The purpose of the American Guild of Organists is to promote the organ in its historic and evolving roles, to encourage excellence in the performance of organ and choral music, and to provide a forum for mutual support, inspiration, education, and certification of Guild members. (AGO Mission Statement)
The Central Hudson Valley Chapter draws its membership from Dutchess, Orange, and Ulster counties in the Hudson Valley region of New York State, reaching from Rhinebeck in the north to West Point and Middletown in the south and west.
It is now time to renew your membership for the 2011-2012 year. Your dues (except for Chapter Friend membership category) includes a one-year subscription to THE AMERICAN ORGANIST magazine (TAO). Membership in any category supports the programs run by the national organization and by our local chapter. To continue receiving the benefits of membership and your TAO subscription, please send in your dues today! Please remember that a delay in renewing can mean an interruption of your subscription to TAO, because of a three-month offset in the publishing schedule. (The last issue of TAO for 2010-2011 members is November 2011.) Click here for a printable PDF version of the membership application. (Please click here if you have trouble downloading the form.) Or, to have a hard copy mailed to you via the US postal service, contact the newsletter editor, Susan LaGrande, 845-226-6496. Make checks payable to: Central Hudson Valley Chapter, AGO. Contributions beyond dues are encouraged and are tax-deductible. Mail your dues payment with this form, before July 31, 2011, to: Eric R. Hepp, Treasurer If you want a membership card mailed to you, please include a SASE with your payment. Members of the American Guild of Organists are bound by the Code of Ethics and guided by the Code of Professional Standards.
The Margaret Pecoraro Memorial Scholarship Fund was established to support and encourage young organists, in memory of chapter member Margaret Pecoraro, who died in November 2002. Born in Mainz, Germany, in 1931, Margaret was a church organist by the age of 12. She graduated from the Church Music Institute of the Diocese of Mainz as an Organist and Choir Master in 1941. She also obtained her degree as a Piano Teacher. In 1958 she came to the United States and married; she played the organ and gave piano lessons for many years while raising her family. After being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in late 2001, she continued to play regularly until a few months before her death. Margaret is remembered as an exacting teacher who was at the same time encouraging and compassionate.
To qualify for scholarship awards, a candidate must be 21 years old or younger; must be a full-time student in a degree/diploma program; must study organ on a regular basis; must be a member of the American Guild of Organists (if not already a member, membership will included in the scholarship grant). References must be supplied. Anyone may apply for scholarship funds, but preference will be given to chapter members first and then to students residing or studying within Region II of the American Guild of Organists. Funds are awarded in the spring, not more than once a year, at the discretion of the executive board of the Central Hudson Valley Chapter, AGO.
Scholarship funds may be awarded in the following ways :
Free membership for one year may be offered to organ students who are being taught by members of the chapter. This offer applies to persons who have not formerly been members of the chapter and who are currently in school. Tuition for a Pipe Organ Encounter or other AGO-sponsored educational program may be offered to qualified applicants. Modest stipends may be offered to qualified college-level organ students. These and other needs may be addressed at the discretion of the board. To send a message to the chapter secretary regarding a student who may be interested in applying for scholarship funds, please click here.
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