ASU’s 2019-20 Organ Series launches Oct. 20

The School of Music’s 2019-20 Organ Series celebrates the pipe organ — an instrument with a repertoire than spans more than 500 years. Performances this year feature a wide range of music, from 14th century Europe to contemporary America.

“The 2019-20 organ series is all about connections — connections between art and power, between different musical traditions and between ASU organists and the local community,” said Kimberly Marshall, Goldman Professor of Organ in the School of Music in ASU’s Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts.

This year’s series features ASU doctoral alumni Guy Whatley and Kristin Holton-Prouty, both leaders in the greater-Phoenix musical community. Marshall’s concert explores influences from southern Europe on the organ music of the north. Marshall’s organ studio students present a holiday celebration in their organ Christmas concerts and recreate the late-medieval and Renaissance origins of organ music in a program entitled “Gargoyles and Galliards.”  The series finale features a concert of organ variation sets by Dexter Kennedy, winner of the Grand Prix d’Interprétation at the 24th Concours International d’Orgue de Chartres, in a program that is co-sponsored by the Central Arizona chapter of the American Guild of Organists.

“The pipe organ has an unmatched power and versatility in the musical world,” Marshall said. "This year’s series exposes the beauty and intensity of this extraordinary instrument.”

All organ concerts are performed in ASU’s Organ Hall in the School of Music. Tickets for all events may be purchased at the Herberger Institute Box Office or by calling 480-965-6447.

2019-20 Organ Series

Graces in Play: Guy Whatley
Sunday, Oct. 20, 2:30 p.m.
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Playing both organ and harpsichord, ASU alumnus Guy Whatley brings to life the unique keyboard music of the British Isles during the reigns of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.

Transalpine Adventures: Kimberly Marshall
Sunday, Nov. 10, 2:30 p.m.

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Goldman Professor of Organ Kimberly Marshall presents a program of early organ music showing links between northern and southern keyboard cultures.

O Holy Night: An Organ Concert for Christmas
Saturday, Dec. 14, 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 15, 2:30 and 5 p.m.

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Mezzo soprano Sarah Welden joins Kimberly Marshall and the ASU Organ Studio in this musical celebration of Christmas.

Songs of Home: Kristin Holton-Prouty 
Sunday, Jan. 26, 2:30 p.m.

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ASU alumna Kristin Holton-Prouty presents organ works based on old and new melodies, playing the Fritts (1992) and Traeri (1742) instruments.

Gargoyles and Galliards
Sunday, Feb. 9, 2:30 p.m.

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Kimberly Marshall and the ASU Organ Studio recreate the late-medieval and Renaissance origins of the King of instruments.

Variety of the Variation: Dexter Kennedy
Sunday, March 1, 2:30 p.m.

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Prizewinner Dexter Kennedy performs variation sets from the vast organ repertoire, including one of the most elaborate partitas by Johann Sebastian Bach.