A “Stop” for every Season

TEMPE, Ariz.  –  From the 4th Annual Christmas Organ concert to the pedal clavichord inauguration during February 2007, the ASU Herberger College School of Music gives organ enthusiasts something to be thankful for. 

This Dec. 9 and 10, the MainStage Organ 4th Annual Christmas Concert transforms Organ Hall into a festive corridor of seasonal carols and nöels.  Musical holiday favorites are performed on the existing Fritts organ and an Italian Baroque organ that was built by Domenico Traeri in 1742, which is on indefinite loan to ASU. 

Energized after the Christmas concert, patrons can look forward to the MainStage spring Organ series that includes the inauguration of the pedal clavichord Feb. 18.  For centuries, organists played the instrument in preparation for organ performances.  The official dedication of the Italian Baroque organ isn’t too far behind.  The March 11 concert also includes the highest concentration of music from this Baroque-era treasure. 

All concerts are held in Organ Hall in the School of Music building on the ASU Tempe campus, 40. E. Gammage Parkway.  Tickets are $7-$18. To purchase MainStage Organ tickets, visit http://mainstage.asu.edu, or call 480-965-6447.

The 2006-07 MainStage Organ Series:

December 2006
4th Annual Organ Christmas Concert
Dec. 9 & 10, 2:30 & 5 p.m.
Kimberly Marshall and the ASU Organ Studio invite you to a special holiday concert celebrating with seasonal carols and nöels sure to get you in the holiday spirit. Last year’s performances sold out, so purchase your tickets early!

February 2007
The Golden Age in Europe
Feb. 4, 2:30 p.m.
Robert Bates of the University of Houston is a specialist in Renaissance and Baroque organ music.  His program highlights this fascinating repertoire with anonymous French dances and chansons of the Renaissance, performed on the Traeri organ, and a selection of exotic Tientos by the greatest Spanish organist of the 17th century, Francisco Correa de Arauxo.

In Pursuit of Art: Early Organ Music as Didactic Material
Feb. 18, 2:30 p.m.
ASU’s new professor of early music, Siegbert Rampe, introduces the audience to ASU’s new pedal clavichord by master builder Gary Blaise. For centuries, organists played this instrument to prepare for performances on the organ. Rampe has chosen repertoire that was used to teach improvisation and composition. Learn how Baroque organists learned to play and compose. Half of the program is on clavichord; the other on organ.

March 2007
Order vs. Beauty: A Juxtaposition of German and Italian Styles
March 11, 2:30 p.m.
Kimberly Marshall spent seven months of sabbatical in Italy last year and shares the fruits of her research in this program that exploits the unique timbres of the Fritts and Traeri organs. This marks the official dedication of the Traeri organ.

A German Organ Tour
March 25, 2:30 p.m.
Sue Westendorf, associate director of music at All Saints Episcopal Church in Phoenix, explores the history of German organ music with selections by Buxtehude, Bach, Mendelssohn and Merkel. The Fritts organ is ideally suited to the German Baroque repertoire, which features Bach’s virtuosic Toccata in F Major; the later sonatas by Mendelssohn (Sonata VI) and Merkel demonstrate how composing for the organ developed in Germany during the 19th century.

The School of Music in the Herberger College of Fine Arts at Arizona State University is ranked 19th in the country and eighth among public institutions by “U.S. News & World Report.” More than 100 music faculty artists and scholars work with approximately 800 music majors each year in research, performance and scholarly activities. It presents approximately 700 concerts and recitals each year. To learn more about the School of Music, visit http://music.asu.edu.