Interest in Organ Resurges

In this article, we hear much of the same old story, that general interest in the use of the organ for sacred music is declining. But I have instead chosen to focus on the glimmers of hope that appear at the end of the article:

Despite the declining numbers, authorities said there are reasons to be optimistic that the trend will reverse. Programs to introduce children to the organ, such as the [American Guild of Organists'] week-long Pipe Organ Encounters, were filled to capacity in every city where they were offered in recent years, said James Thomashower, the guild's executive director.

And while some college organ programs are closing, others are starting. Renowned organist Gerre Hancock, who directed the organ program at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in New York City until he retired recently, and his wife, Judith, also a respected organist, plan to start a master's degree program in organ at the University of Texas at Austin.

Two seminaries on the campus of Northwestern University are working to develop master's programs in sacred music, said Christine Marshall Kraemer, who was a lecturer in Northwestern's now-defunct organ program.

"The organ is a fascinating instrument, an incredible machine," Kraemer said. "It seems like the organ has a connection with the church that cannot be denied and that must be preserved."

[Via Dappled Things]