New pieces composed specifically for the Craighead-Saunders Organ, written and performed by Eastman School of Music students, will showcase the organ’s unique sounds in a free concert at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 20, in Christ Church.
The concert is the result of a year-long collaboration between Eastman’s organ and composition departments under the direction of composer, organist, and Siegen University Professor Martin Herchenröder.
As part of the project, the students learned about the mechanics of the pipe organ and studied the Craighead-Saunders Organ. Each composer was partnered with a performer, who offered suggestions on using the organ in the piece to be written and will give the first performance of the new work.
The Craighead-Saunders Organ is an exact replica of an 18th century instrument in Lithuania by famed organ builder Adam Gottlob Casparini. It was installed in Christ Church on East Avenue as part of the Eastman Rochester Organ Initiative to make Rochester a global center for organ research and performance, and was featured in the New York Times in 2009.
The concert, titled “Wave Functions: New Music for the Craighead-Saunders Organ,” will present seven compositions varying in style and featuring the organ as a solo instrument or in combination with voice or other instruments. The program features:
- “Stars” for baritone and organ, composed by undergraduate student Weijun Chen and performed by graduate student Caleb Woo and undergraduate student Chelsea Barton;
- “Wave Functions,” by Daniel Ochoa of the University of Siegen, performed by Eastman graduate student Aaron James;
- “Amorea Tir,” written by Eastman undergraduate student Kyle Quarles and also performed by Aaron James;
- “An American Rapture” for harpsichord and organ, composed by Eastman graduate student Aristea Mellos; performed by Chelsea Barton, harpsichord, and Eastman undergraduate student Autumn Coe, organ;
- “Journey of an Unsettled Soul” for saxophone and organ, by Rachel Seah and performed by Sean Xue, saxophone, and Isaac Lee, organ, all of whom are Eastman undergraduate students;
- “Awakening,” by Jennifer Bellor, performed by Thatcher Lyman, both Eastman graduate students;
- “Praetorius’s Ear” for organ and electronics, written by Eastman graduate student Steven Rice and performed by Eastman alumnus Randall Harlow.
The title for this event, while the title of one of the new works, also reflects the program, according to coordinator Aaron James. “Since geometrical shapes and ideas are a source of inspiration for much contemporary music, and since sound is transmitted as waves, ‘Wave Functions’ fits the nature of this concert,” he said.
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Calendar Listing:
Tuesday, Sept. 20
Wave Functions: New Music for the Craighead-Saunders Organ, composed and performed by students of the Eastman School of Music
8 p.m.
Christ Church, 141 East Ave.
Free