Psalm 19

A couple of posts back I put up my initial foray into playing the organ with the three pieces I had been working on then, including the first part of the piece below.  Yesterday I played in church for the first time.  The piece I played is the one posted here, Psalm 19 by Benedetto Marcello (1686-1739).  I'm keeping a record so that I can track my progress over time.  I have fallen in love with this instrument and hope to improve as time goes on.  (Special thanks to my hubby David for being willing to do the filming!)

Now Thank We All Our God

I'm a beginner, so I may be jumping the gun in going public here, but I thought this was an appropriate weekend (Thanksgiving) for this piece (Now Thank We All Our God), and my enthusiasm has overcome my shyness.



I decided later in the day to go "whole hog" and put up the other pieces I've been working on - for better or for worse. If nothing else it will give me sometime to compare to when I've had a few more months of lessons.



Fugue by J. K. F. Fisher



Psalm xix (part 1) Benedetto Marcello

Weekend Adventure

I started taking pipe organ lessons earlier this year and just had opportunity arise to buy a used practice organ for my home.  After much deliberation (especially about where we could make room for it), the decision was made to get it.  This weekend's first "adventure" was tackling our bonus room upstairs - taking everything off the shelves and moving them and other things - lots of dusting and reorganizing ensued.

 Finally a big enough space in the corner was cleared out:

ASIDE - We REALLY like games!  So that's what our shelves are full of!

 The organ arrived around 4:30pm Saturday from Patterson in a sweet ride.

Dear friends and family members arrived, ready to haul quite a large instrument upstairs.

 Banisters were protected against any untoward events.

Time to start unloading  .  .  .

 Here comes the pedal board.  Thank goodness the organ could be taken up in pieces!

Slowly the organ makes its way to the house  .  .  .  

   .  .  .  bit by bit  .  .  .  carefully all the way  .  .  .

Now to figure out how to get it up the stairs  .  .  .

  .  .  .  all 400 or so pounds of it  .  .  .

Up we go!

A little concern at the landing.

 Got it!

Settling into it's spot  .  .  .

Time for much-needed refreshments!

 Then back up for some repairs  .  .  .

   .  .  .  including the use of open flame!

  .  .  .  and then the professional showed me how it's done.

 Caleb, enjoying the concert  .  .  .

 And then it was my turn!

 And here it is in all it's glory.  The biggest game in the game room! :-)

OK Go

I'm so glad I have kids who bring such things to my attention!

MysteryGuitarMan Fractal

...self-similarity...detail at all scales...hmm...seems MysteryGuitarMan is channeling fractals...

Music to Grade by

After dinner, conversation and play with extended family tonight it was hard to come home and get into grading. I've been using YouTube as my "playlist" tonight - just searching as I went for what seemed would make me feel happy and take my mind off of work. Music to grade by:

Beethoven's 7th Symphony

Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata

Bach's Toccata and Fugue in d minor

Bach's Now Thank We All Our God

B. Marcello's Psalm 19

Lemmens' Fanfare and Toccata

And (thanks to Caleb) The Theme from Super Smash Bro's Luigi's Mansion (below). Does anybody know if this is based on a piece of classical/baroque music? It sure sounds like it (especially right around 0:40).

Random Act of Culture

YouTube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp_RHnQ-jgU

All My Tomorrows

Check out this music video which premiered April 30 at Azusa Pacific's Cinematic Arts Premiere Night at the Linwood Dunn Theatre in Hollywood. The band is that of sons of my friends Jim and Leslie. They're really good, and I know someday I'll be saying, "I knew them when!!" As Leslie puts it the band members are: "Clark at the piano, Devin on the bass, Spencer on drums, and Cory (the honorary sibling) on guitar. Students/actors did an awesome job too."

Possibility

Wow! I didn't know a harmonica could do that! I may have to pull mine back out of the box and reassess the possibilities. By the way, I CAN play the first song ("Grandpa's song"), but I don't imagine I'll be in Carnegie Hall any time soon.
(Thanks for sending this on, Dad :-)

Kid Comments on Culture

Every so often I try to bring a little "culture" into my children's lives.


By their own choice they only listen to contemporary Christian music. Although I don't listen to much rock-and-roll myself these days, I know about music history, and I think it's a reasonably valuable thing to know. What was the music of the day and what meaning did it have for its time and how does music today follow in that tradition? What was going on in the 60's and how did the music speak to people dealing with issues such as the Vietnam War?

Also, I see it as a generational thing. I always thought it was cool to listen to 50's music when I was a kid because it gave me a feeling for what my parents' highschool years were probably like - made me feel like I knew more about them. I'm not sure I want my kids learning about me through Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, but hey . . .And . . . well . . . you know . . . if they ever want to be on Jeopardy! they just gotta have some of this "cultural" knowledge.

Sometimes they are receptive and interested, sometimes not so much, but there are almost always interesting comments from them. I came across some music from my early childhood on YouTube, was listening to it; they could hear it too: California Dreamin,' House of the Rising Sun, and Spirit in the Sky.

Caleb (11) said, "I'm glad I didn't live back when they had such scary music."

Anthony (16) was interested when Spirit in the Sky was playing because it mentioned Jesus, and he's into Christian music. When I told him - jokingly - that maybe I should have that played at my funeral since I am a child of the 60s and 70s he said:

"Aren't we all."

I have no idea what he meant!!

The following "scary" music is posted for your reference:

The Face of God

"In 1741, Handel composed Messiah and what we know now as the Hallelujah Chorus. While designing and composing Messiah, Handel was in debt and deeply depressed; however, the masterpiece was completed in a mere 24 days. Despite his mental and financial state, the Hallelujah Chorus’s birth story is a glorious one. After Handel’s assistant called for him for a few moments, the assistant went to Handel’s work area because he received no response from Handel. Upon entering the room, the assistant saw tears emerge from Handel’s eyes. When the assistant asked why Handel was crying, Handel proclaimed, 'I have seen the face of God,' while lifting up the composition of the Hallelujah Chorus . . ." (Story of the Hallelujah Chorus)

I have read elsewhere that Handel had visions and angel visitations when writing Messiah. After having sung it again today, I am not surprised at all. It is while singing Messiah that I too, more than at any other time, see the face of God. I was struck today that although Handel died more than 2 centuries ago, his work is as alive today as ever; to sing it feels to me almost like transcending time. As with every year, this day is truly Christmas Day for me.

Favorite Organ Pieces (Top 3)

1) Fanfare (Allegro non troppo) in D major
by J.N. Lemmens (1823-1881)

2) Nun danket alle Gott (Now Thank We All Our God)
by J.S. Bach (1685-1750)

3) Toccata and Fugue in D minor
by J.S. Bach (1685-1750)

RUNNERS UP:

Sinfonia Cantata 29
by J.S. Bach (1685-1750)
Salmo XVIII (I've always heard this called Psalm 19)
by Benedetto Marcello (1686-1739)

Pipe Dream

HOW AMAZING IS THIS?!

(Animusic)

In My Mind I'm Goin' to C . . .

Vacations are great, but it's a little crazy to be going to Colorado in a few days when we have just returned from Cancun a few days ago!

. . . but, anniversaries and family reunions come at their own time.

So do babies.

I am going to Colorado, but in my mind I'm goin' to Carolina where my sister lives and is about to give birth to her first baby, Sierra Katherine.

I find this song very peaceful to listen to. If you miss my posts while I'm gone, you might want to sit back and listen a few times, slow down your pace, and go to Carolina in your mind too.

Take on Me

. . . or should I say, "Take Me Away?!"

Here I sit surrounded by 270 pages of essay tests I need to grade as well as my own unfinished homework - ten-page grad proposal that is due - professional growth substantiation to write up. There are dishes in the sink, dust on the shelves, dirt on the floor, piles of clothing to be hung up, laundry to put away, stacks of papers and mail to go through . . . Back to school night is tonight as are chruch activities . . .

I'm in need of a blast from the past to take me back to a simpler time!

Although I was part of the first generation of teens to whom MTV was available, I was never much interested in music videos, but this one, "Take on Me," I REALLY like (check it out - it really is good!), and right now, watching it is making me feel younger and giving me brief escape from the pressures of the moment.