Five questions for…Henry Fairs
Henry Fairs is Head of Organ Studies at Birmingham Conservatoire and Organist to the University of Birmingham, UK, and his musical career began as a chorister at Leominster Priory. After graduating he studied in France and Germany, and was a…
Five questions for…Carol Williams
Dr Carol Williams was British born, in a musical Welsh family, and was giving recitals by the time she was eight. She studied at the Royal Academy of Music, then with Daniel Roth at St Sulpice, Paris, before moving to…
The RFH organ restoration – time for the 32 foot pipes
The Southbank Centre recently tweeted a picture of the next step in the rebuild of the Royal Festival Hall organ. The last time I saw this sort of big plumbing was on a trip round the engine room of…
RCO Summer Course 2013 – back to our own benches
We’ve had our student recital, our certificates, said thank you to our teachers, and are heading back home to our solitary organ benches. It’s been an intense few days, and some of us were definitely losing the edge by yesterday…
RCO Summer Course 2013 – on improvisation
The RCO sees improvisation as an Essential Skill for organists, so we’ve had these daunting/inspirational workshops on improvisation all through the course from some of the best in the business. Some students have decided to try and keep the momentum…
RCO Summer Course 2013 – lightbulb jokes
Q. How many altos does it take to change a lightbulb? A. One, and nine others to say ‘But it’s too high for me’ Q. How many sopranos does it take to change a light bulb? A. One,…
RCO Summer Course 2013 – St Etheldreda’s Chapel
Our practice sessions on the organ at St Etheldreda’s Chapel come with multiple Heath & Safety warnings. NOT SUITABLE FOR TALL OR LARGE PLAYERS says our information pack firmly, and by the time you’ve negotiated a tiny and perilous spiral…
RCO Summer Course 2013 – playovers and extensions
Nothing gets church organists going much more than a discussion of hymn playing – a cue for despairing anecdotes about unmusical congregations, and even more unmusical clergy. Simon Williams kept us (reasonably) on track this morning on a Church Music…
RCO Summer Course 2013 – the Lord Mayor’s Palace
The Corporation of the City of London commissioned an inspired gift for HM The Queen for her Diamond Jubilee this year – an organ, which is temporarily installed in The Mansion House, the home of the Lord Mayor of London*. …
RCO Summer Course 2013 – time for timetables
Seventy-seven organists go quiet as they digest their timetables for the week. The course caters for organists at all levels, with classes for everyone from total beginners to diploma. Tomorrow it all starts in earnest, when we will scatter to…
Five questions for…Anne Marsden Thomas
Anne Marsden Thomas is the Head of the RCO Academy Organ School, co-ordinating the activities of a team of teachers and the studies of around 300 organ students. In 1990 she was responsible for the National Learn the Organ Year,…
RCO Summer Course London 2013 – meet our tutors
Click below to find out more about some of our RCO Summer Course tutors. There are interviews with Gerdi, Neil, Simon and Roger, music from Frederick, and write-ups of previous workshops from Gerard and Daniel. There’s also an interview with…
Join me on the RCO Academy Summer Course London 2013
The Lady Organist was proud to be the guest blog at the RCO Academy Summer Course for Organists last year, Monday 29th July to Saturday 3rd August. Six days of classes and concerts, playing organs of every size and date,…
10 performance etiquette tips from Take Note
Take Note is the blog of Sheet Music Plus. Click here for a recent post by Zachariah Friesen on concert etiquette, which I particularly enjoyed. Good advice for youngsters coming into the music profession – and a few reminders for…
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