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Central Hudson Valley Chapter, AGO

Chapter News

Newsletter
March 2023


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From the Acting Dean:

Our Members’ Recital is coming up in April! This annual Chapter event is an opportunity for members of all levels of experience and ability to share with their fellow organists music that they have worked on and care about. It is also an opportunity to hear other organists play and to experience some new music. Sometimes the recital has no special theme, and the concert is like a delicious pot-luck meal. However, some years we do focus on a particular theme, as we did last year and will again this year.

Last year’s Members’ Recital them was “Organ Music written by Black Composers”. We held that event on February 12, 2023 to a packed house of enthusiastic listeners at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Poughkeepsie. Members of our Chapter played a wide variety of music by composers David Hurd, Adolphus Hailstork, Carl Haywood, Ruth Norman, George Walker, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and Florence B. Price.

This year our theme is “Organ Music composed by Women”. It will take place on Sunday, April 21st at 3:00 PM at the Poughkeepsie Reformed Church on Hooker Avenue in Poughkeepsie. The John A. Davis, Jr. Organ at the church is a contemporary, eclectic American pipe organ built by Schantz of Ohio which was installed in October 2003. According to the church’s website, “It has already established itself as one of the finest organs in the Hudson Valley. The 45 ranks of pipes -- 2,652 total -- provide a superb variety of sound, greatly enhancing worship, from hushed tones of reverence and awe to majestic peals of praise and exaltation.”

Last year we sent out lists of resources and music for our members to become better acquainted with the wealth of organ music written by African American composers. In a similar vein, this year I am sharing some resources for you to explore to discover the breadth and depth of organ music composed by women!

I encourage you to look through this material and to find some music that captures your interest. I am keeping a list of the music that people are selecting, so please be in touch with me as you figure out possible music to play at the recital. I would like to aim for the first week of April as a deadline for a nearly complete list of the recital music.

    Resources for the discovery of organ and choral music by women composers:
  • MusForum, “The Online Network for Women Organists”, founded by Hudson Valley organist and conductor Gail Archer, (Vassar College Organist). This is an excellent site with current events, news, special features on individual artists, and a list of articles and resources for learning more about women composers and organists. I highly recommend it: www.musforum.org.
  • The Association of Anglican Musicians’ project “Great Host of Composers” seeks to bring diverse voices to liturgies through building a curated database of sacred music by a great host of women composers. All of their offerings may be found in the detailed database at: www.greathostcomposers.org. Other denominations may offer similar resources as well. Here are some examples from AAM’s project:
    -Listing of choral music and voluntaries by women composers for the three-year Revised Common Lectionary.
    -Mass Settings, Evening Canticles, Responses, Anglican Chant – Women Composers Data Base
  • The American Guild of Organists’ Task Force for Gender Equity includes links to the Society of Women Organists (SWO) which include:
    -The March 2024 Newsletter from AGOHQ about Women Composer Sunday. It includes links to webinars and lists of possible repertoire. https://www.agohq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/March-2024-Newsletter.pdf
    -More information can be found at: https://www.agohq.org/?s=women+composers

I encourage all of you to explore repertoire by composers who may be new to you. Whether or not you play in our Members’ Recital this year, please plan to attend, and bring others with you. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to hear your colleagues play!

Sincerely,
Laura Ramsey Russell
Acting Dean & Sub-Dean, CHVAGO

More on Women Composers

In addition to the resources listed in Laura’s letter, please note that this week (March 4) American Public Radio’s Pipedreams program will celebrate Women In Music. The full program, including a link to the streamed content, is available at https://www.pipedreams.org/episode/2024/03/04/women-in-music.

You can also view the AGO Webinar from February 15, titled “Woman Composer Sunday 2024: Honoring Trailblazers and Inspiring New Generations.” The link is available at https://tinyurl.com/6d8bkmfb. There is also a transcript available if you prefer reading to listening.

Member News

  • Welcome to new member William Bozzetto! Bill is actually a returning member after an absence of several years, and he is also a member of NYTOS. His contact information will be included in the new membership roster.
  • Welcome also to another new member, Stephen Siktberg! Stephen is Organist/Choir Director at Poughkeepsie United Methodist Church. His contact information is:
    314 Washington Avenue
    Beacon, NY 12508
    swsikt@gmail.com

Organ Competition Announced

The Northeastern CT Chapter of the AGO announces The 2024 L. Cameron Johnson Memorial Organ Competition for High School Students. This competition will be held on Saturday, June 1 at 11:00 AM at the Storrs Congregational Church located on the campus of the University of Connecticut. It is a competition solely for High School students and offers three cash prizes:  $1,500, $750 and $300 along with an audience prize of $100. This has also been advertised this on the National Website of the AGO. For more information, please contact Dr. Angela Salcedo at angelasalcedo@glastonburyfirst.org.

New Guidelines for Wedding Music

The Liturgy Office of the Archdiocese of New York has just published new guidelines for music at weddings. This document may be downloaded here: Guidelines for Music at Weddings. Additional archdiocesan liturgical and musical guidelines may be found on the Liturgy Office website.

Deadline for Next Newsletter

We are always glad to receive input for the chapter newsletter in the form of calendar items, reviews of recent concerts and events, biographies, letters, photographs, etc. In order to make sure these submissions can be processed in a timely fashion, please make sure they are received by the 23rd of each month. However, material such as calendar items may be submitted at any time; even if the material may not make it into the printed newsletter, it can be quickly posted on our web site at www.chvago.org. You may submit newsletter or web site material by mail, e-mail, fax or phone. Just contact the editor, Susan LaGrande, using the information given above. Remember, the deadline for the next printed newsletter, to be available the first week in April 2024, is March 23.

Editor’s Corner

This newsletter is published by the Central Hudson Valley Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. The editor is:
Susan LaGrande
12 Montrose Lane
Wappingers Falls, NY 12590
Phone: 845-235-7203 - e-mail: CHVAGOboard@gmail.com

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