly. Pay attention to fingering. Then play with both hands, slowly at first. Again, identify any sections that are difficult; if necessary, play a single bar or line repeatedly until it is perfect. Listen as you play in order to identify areas that need attention. Once you can play the hymn note perfect, it may be useful to use a metronome. Sing along, or better still get a friend or family member to sing, this will get you used to accompanying people singing. Avoid using the sustain pedal, it’s all too easy to get into the habit of using it during difficult chord transitions, but you won’t have the luxury of it at the organ. And finally, don’t forget to practise your one line introduction.

On the Day On the day, arrive early enough to run over each hymn tune. During the service, follow a check list before starting each hymn; check the stops, the key signature, the time signature and the number of verses. Once a hymn is completed, immediately turn out the next piece of music to be played and set up the organ. It may be useful to mark the hymns for a service in your hymn book with post-its.

Cheats While the tips given above are good practice that you should probably observe to some extent no matter how experienced you are, here are a few tips that may be useful, but you should not become too dependent on them.

Ensure hands are warm — some churches can be very cold places – dress warmly, it may even be useful to soak your hands in warm water. Try this before practising and see if it makes a difference. We have heard rumours of hot water bottles hidden on organ stools!

Make good use of the Metrical Index of Tunes. This useful index is found at the back of the hymn book and categorises based on the number of lines in each verse and the number of syllables in each line.. For example: 76 76 means that there are seven syllables in the first line, six in the second and so on. Each of the hymn tunes in a category can be used with any of the other hymns in that category. Use this to reuse tunes you have learned with different words, but be sure to sing the hymn beforehand to double check that the tune suits it.

When learning new hymns, pick those that are suitable for all occasions – morning, praise or children’s hymns. You’ll find another index of hymns at the back of the book, categorised by theme.

Some hymns have a full octave or even ten note stretch in the left hand. Learn to find lower G or lower C with foot to make up for stretches if your hand can’t reach.

There are books with simplified tunes when you are getting started. However, there are also a number of simple tunes in the hymn book, see the list at the end of this article.

Don’t be afraid to count out loud if you need to and if you don’t fancy the prospect of all those Hallelujahs, find someone else to play for Easter!

Learning Voluntaries There are many "Easy to play classics" books available which can be used for very effective voluntaries. Choose tunes that are easy to play, a simple tune played well is better than a complex tune played badly. Hymns are also good as voluntaries, especially during Communion. Seasonal hymns are particularly good e.g. Christmas Carols

Getting started You might like to start by playing one hymn on a Sunday, if there is an existing organist, you will be sure to find that he or she will accommodate you. Initially, you could add new hymns one at a time. Ensure the person who picks the hymns understands your abilities, or pick them yourself. Keep within your abilities and don’t be afraid to say "no" to a particular hymn that doesn’t work for you. Identify the two sets of stops that you will use: one for hymns and one for voluntaries. Make sure this selection is not so loud that you can’t hear the people singing and remember that the organ will sound slightly different in an empty church from a full one. Be aware of changes to words/verses in the new book.

And Finally Stick with it; playing for services is a lot of fun, and the more experience you have, the more you will enjoy it.

Suggested list of hymns to start with

Our choice of easy hymns includes the following:

151 Child in the manger

188 While shepherds watched their flocks by night

207 Forty days and forty nights

217 All glory, laud, and honour

220 Glory be to Jesus

237 O my saviour, lifted

338 Jesus, stand among us

343 We love the place, O God.

365 Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

376 Ye holy angles bright

435 O God, unseen, yet ever near

489 Tell me the old, old story

651 Jesus, friend of little children

James Pasley is the assistant organist in Lucan church and is the Chief Architect at Cape Clear Software. www. capeclear.com . Naomi is the manager of the Education and Clinical Training Department of the Cardiac Services group. www.cardiac-services.com. Both Naomi and James first learned to play the pipe organ as teenagers in the Athy union of parishes. The experiences gained during this time became the source of many of the tips in this article.

The Archbishop recommends........... Eucharistic Prayer 3 Many churches regularly sing the Sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy Lord) during the Eucharist. In Eucharistic Prayer 3, the Sanctus comes at the very end. The Archbishop has asked us to let it be known that he strongly recommends that, when the Sanctus is sung in Prayer 3, the triple Amen should also be sung. Otherwise the Prayer ends with an anti-climax, whereas the triple Amen is intended to be a triumphant climax, sung or said by all the worshippers as they prepare to receive the Sacrament.

We are grateful to the Archbishop for this advice. Some churches already sing the triple Amen to an adaptation of part of the Sanctus from the classic Missa de Angelis. There are other possibilities, which we may list in a future issue.

5 Surviving your First Year as a Church Organist James and Naomi Pasley

Christ Church, Leeson Park closed for Church of Ireland Sunday worship at the end of May because of reduced numbers attending the church. The official closing service was on Ascension Day, Thursday 5 May. The preacher and principal celebrant was the Most Revd John Neill, Archbishop of Dublin, a former rector of the church. In his sermon he described the constantly changing environment since the church was built and how it had adapted to change through the years—a process that will continue into the future.

The congregation at the Ascension Day service numbered around 400, many of whom had past connections with the church. Former choir members returned to the choir to sing for the service, joining the present choir and members of the Methodist Centenary choir. Other past choristers and former organists of the church were in the congregation.

Before the service the following pieces were played by David Bedlow, the present organist of the church, as a tribute to former organists — John Craig, Harry Shellard, Arthur Morley, Ruarc Gahan, David McConnell, Trevor Crowe (Methodist Centenary

The present stop list is:

The organ in Christ Church Leeson Park replaced an earlier organ possibly built by William Telford of Dublin. The present organ, which is one of the most versatile in Dublin, was built in 1901 by Gray & Davison. It was rebuilt and enlarged by Conacher in 1931; the key action was converted to electro- pneumatic and minor changes to the stop distribution were made c.1960 by R.E. Meates; in the early 1980s further changes to optimise the tonal resources of the instrument were made by Trevor Crowe.

In 1991 the organ suffered serious damage when rain water burst through the roof over the organ chamber during a storm, following which a restoration programme was commenced. The Great soundboard and underaction was refurbished, and the Swell Clarion repaired. More recently the pedalboard was overhauled with new sticks, and changes were made to the Pedal reeds (the Trumpet 8 ft borrowed from the Great and a new Pedal Cornet 2 ft placed on a chest previously occupied by a Choir Tuba).

and Christ Church), Malcolm Wisener, David Jones, and Derek Seymour (present Methodist Centenary organist), and past organists of St Columba's Church which was part of the same parish—Ronnie Marino, Ronnie Taylor, and Ruth Maybury, and Edwin Maxwell: Cantico Sacra Christ lag in Todesbanden (Christ lay in the bonds of death ... but now he is risen; five verses)—Samuel Scheidt; Te Deum Laudamus (prelude and five verses)—Dieterich Buxtehude; Nun freut euch, lieben Christen gmein (Lutheran hymn on the birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus; three verses)—Matthias Weckman. The Te Deum was played also as a thanksgiving for the life and witness of the founders, benefactors and all who worshipped in the church.

The music for the sung Eucharist was Richard Shephard’s The Addington Service. The communion anthem was S.S. Wesley’s Lead me, Lord—a favourite from long ago. Buxtehude Praeludium in D minor concluded the service.

The intended dedication of the church was to Christ the King. The chancel decoration, incorporating kingly crowns and crowns of thorns, was restored in 2001 as a millennium project.

Since 1972 the church has been shared with the Methodist Centenary congregation, following the destruction of the Methodist Centenary Church, St Stephen's Green by fire a few years before. The Methodist congregation will cease worshipping in the church at the end of May and will move to the Litton Hall (adjoining Wesley House in the grounds of the church).

The intention is that the church will be used on Sundays and holy days by the Rumanian Orthodox church from June onwards, or as soon after as practicable. The Church of Ireland parish will continue to exist as an entity and the Holy Eucharist will continue to be celebrated according to the rites of the church of Ireland in the church's St Columba's Chapel on Wednesdays.

Great: Bourdon 16', Open Diapason Major 8', Open Diapason Minor 8', Stopped Diapason & Clarabella 8', Principal 4', Harmonic Flute 4', Twelfth 2 2/3' Fifteenth 2', Piccolo 2', Tierce 1 3/5', Sesquialtera III, Trumpet 8'.

Swell: Open Diapason 8', Clarinet Flute 8', Echo Gamba 8', Voix Celeste 8', Principal 4', Wald Flute 4', Fifteenth 2', Mixture III, Scherf II, Contra Fagotto 16', Cornopean 8', Oboe 8', Clarion 4', Tremulant.

Choir (enclosed): Lieblich Gedact 8', Gamba 8', Dulciana 8', Suabe Flute 4', Piccolo 2', Siflet 1', Trumpet 8' (from Great), Corno di Bassetto 8', Tremulant.

Pedal: Open Diapason (Wood) 16', Violone 16', Bourdon 16', Octave 8', Bass Flute 8', Fifteenth 4', Rauch Quint II, Trombone 16', Trumpet 8' (from Great), Cornet 2'.

Couplers, etc. Swell to Great, Choir to Great, Swell to Choir, Great to Pedal, Swell to Pedal, Choir to Pedal, Pedal Organ off Great Pistons. Four thumb pistons to Great/Pedal and Swell, duplicated by four toe pistons to Great/Pedal and Swell (Great/Pedal pistons can be de-coupled); three thumb pistons to Choir; Great to Pedal reversible toe piston.

The piston action is still tubular pneumatic, as is most of the stop action, but a few stops are electro pneumatic or direct electric, and therefore not attached to the piston system (an arrangement designed to trap unwary visiting organists who do not practice their registration before playing!). The final planned job in the restoration programme was to replace the Tremulants with a single unit acting on the entire organ but this has not yet been done.

The Orthodox Church does not permit the use of musical instruments so will not be using the organ. In due course the Church of Ireland parish may seek a suitable new home for the organ where it will be used regularly and properly maintained. In the meantime the parish will continue to maintain the instrument in playing order.

Christ Church Leeson Park 6

Ten amateur organists were asked to list their ten most-often-played funeral voluntaries — and this has resulted in the list that follows. Asterisks indicate the number of those listing a particular piece. It is hoped that this article will provide some ideas for organists to add to their repertoires.

For the next SOUNDBOARD, part 4 of the series will appear: A Top Ten Pieces for Weddings — in the same style. So, we appeal to all organists out there: please let us have a list of the ten pieces that you play most often at weddings. There will obviously be duplication of previous listings, which is to be expected. Please don’t assume that there will be enough contributions without yours; the more there are, the more objective and the more useful the article will be.

Albanoni** Adagio for strings and organ

Bach**** Jesu joy of man’s desiring

Bach I stand at the threshold (Cantata 156)

Bach O Mensch, bewein (BWV 622)

Bach Sheep may safely graze

Bach Adagio from T & F in C (BWV 564)

Bach In tears of grief (St M Passion)

Bach Chorale from St Matthew Passion

Bach Ah when my last end has come (St J Passion)

Bach Lie still (final chorus St J. Passion)

Bach Prelude in E mi (Book 1)

Bach Air on the G string

Bach Adagio from Tocc Adagio & Fugue in C

Bach Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein

Bach Adagio from organ Concerto in A minor

Bach Alle Menchen müssen sterben

Barber Adagio for strings

Bennard The old rugged cross

Bizet In the depths of the temple (Pearl Fishers)

Brahms Final of 11 Choral Preludes Op 122

Brahms Herzliebster Jesu

Brahms Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele

Brahms Es ist ein Ros' entsprungen

Brahms O Gott, du frommer Gott

Brahms Herzlich tut, ich verlangen

Brahms O wie selig seid ihr doch, ihr Frommen

Brahms O Welt, ich muss dich lassen

Broodszky I’ll walk with God (Student Prince)

Dvorak** Largo (New World symphony)

Elgar** Nimrod (Enigma Variations)

Faure Introit, Kyrie, Pie Jesu***, Agnus Dei (Requiem)

Franck Panis Angelicus

Godard Angels guard thee

Gluck What is life to me (Orfeo ed Euridice)

Guilmant Adagio from Sonata in C Minor

Handel He shall feed his flock (Messiah)

Handel***** I know that my Redeemer liveth

Handel****** Largo (Xerses)

Handel Solomn March (Joshua)

Handel Pastoral symphony (Messiah)

Handel Air from Water Music

Handel** Minuet (Berenice)

Howells Psalm prelude No. 1 Set 2

Humperdinck When at night I go to sleep (Hansel & Grete)

Liddle How lovely are thy dwellings

Gordan Jacob's Brother James's Air

Lindsay Come unto me

Mozart Ave Verum

Massenet Meditation (Thais)

Mendelssohn** O for the wings of a dove

Mendelssohn C minor sonata (1st movement)

Mendelssohn Dedication

Mendelssohn***** O Rest in the Lord

Mendelssohn** Song without words (Consolation)

Mendelssohn O rest in the Lord (Elijah)

Mozart Ave Verum

Mozart Laudate Dominum

Mozart Jesu word of God incarnate

Mozart March Religie

Parry Chorale Prelude on "Melcombe";

Peeters Adagio in gmin

Purcell Dido’s farewell (when I am laid in earth)

Raff Cavatina

Rawsthorne Air

Sullivan The long day closes

Stainer God so loved the World

Sullivan Evening

Thalben-Ball** Elegy

W J Thompson Softly and tenderly (hymn)

Verdi Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves (Nabbucco)

Vivaldi Winter (2nd movement)

Wagner Pilgrim’s Chorus (Tannhauser)

Walford Davies** Solomn Melody

Walford Davies God be in my head

C L Williams Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace

Dale Wood Brother James’ air

Deep river (Spiritual)

7 A ‘Top Ten’ Funeral Voluntaries David Bedlow, Ann Coulter, Robert Gyles, Valerie Johnston, Philip Lawton, Gilbert Livingston,

John Rowden, Derek Seymour, Heather Taylor, Derek Verso

Thanks are due to Randal Henly whose idea of a music workshop in St Mary’s Church, Howth, provided a morning which was both informative and enjoyable.

Some twenthy eight people attended the workshop on Saturday, 22 January. The morning opened with a talk from Peter Barley, organist and master of the choristers in St. Patrick’s Cathedral. He gave us some insights into both conducting and managing a choir. One book highly recommended by him is ‘How to be a successful Choir Director’, by John Bertalot, publ. Kevin Mayhew.

We then had an opportunity to sing a selection of hymns, introduced to us by Raymond Russell — some known to us, some new to us, all sung with great enjoyment by the participants.

During the coffee break (a big thank you to those who provided a welcome cuppa) we were able to browse the ‘have-a-look-at-organ-music’ table and hunt for bargains on the Music for Sale stall.

Following coffee, Randal brought us up to speed on using computers in sourcing and writing church music. Everyone was delighted to know that they were to receive a free starter Demo CD of HymnQuest 2005, which would be posted to them in the next few days (the parcel was ‘stuck’ in the Baldoyle sorting office!).

This being the end of our morning’s work, we retired to the church. Having congregated round the church organ, Peter gave us a talk and demonstration on the many different combinations of stops that can be used with such effect to create whatever mood is required in the music. He followed this with a performance of Benjamin Brittan’s Prelude and Fugue on the theme of Victoria, creating a really wonderful sound on the organ.

Raymond performed one of his favourite pieces Giovanni Battista Pescetti, sonata in C minor, a piece that was enjoyed by us all and finally Randal showed us how he has been able to join on an electric keyboard to the organ which enable him to reproduce trumpet tones should the need arise, despite having no trumpet stop on the organ. Man’s creativity knows no bounds!

Demonstrations over, for those who wished to stay and play, the organ of St. Mary’s was available for use.

Again, well done, Randal, for organising the workshop and to Howth Parish for providing the venue. I think everyone would agree that it was very worthwhile and that we would welcome others in the future.

— Well, not quite, but it has possibilities.

There seemed to be much interest in the demonstration that I gave at the Organists’ Workshop on 22 January, of hooking up a keyboard to a pipe organ, and several of those who couldn’t be present said they were sorry to have missed this.

About two years ago I had a bride who wanted a real trumpeter to play the Trumpet Voluntary as her wedding recessional. I had a trumpeter lined up for the occasion, but on the day beforehand he had to opt out. Knowing how much the trumpet was anticipated, I tried out an experiment that had been in my mind for some time — to play the solo trumpet part on a keyboard and the accompaniment on the organ The keyboard I had at the time had quite a good trumpet sound and the bride next day was delighted. (I never told her the truth!)

However, musically it was not quite perfect, as organ and keyboard were not tuned to the exact same pitch — the keyboard’s A was 440 Hz while A on the organ was 444 Hz. I have since acquired a keyboard that can be tuned, and when its A is set to 444 Hz, the blend is quite impressive. The keyboard slides into a bracket that I have mounted underneath the Great manual of the organ. The amplifier/ loudspeaker is sitting on an open space of the floor inside the organ. One of the big disadvantages in the setup is not being able to change volume, or stop, in mid-stream. To do that involves pulling the keyboard forward (and this requires two hands), pressing the appropriate buttons on it as many times as are needed, and then pushing back the instrument into position. Another disadvantage is that the keyboard does slightly get in the way of the knees, so I don’t keep it in situ permanently.

On the keyboard there are three good ‘trumpety’ sounds — a trumpet, a trombone and a tuba, though I still haven’t decided which sounds most authentic (of course purists will say that none of them does!) The tuba, incidentally is a 16’ stop and has to be played an octave up. On the same keyboard there are a couple of other sounds that I have found to be useful (and acceptable). The Pan Flute becomes a beautiful solo stop when used with a light Swell accompaniment, and there are Chimes, which I used last Christmas for a piece that demanded that sound — “Christmas Improvisations” by Virginia Carrington Thomas. There is also a sound called ‘Voice’, which I am holding in reserve for some Sunday when the choir fails to turn up!

Anyone who is interested in seeing the arrangement is quite welcome to contact me and pay a visit to St Mary’s Howth at some suitable time.

The Organists’ Workshop Sandra Maxwell

8 Two-manual Organ + Keyboard = Three-manual Organ!

Randal Henly

In lighter vein

"The expectation of a specialised music festival is that it will open audiences to musical experiences not normally available to them. That’s certainly what the Dublin International Organ and Choral Festival did on its opening days" Michael Dervan, The Irish Times, 25th June 2002

Pipeworks Festival offers a daring and delightful introduction to the diverse worlds of organ and choral music. Putting Ireland on the international musical map with the Dublin International Organ Competition at its core, the festival introduces artists and Ireland in a musical event as distinguished as any in the country, with leading musicians from the UK, Europe, and the US.

The festival’s reputation for innovative programming is in evidence with this year’s artists ranging from the Swingle Singers to the Mannheim Hochschule Kammerchor, in performance with our own premier ensembles, including the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, National Chamber Choir, RTÉ Philharmonic Choir and the three cathedral choirs of Dublin. Events will range from a performance of Janácek’s Glagolitic Mass, one of the great choral works of the 20th century, to master- classes by the stellar line up of competition jurors; from the Swingle Singers’ renditions of everything from Bach to the Beatles, to an improvised organ concert-come-coffee morning.

Events are hosted in some of the most intriguing, gorgeous and surprising venues of Dublin and its environs — from St Audoen’s Church to a train carriage bound for Dundalk! The festival fully exploits the wonderful range of instruments to be found in Dublin, which likewise boast a diversity of appeal and interest, and have their own stories to tell, from Clara Schumann’s piano to the venerated Henry Willis organ in St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dundalk.

The Festival’s opening concert on 16 June will take place at the National Gallery of Ireland, with a performance of Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle that recreates the chamber sonorities intended by the composer. A small virtuoso choir will be accompanied by two grand pianos dating from the 1840s and a rare French harmonium that matches exactly Rossini’s require-ments in the score.

The fact that Dublin boasts, not one or two, but three cathedrals, will be showcased at an event the following night at St Patrick’s Cathedral Dublin, with a concert by the choirs of all three institutions. Audiences at the Coffee Concert in Christ Church Cathedral on

the Saturday morning will have the chance to challenge Jos van der Kooy to improvise before their eyes and ears on themes of their own devising.

Also at Christ Church that evening will be a performance by winners of the Fleischmann International Trophy at the 2003 Cork Inter-national Choral Festival, Mannheim Hochschule Kammerchor, offering the chance to hear German Romantic music at its finest. The winner of the 2002 Dublin Inter-national Organ Competition, Balint Karosi, will be returning to Dublin for a performance in St Michael’s Church, Dún Laoghaire, on the evening of 19 June.

There will be a rare opportunity to hear five-time Grammy Award winning group the Swingle Sisters. They will be performing a repertoire that runs from Bach to the Beatles, via Chopin, Sondheim and Miles Davis, at the National Concert Hall on Monday 20 June.

On Tuesday 21 June the finals of the International Organ Competition will take place in the grandeur of Christ Church. The ever-growing prestige of the competition is demonstrated by this year’s award being competed for by the biggest number of entrants yet. Those performing in the finals will have been selected from sixteen semi-finalists — young virtuosi from every corner of the globe, including two Irish residents, hosted by Dublin families and who will have been practising in churches throughout the city for the duration of the festival. While the stellar line up of international adjudicators deliberate, audiences will be hosted at a reception in the crypt, before the winner is announced.

Luigi Tagliavini, the world’s leading expert on Italian keyboard music of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, will be making his first visit to Ireland, and performing Italian organ music of the Baroque period in Christ Church on Wednesday 22 June. For baroque fans — a concert not to be missed.

The next day audiences will be transported to Dundalk courtesy of Iarnrod Éireann and the Belgian Embassy, as they enjoy a Belgian beer reception en route to a concert of two halves. Joris Verdin will be travelling the smaller distance of the length of St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dundalk, starting at the rear of the building on the mighty Father Willis organ, and then moving up to a classic French harmonium placed in the sanctuary. His programme "Musique d’église et musique de salon à Paris et Bruxelles autour de 1860" will draw us from the musical splendours of the great

nineteenth century Belgian churches into the intimacy of the salon.

Friday 24 June will see the Festival draw to a spectacular close in the NCH, with a bold and multi-layered programme designed to represent Pipeworks and its aspirations. The RTE National Symphony Orchestra, celebrated British organist Nicolas Kynaston and the RTE Philharmonic Choir join forces under the NSO chief conductor Gerhard Markson. Bach’s Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor will be performed by an orchestra of a size undreamed of during the com- poser’s life. Jongen’s Symphonie Concertante Op.81 will form a bridge between the worlds of organ and orchestral music, followed by Janácek’s Glagolitic Mass, one of the great choral works of the 20th century. This rarely- heard work will be performed for the first time in Ireland in its original language — a final challenge for Pipeworks and fitting close to its 2005 festival.

For further information: Tel/Fax: 633 7392 Website: www.pipeworksfestival.com E-mail: administrator@pipeworks festival.com

Organists’ Hints & Tips 4 Keeping in touch

David McConnell, Organist and Choir Director, Zion Church, Rathgar

It is so important to keep members of your choir informed of dates and times, if the team is to be maintained. For many years I relied on letter post, four or five times a year (and of course always charged the postage to the parish!). I now have moved to email and SMS, which are quicker, cheaper and more effective. Most of my singers have email addresses, which are in a ‘group’ on my Outlook Express. They all have cell phones and I keep the numbers together on my mobile by pre-fixing each name with a ‘z’ (for Zion). A quick text on a Saturday afternoon can ensure they are all there the following morning, especially if I have convened the dreaded (though sometimes necessary) pre-liturgy rehearsal. On one occasion, I arranged an extra rehearsal while sitting in a café in Sicily. The only downside to 24/7 availability is those choir members who enjoy texting me during the week – but hey, life ain’t perfect!

9 Pipeworks Festival 2005 16—24 June 2005

Diocesan Church Music Training Scheme Currently there are seven students on the Diocesan Church Music Training Scheme. Joan Alcorn, Kenneth Hogan and Jenny Huston (Year 3); Carol Wilkinson (Year 2); Joe Cummins, Marion Greene and Breffni O’Byrne (Year 1).

The Year 3 students will end the course on a high, by participating in the 2nd RSCM International Summer School and Conference in York in August 2005. There will be almost 130 participants from many countries and each will benefit greatly from talking, thinking, singing and just socialising for a whole week with like-minded musicians.

The closing date for applications for the 2005—06 Diocesan Church Music Training Scheme is Friday 19 August and full details of the scheme are on the Committee’s website and are available from Ruth Maybury on 283 1845, rmaybury@tcd.ie. The main course includes twenty-eight one- to-one organ lessons each year, and group sessions on choir direction and liturgy. The student, the nominating parish and the diocese share the cost. The fee for the course next year is

250 (student) + 630 (parish).

New Liturgy Course Next year’s liturgy module will comprise four Saturday morning seminars during January and February 2006 and will deal with four aspects of liturgy and music: Why Christians Worship, The Tools of Worship, Christian Hymnody, and Making it Work. Each seminar will include theoretical and practical sessions.

The liturgy module also will be available to those who do not wish to take the main course. So, if you would like to learn something about how music and liturgy impact on each other – and every church musician ought to know something about this - you should consider signing up for the Saturday morning

seminars. The fee for the four seminars is 80. Talk to your

Select Vestry now!

Summer School for Conductors The annual Cumann Náisiúnta na gCór Annual Choral Conducting Summer School in Cork, will be held this year from 22 to 26 August. The School offers a range of courses that allow experienced and inexperienced conductors to progress and achieve in a sociable, musical and fun environment. Strongly recommended and just the sort of training select vestries will be delighted to support. info@cnc.ie, www.cnc.ie. (021) 431 2296

The RSCM International Summer School, 8—14 August, York, with John Bell (Iona Community), John Rutter (composer), Keith Jones (Dean of York), David Ogden (composer & conductor), Gordon Appleton (RSCM Warden), John Harper (RSCM Director General), and other visiting speakers and musicians. Accommodation in the nearby university college of St John. Take part in:

• singing daily services in York Minster, • a wide range of workshops and seminars, • discussion of key issues related to church music, • the exploration of new repertory and liturgy.

Details from the RSCM, or consult its website, www.rscm.com

Charles Wood Annual Summer School 21—28 August, Armagh. A week of organists’ and singers’ workshops, master classes, recitals and concerts, held in the two cathedrals and other nearby venues in the city. These will be given by renowned choral directors, organists and other musicians. Select what interests you out of a very full and varied programme. Details/brochure available from Charles Wood Summer School, Armagh & District Council, The Palace Demesne, Armagh, BT60 4EL, Tel. 048 3752 9632, Fax 048 3752 9631, E-mail: a.mcclintock@armagh.gov.uk

The RSCM Summer Organ Course in association with St Giles’ International Organ School, St Giles, Cripplegate, London, 1 to 6 August. Information from the RSCM, Cleveland Lodge, Westhumble, Dorking, Surrey, RH5 6BW, Tel. 0044- 1306-872807, E-mail: cwardle@rscm.com. Norah Morris, who attended last year’s course, writes about it.

Yes, it’s St Giles again! Having just returned from taking part for the second year in the RSCM St Giles’ Summer Organ Course led by Anne Marsden Thomas, I can truly say that it lived up to all expectations. There were 53 students, mostly from the UK, but also from far away places such as Hong Kong, Nigeria, Canada, and four from Ireland, and we were made most welcome. There were seven tutors — all of high renown —who guided us expertly and graciously through the week.

The course consisted of master classes, accompanying and improvisation classes, private lessons, practice sessions, aural training, and more, plus the opportunity to play in one of three student concerts held on the Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday evenings. Each student was given his or her own individual timetable based on choices made prior to arrival.

The master classes on the various days covered the following eras: Tuesday 1550 to 1770, Wednesday 1700 to 1800, Thursday 1800 to 1920 and Friday 1920 to 2004, with choices of music for each day’s theme. Students were grouped into six graded strands — beginners to post-diploma. These classes were great fun and very informative.

Everything on the course is highly organised, all in a most friendly and positive manner, but you do have to put in the effort to get yourself from venue to venue (and on time!) and this can involve quite a lot of walking — in the London heat! But no better way to see the sights of London; maps and advice are supplied.

St Giles is the headquarters for the week (tea, coffee and biscuits always at the ready) and in addition to the large pipe organ there, there were a number of digital organs where you can practise (with earphones), and also a number of dummy pedal boards. Up to fifteen people can be practising simultaneously. As well, those on the course had access to nineteen City church organs — some very mighty — yours truly found herself the proud occupier of the City Temple for one hour.

Each day ended with a service in St Giles, with voluntaries, and with hymns played by the students participating in the accompaniment classes. On most evenings we congregated in the ‘local’ just across from the WMCA where we stayed, for the usual chin wag.

Saturday came all too quickly, and the proceedings ended at lunch time, after a busy morning of Service, presentation of certificates and reports, with a splendid concert by the tutors. It was time to say good bye to friends — “See you next year?” After a magical, creative week, you came away a little sad that it was all over, but feeling refreshed in mind and spirit. See you there?

Some musical definitions from the Organist’s library

Evensong The evening service of the Anglican Church, sometimes held in the afternoon so as not to interfere with television. A sermon will be appended and this will at least be as long as the rest of the service. The Evensong sermon gives the organist his last opportunity of marking the register and preparing next week’s music list. In some churches, the lights are turned out to prevent this.

HYMNS These are of two kinds, long and short. They are bound together in volumes that are either too big or too small. Both kinds are sensitive to the pull of gravity at solemn moments.

Courses for Organists 10

Solutions to this issue’s prize crossword should reach the Editor by the end of June. Be sure to include name and address!

Clues Across 4. With Galatea, it becomes a Handel masque

(4)

7. Bolero is one of his well-known works (5)

10. Herbert, English composer, teacher and cathedral organist (7)

11. In Anglican chanting, the allocation of the words to the music (8)

12. Timetable; list of events or rates (8)

13. Stiff bristle at the top of wheat or barley (3)

14. Mute (4)

15. Dramatic musical work (5)

16. See 20 down.

18. Rats in the sky! (4)

19. Austrian violinist and composer; friend of Haydn and Mozart (11)

24. An abbreviated work (2)

25. These pictures are a cycle of five songs by Elgar (3)

27. Composer of Jerusalem (5)

28. Night pieces, literally (9)

30. The first performance of his great oratorio was in 1846 (11)

32. Organ stop imitating a stringed instrument (5)

35. Little-known Swiss composer, now remembered only for his Cavatina (4)

38. Malcolm, 20-century English composer (6)

39. Once described as a collection of people scraping, blowing and banging (9)

40. A short biblical priest (3)

41. Second note (2)

42. Bedrich, 19-century Czech composer; influenced by national folk music (7)

43. Léon, French organist and composer (9)

Clues down

1, 2, 3 Venues for the Three Choirs festivals (9, 8, 10)

5. Pigeon song? (3)

6. Feathered vertebrate with musical cry (8)

7. These’s a Christmas song about this colourful ruminant (8)

8. Whimsical notion or action (6)

9. An example of 6 down (6)

11. Italian foot key or keys (6)

17. Short pithy saying; many are attributed to Solomon (7)

20 (+16 across) Oratorio by Handel, noted for its double choruses (6,2,5)

21. Scottish river (3)

22. Musical composition in which one section occurs intermittently (5)

23. This terra is secure (5)

26. Biblical tambourines (9)

27. A shortened Gilbert & Sullivan nautical operetta (8)

29. Prefix an octave lower (6)

31. American bandmaster-composer of marches (5)

32. Spherical; world-wide (6)

33. University city of Italy (6)

34. The organ mechanism is fighting! (6)

36. Strip of wood fixed on the finger board (4)

37. Player’s part supported by a violin (4)

38. Organist’s qualification (1,1,1,1)

Enigma Variations — from a collection of howlers in school essays on classical music

• Refrain means don’t do it. In music it’s the part you’d better not sing.

• Handel was half German, half Italian and half English. He was rather large.

• Beethoven wrote music even though he was deaf. He was so deaf he wrote loud music.

• Henry Purcell was a well-known composer few people have heard of.

• Music sung by two people at the same time is called a duel.

• Caruso was at first an Italian. Then someone heard his voice and said he would go a long way. So he went to America.

Organists’ Crossword 8

COMPANION TO CHURCH HYMNAL As we go to press, Edward Darling and Donald Davison’s Companion to Church Hymnal has been published. What a marvellous resource this is! More detailed comment must wait for our next issue but we can say without reservation that this is something every Select Vestry must buy for their organist and choir — yes, put a copy in the choir stalls. Every organist has some knowledge of the provenance of hymns and their tunes. This book will increase information, and therefore understanding, instantly. And in addition to the commentary on the hymns, the chapters on Hymnody in the Church of Ireland and Liturgy and Music are essential reading. Warmly recommended. Companion to Church Hymnal, Darling and Davison. The

Columba Press, Dublin, 53.

ORGANISTS ON THE MOVE Note from Editor: It is hoped to keep readers up to date with organists’ appointments, relocations, etc., but to do this he needs to be informed. Please pass on news as appropriate; everything is not heard on the grapevine!

Kerry Houston will leave St Catherine’s and St James’ at the end of May to concentrate on his academic career.

Raymond Russell is on leave of absence from Castleknock & Clonsilla until October next and is willing to do deputy work in the meantime.

Aiden Scanlon has moved from St Brigid’ Stillorgan to St Ann’s Dawson St.

Ciaran Judge has been appointed to St George & St Thomas, Cathal Brugha St.

ORGAN PROJECTS Zion Church, Rathgar, has commissioned Trevor Crowe Ltd, to carry out a programme of refurbishment and tonal enhancement on their two-manual, west gallery organ, built in 1897 by the highly- respected firm of Norman and Beard, Norwich. The Pedal Organ pneumatic wind chests will be overhauled and re- leathered. The principal ranks throughout the organ will be re-voiced and regulated and some treble pipes replaced to correct problems arising from excessive cutups. The Swell department will be enhanced by the addition of a 4' Flute; and a Quartane and a Fifteenth will replace the three-rank Mixture. Opportunity may be taken to enhance the scope of the Pedal department. This work will maintain the organ in its current sound working

condition and widen its versatility. The

cost will be in region of 40 000 and an

appeal for funds will be launched shortly. It is hoped that the work will be finished by the end of 2005.

ORGANISTS’ MAILING LIST Do you circulate SOUNDBOARD to your choir and clergy? Additional copies are available for a small charge. Contact David McConnell on (01) 497 3745, or e–mail him at churchmusicdublin @eircom.net

HAVE WE GOT YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS? More and more people have Internet access. We already have 120 e-mail addresses of musicians in the Dublin region and we send information to them from time to time. If you have gone online recently or are in any doubt as to whether we have your e-mail address, please let us know. All you need to do is send a short message to churchmusicdublin @eircom.net.

ORGAN RECITALS Christ Church Cathedral 1 June Peter Barley (Bach, Fresco-

baldi David Liddle, Carl Nielsen 22 June Luigi Tagliavini

St Patrick’s Cathedral 25 May Michael Quinn 8 June Lewis Brito-Babapulle 15 June Huw Williams

St Michael’s Dun Laoghaire Sunday evenings, 8.30 p.m. 12 June: Peter Sweeney 19 June: Balint Karosi (winner of 2002

Pipeworks) 26 June: Pieter Dirksen (Netherlands) 3 July: David Leigh !0 July: Harry Sparnaay (Bass clarinet)

and Silvia Castillo (Nether- lands)

17 July: John Butt (UK) 24 July: Robert Quinney (Westminster

Abbey) 31 July: Leo Abbott (Boston Cathedral) 7 Aug: Michael Quinn and Pauline

Graham (Soprano) 14 Aug: Anne Leahy 21 Aug: Gerard Gillen 28 July: Charles Pearson 4 Sept: David Adams

Admission is 10 (concessions 5)

CHURCH MUSIC IN ........... Any volunteers to write the next article in this series? Articles should include what musical services are held and when, what music is sung, how the music is chosen, how many are in the choir, when choir practices are held, how practices are conducted, the organist’s Sunday routine — in fact, anything that might be of interest to other organists! About 1000 words, and preferably with a photograph, fills a page.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dear Editor, Would like to recommend some organ music I have just come across namely — Five Postludes by John S Dixon comprising Rondo Benvenuto, Gaudemus in Musica, Joyful Hymn, Trumpet Tune & Paean. These are attractive easy pieces with pedals. It is published by Zimbel Press www.zimbel.com at $15 plus postage — great value!

Mervyn Cooper.

Dear Editor There is an old Roman Catholic hymn tune commonly known as 'Queen of the Sea' which is tempting with a few variations when you are having difficulty with the clergy (and they're not all perfect) — it meanders along nicely to the chorus where it arrives at the chorus "Pray for the wanderer, pray for me" Not quite suitable for the current funeral list but it will give you a smile at that difficult moment when the preacher has changed the hymns and the celebrant is thumbing through the Psalter to find a psalm to confuse you.

Philip Lawton.

Dear Editor, Around the month of June, many churches think of Saint Columba, whose feast day falls on the ninth of the month. Columba is one of the three Patron Saints of Ireland, the others being Patrick and Brigid. The words of Hymn 560, Alone with none but thee my God, are attributed to Saint Columba, and the tune commonly used is Emain Macha.

In the 1940s I was a pupil at Saint Columba’s College, where Joe Groocock was Precentor or, as the Hymn Book describes him, Director of Music. Naturally we tended to have our celebrations and prize-day on or near St Columba’s day, and this hymn would be used about then. Joe Groocock composed a lovely tune for this hymn which many of us enjoyed singing, but I never saw it written down and I feared that like so much of his music for Chapel and the school stage it may only have existed in his head and was therefore lost. I was delighted when I saw that it is included in the new Church Hymnal under the title Tibradden, and I introduced it successfully in 2002 to St Thomas’ Church.

I would urge other congregations to give it a try; it is a lilting and quite easy tune with an "Irish" flavour.

Tibradden, on the slopes of the mountain of the same name, was the district where Joe Groocock, his wife Rhoda, and their family lived for many years.

Adrian Somerfield

N otes ews and