Two-manual pipe organs of good design and voicing convincingly play hymns, service music, and literature. This new CD well demonstrates three fine organists at work on three different pipe organs, proving once again that the quality of a real pipe organ and intelligent musicianship trump artifice and the false promise of size alone. Great for organ committees to hear, the three organs range in size from three ranks to 25 ranks to 38 ranks.

Bach: Concerto in D Minor after Vivaldi, BWV 596
Haydn: Two Pieces for a Musical Clock
George Shearing: Jerusalem, My Happy Home
Karg-Elert: Postludio Festivo
Rudolf Friml: Echoes of Spring
Vivaldi: Largo and Trumpet Tune
François Couperin: Cromhorne en taille
Charles Neustedt: Gavot
Bach: Lord Jesus Christ, Be Present Now, BWV 655
Lefébure-Wély: Boléro de Concert
played on the 25-rank Reuter organ at Our Lady of the Lake Church, Rockwall, Texas

Daquin: The Cuckoo
Wolstenholme: Allegretto
Krebs: Dearest Jesus, We are Here (with John Brechen, soprano saxophone)
Dale Wood: Caricature of a Sunday School Song
played on the 3-rank Reuter organ at The Institute of St. Joseph, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin

Walter L. Pelz: Festive Intrada
Boyce: Voluntary in D
Vierne: from 24 Pieces in Free Style:
Scherzetto
Lied
Divertissement
Sousa: The Liberty Bell
played on the 38-rank Reuter organ at St. Bartholomew Catholic Faith Community, Wayzata, Minnesota

The Organs Heard on This Recording
Reuter Opus 2204 was built for Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church in Rockwall, Texas. This organ was designed as a completely new instrument and was installed during December of 2000. The organ is located in chambers on both sides of the Chancel. Each chamber has two sound openings, one facing the choir and the other facing the nave, for effective tonal projection. The Great division is opposite the Swell, with the Pedal stops divided across both sides. Pedal principal pipes, fashioned from flamed copper and framed with oak casework, create an attractive façade that coordinates well with the surrounding architecture and fixtures. The carefully conceived, 25-rank specification accommodates a wealth of literature with ease.

Reuter Opus 1742 was built in 1970 for display and use at the Pacific Southwest Synod Convention in Los Angeles. Over the years, this electropneumatic instrument has served as a residence organ in three locations – California, Minneapolis and Texas. In 2006, it was returned to the Reuter facility for updating. Both reservoirs were completely releathered and the old blower, formerly housed in a remote location for sound insulation, was replaced with a new, quiet blower installed in the case. A new DC power supply and electric tremolo were added, as well as new wiring and cables. The zinc bass pipes were refinished and the entire organ was cleaned and given a fresh coat of lacquer. This organ has now been relocated to its fourth home at The Institute of St. Joseph in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin.

Reuter Opus 1875 was originally built in 1974 for St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. In 2007, the two-manual, 21-rank organ was relocated to nearby Wayzata and redesigned for a new home at St. Bartholomew Catholic Faith Community. With the addition of 18 ranks of pipes, this is an instrument with abundant tonal resources and great versatility. The completed configuration includes new 8' and 4' foundation stops on the Great. Pipework from the former Great was re-engineered to form the basis for a floating Choral division located near the front of the nave, adjacent to the console and choir. The main organ divisions are located high above the entrance doors at the back of the nave. The Trompette en Chamade, present in the original installation, crowns the installation from the top of the Swell.

The Organists
Jason Alden is a graduate of Elmhurst College and Valparaiso University. His former organ instructors have included Lorraine Brugh, Martin Jean and Robert Glasgow. He is currently a University of Michigan doctoral candidate and will soon complete his degree with James Kibbie. He has served on the faculty of Elmhurst College as Teaching Associate in Organ, and has also held the position of Assistant Professor of Music and University Organist at Concordia University in Ann Arbor. Mr. Alden is the proprietor of Alden Organ Services in Dallas, Texas, and is the Reuter Organ Company’s Regional Sales Representative for the south central United States.

Susan De Kam began organ study with Huw Lewis as a freshman at Hope College in Holland, Michigan, while completing undergraduate studies as a piano major. She earned a Master of Music degree under the direction of Robert Glasgow at the University of Michigan, where she is currently a doctoral candidate studying with James Kibbie. She was a finalist in the 2006 Miami International Organ Competition. Most recently, she was a semi-finalist in the Bach/Liszt International Organ Competition, held in Weimar, Germany. Ms. De Kam serves as Associate Director of Music at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Dallas and is a member of the piano faculty at Coppell Conservatory in Coppell, Texas.

Ronald Krebs is Vice President of the Reuter Organ Company. His primary responsibilities include sales and communications, and he also assists in design and project oversight. Mr. Krebs received Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the University of Michigan, where he studied organ with Robert Glasgow. An active member of the American Guild of Organists, he is currently Director of the AGO Committee on Regional Conventions. Mr. Krebs has presented concerts in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, France and The Netherlands, and has been featured in a live performance on the National Public Radio program Pipedreams.