Ars Organi, also known as the Organ Performance Group, is starting its fourth year on Friday, October 11 from 10 – noon at Christ Episcopal Church in Tacoma. This is an open group, and new participants are welcome.

Facilitated by David Dahl and Satya Jaech, Ars Organi is an opportunity for organists to gather, play their current repertoire, and receive teaching and feedback about their performance. Based on the model of a writers’ group, each participant has the opportunity to prepare a piece and play it for the group. David Dahl provides a rich commentary on performance style and historical background. Typically, four people perform at each gathering. This leaves ample time for discussion and questions.

Topics of conversation range from tempo ordinario, historically accurate registration, pedal technique for playing Bach and other earlier composers, to managing performance anxiety. The group is structured to create a safe and respectful environment in which to perform and to discuss topics related to the organ and organ performance.

Participants come from as far away as Vancouver, BC and Vancouver, WA. If you’re interested in finding out more about the group, please contact Satya Jaech (starpoint3@comcast.net) or David Dahl (dahldp@plu.edu).

Grab your picnic basket and dust off those walking shoes! Our September program will be an opening picnic at Point Defiance.  Bring your family, friends, neighbors, and anybody who might be interested in the AGO.  Please bring enough food for you, your guests, and a little extra to share with visitors.

The picnic will get started at 5:00 PM, but if you’re able to get there early, we will meet at the picnic area for a walk on one of the park trails at 4:00. The trails originating at the picnic site are flat and considered an easy hike.

The Gig Harbor Viewpoint picnic area at Point Defiance has a water view, grills, a covered shelter, hiking trails, and bathroom facilities. More information, including a map, is available in the calendar entry.

Kathryn Marie Eggleston “Kathy”, age 76, died on May 28, 2019 in Littleton, Colorado.

Kathy graduated from the University Of Denver Lamont School of Music. She was a church organist who played for over 60 years. She was the Minister of Music at Bethany Lutheran Church for 30 years. She served as the dean of the Denver chapter of the American Guild of Organists.

Kathy split her time between Denver and Gig Harbor and was an active member of the Tacoma chapter of the AGO.

A memorial service is planned in Colorado.

Four concerts are scheduled in the Moe Series at Pacific Lutheran University this academic year.

On Sunday September 22 at 3pm, University Organist Paul Tegels will open the series with a concert combining organ music with words, dance, and visual arts. See the gargoyles and chimeras (Louis Vierne) come to life on a large screen on the stage. Resident assistant professor of dance, Sarah Seder, has choreographed the music of Mad Rush by Philip Glass. And see the gothic and romanesque architecture with music of Widor (movements of the Symphony Gothique and Symphony Romane).

On Sunday October 20, we welcome PLU alumnus Bruce Neswick; and in the Spring of 2020, the two remaining concerts are on March 1 by guest organist Erica Johnson, recently appointed as college organist at Wellesley College in MA, and on April 5, when we welcome rising star organist Zhen Piao.

All concerts take place in Lagerquist Hall on the Gottfried and Mary Fuchs Organ, built by Paul Fritts and Co.

Tickets: $17 General Admission, $10 Military/60+/PLU Community and Alumni, $5 PLU students/18 and younger
For updated information, visit: www.plu.edu/organ

If you are not on our email list, and would like to receive one reminder email before each concert, send an email to organ@plu.edu with the subject line “SUBSCRIBE”

This thank you is much past overdue but as the generous scholarship I received from you, the Tacoma AGO, wraps up, I relfect on this experience with joy and gratitude. 

A year ago, I was a musician and person who was terrified and didn’t believe in herself. And I had no idea how to play the organ, of course. 
But now, and only because of your generosity, I am a musician who knows how to play quite a few fun and riveting pieces of music on the organ, and I am a person who understands their capacity and who will never give up. 

Thank you, Tacoma AGO, for granting me an opportunity that changed my life. And thank you, Dr. Paul Tegels, for being an incredible teacher and friend. You have taught me so much about music and life! 

Olivia Brownfield