Newsletter
May 2024
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Letter From the Editor“April is the cruelest month …”
So begins T. S. Eliot’s epic poem The Wasteland. And so it has been for your Board, most of whom have been struggling this past month with personal and family health issues, most of which, we hope, will be alleviated soon. In addition, the Chapter has been dealing with several complicated administrative issues which have required lots of time and energy from your Board.
As you know, we had to cancel our Members’ Recital, originally scheduled for April 21, because several people who were expected to perform found themselves unable to do so. We hope to reschedule this customarily annual event for later in the year. As things stand right now, our next chapter event will be in June, when we will co-sponsor the keyboard portion of Hudson Valley BachFest. There will also be a picnic sometime in late July or August. Watch for further announcements about this occasion, which, to judge by previous years, should be a very enjoyable experience for all.
This month we will be electing a new slate of officers to serve as your Board. Information about the candidates is provided elsewhere in this newsletter. You will receive detailed voting information in a couple of weeks so that we can meet the May 31 deadline for completing the election process.
I hope that this coming month will bring you all the joys of springtime!
Newsletter Editor, CHVAGO Chapter Elections: Slate of Officers Here are the candidates for election to the Executive Board of CHVAGO, in alphabetical order. It has not yet been determined who will fill what roles on the Board, but traditionally that decision is made by the newly elected members.
John Corrie moved to the Hudson River Valley two years ago, from Lewiston, Maine, where for 38 years he taught at Bates College. He holds degrees from Oberlin Conservatory of Music, Northwestern University School of Music, and Yale School of Music. He was awarded a Fulbright-Hays Grant to study organ with Anton Heiller in Vienna in the academic year 1972-1973. For many years John has been an Episcopal Church organist and choir director in Maine and Massachusetts, and currently is organist and choir director at Trinity Episcopal Church, Fishkill.Justan Foster is Music Director at the Greenbush Reformed Church in East Greenbush, NY. A Past Dean of the Eastern New York and Hudson-Catskill AGO chapters and current CHVAGO Board member, Justan has served as a past chair of the Regional Quimby Pipe Organ Competition in Glens Falls, NY and has coordinated several Pedals, Pipes, and Pizza events. Outside of his role in the music world, Justan is Director of Office 365 for Church World Service (a international refugee and disaster relief organization). Susan Guse is currently serving on the CHVAGO board as treasurer. Recently, she oversaw the task of updating CHVAGO’s Standard Operating Procedures and is currently working on re-establishing the chapter’s tax exempt status which expired in 2012. Susan was Director of Music at St. John’s Lutheran, Poughkeepsie, from 1998-2020. She is retired and playing at St Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Kent, CT . She has a Master’s Degree in Sacred Music from Wittenberg University and a BA degree with a major in music from Smith College. Susan LaGrande is a long-time member of CHVAGO, having first served as assistant newsletter editor. Over the years her role has increased until now she publishes the monthly newsletter, maintains the web site and Facebook page, and handles all membership issues. In addition she is the de facto information broker for the chapter, handling inquiries about Subs and Position Openings. After serving as organist in several local churches since the 1970s, she is currently retired from the bench. She has long been a practitioner of the Korean martial art Tang Soo Do, and was reecently promoted to 5th degree Black Belt. Johannes (John) A. Vanderlee is a Senior Electronics Technician retired from IBM and Vassar College. He has had a lifelong interest in all things organ from a musical as well as a technical perspective-be it pipes or digital. He initiated and completed the renovation of the Bardavon theatre pipe organ under the New York Theatre Organ Society’s banner, of which he currently serves as Director. “I believe that the organ is a misunderstood instrument, a concept which needs to be countered by greater exposure to the general public, both young and old, by any means possible.” Nancy Vanderlee has served as CHVAGO secretary since 2017. An alumna of the Crane School of Music, and a recent retiree from the Hyde Park Central School District, she currently holds the position of Director of Music/Organist at St Peter’s Episcopal Church, Lithgow. Additionally, she teaches flute and piano privately, and performs as part of the Cappella Festiva Chamber Choir, Hudson Valley Bach Fest, Breezy Hill Wind Quintet, Vergennes City Band, and Capital Area Flute Club.
Seipp-Williams Trumpet and Organ Duo Announces AvailabilityTrumpeter Chuck Seipp, teams up with organist Craig Williams, for multimedia concert presentations by The King of Instruments & The Instrument of Kings. Chuck Seipp is Sergeant Major (retired) from The United States Army Band, "Pershing's Own”, in Washington, D.C. Craig Williams is Organist and Choirmaster of Cadet Chapel, United States Military Academy West Point, NY. This duo, unlike any ensemble performing today, offers, custom musical arrangements of virtuoso, beautiful, entertaining, humorous, and patriotic selections enhance the exquisite blend of their instruments. Coupled visually with specialized videos, these musicians craft a unique and engaging concert experience for all ages, creating extraordinary connection with their audiences. If your church or civic group is interested in engaging this duo for a concert, please contact Chuck Seipp at chuckseipp@gmail.com or call 703-517-0670. MM & Cert. in Piano/Organ Performance, Pedagogy & Injury-Preventive TechniqueIf you have playing-related or non-playing related injuries, you may be interested in a unique coeducational graduate music program in performance and pedagogy with an emphasis on injury-preventive technique. Salem College in Winston-Salem, NC offers an NASM-approved Master of Music degree and the Graduate Certificate Program which have had significant success in addressing the problems that, sadly, plague our keyboard world. Moreover, this training may be financially accessible to all MM students, who receive up to full tuition scholarship. To discuss the program, please contact Barbara Lister-Sink directly at 336-749-5715. For additional information, please visit our website.Deadline for Next NewsletterWe 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 June 2024, is May 23.Editor’s CornerThis 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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