2022-2023 Chapter Program Calendar
Monday, Sept. 12, 7 p.m. Annual Organ Scholarship Student Concert
Church of the Ascension (Episcopal), Denver
The opening concert of the 2022-2023 season features students who received scholarships for organ lessons this summer: Battseten Erdenebulgan, Abrielle Gardner, Kaitlyn Heyd, William Hoffman, Edward Nolen, Elizabeth O'Rourke, Gabriel Richard Lopez Smith, and Max Wilson. Piano and organ teachers: your students are especially encouraged to attend and learn about the scholarship application process. A reception and music swap will follow the concert.
Friday, Sept. 30, 7:30 p.m. Hymn Festival with Michael Burkhardt:
Singing the Psalms of Life
Ascension Lutheran Church, Littleton
Internationally renowned composer-organist Michael Burkhardt, Artist-Professor of Organ at Eastern Michigan University, will present an inspiring hymn festival featuring choir, handbells, timpani, and brass quartet. The festival will cover many facets of our life journey, seasons of the church year, and musical genres, using arrangements that can be applied in church music programs. Free and open to the public.
Saturday, Oct. 1, 9-11 a.m. Hymn-Playing Workshop with Michael Burkhardt
Ascension Lutheran Church, Littleton
Dr. Burkhardt will offer a workshop designed for organists who play in worship settings.
Friday, Nov. 11, 7:30 p.m. Hymn Festival with David Cherwien
First Congregational Church, Boulder
Famed organist-improviser David Cherwien, Cantor at Mount Olive Lutheran Church in Minneapolis, will present a hymn festival as the church's annual Sawyer Memorial Organ Concert. Free to AGO members.
Saturday, Nov. 12, 9:30 a.m.-noon Hymn-Playing Workshop with David Cherwien
First Congregational Church, Boulder
Dr. Cherwien's workshop will cover hymn-playing and improvisation skills. A book-swap table will be available, and refreshments will be served.
Friday, Jan. 20, 7:30 p.m. Organ Concert: Nicole Keller
Saint John's Cathedral, Denver
Nicole Keller is the newly appointed assistant professor of organ at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She has performed around the world and is particularly known for her varied programming. Free and open to all.
Friday, Feb. 3, 7:30 p.m. Spirituals: The Mother of Black Music
Director M. Roger Holland and The Spirituals Project Choir
with Michael Boney, organist
First Plymouth Congregational Church, Cherry Hills Village
Celebrate Black History Month with this concert of spirituals for both choir and organ. The Spirituals Project Choir of the University of Denver's Lamont School of Music, directed by M. Roger Holland II, is dedicated to preserving and revitalizing the spirituals through musical, educational, and social justice work in the community. Michael Boney is the renowned director of music and organist at Saint John's Cathedral in Denver. There is no admission charge, but a freewill offering will be taken.
Saturday, March 11, 9:30 a.m.-noon A Listener's Guide to the Book of the Holy Sacrament
Lecture-Demonstration by David Vogels
Augustana Lutheran Church, Denver
Olivier Messiaen's monumental Livre du Saint Sacrement is loaded with more hidden codes and theological references than a Dan Brown novel. In this lecture-demonstration, David Vogels will unlock the doors to understanding the piece for the optimum listening experience. He will summarize the underlying quotations and sound-design elements of Messiaen’s musical language in each of the 18 movements, using images and recorded comparisons. His translation of the full-length book by Dorothee Bauer, Olivier Messiaen's "Livre du Saint Sacrement": Mystery of the Eucharistic Presence, will soon be published by Brill/Schöningh (click here for a preview; the book is also available from Amazon). Based on that research, he considers this guide to be essential for anyone attending his subsequent performance, whether an organist or simply a music lover. Click here for the full-color lecture handout. Free and open to all. Morning coffee and a music swap will be available beginning at 9 a.m. and during the break.
Saturday, March 11, noon Luncheon with Address by AGO President Eileen J. Hunt
Augustana Lutheran Church, Denver
This lunch in Fellowship Hall will honor the Steering Committee and volunteers of the 1998 AGO National Convention in Denver on its 25th anniversary. Dr. Hunt will speak on "Honoring Our Tradition--Embracing Our Future" (click here for the accompanying document). For reservation information, see the Denver Drawknob.
Sunday, March 12, 7 p.m. Book of the Holy Sacrament with David Vogels, organist
Messiaen's Masterpiece in Sound and Images
Augustana Lutheran Church, Denver
The 18-movement Livre du Saint Sacrement, commissioned by the AGO in 1986, is one of the most significant works of the past century. David Vogels, who has been studying the piece intensively for several years, will perform it in its entirety. For the first time, the music will be accompanied by projected images showing the text quotations, birds, Gregorian chants, colors, and stained-glass windows that are woven into Messiaen’s vast tapestry of sound. The concert and lecture are cosponsored by Augustana Arts. Download the program here (this will also be useful for the lecture). There is no admission charge for either event, but reservations are requested for planning purposes; click here or visit AugustanaArts.org. A music swap will be available beginning at 6:30 p.m.; cookies and punch will be served during intermission.
Saturday, April 22, 9-11:30 a.m. Pedals, Pipes & Pizza
Wellshire Presbyterian Church, Denver
Elementary and Middle School students and their parents are invited to see, hear, learn about, and play (a piano piece) on the pipe organ—the King of Instruments—at Wellshire Presbyterian Church. And eat pizza. Registration is encouraged (so that there is enough pizza for everyone); contact Denise Lanning. Students must be accompanied by a parent or an adult family friend. Suggested donation is $10 per family. Attire: Saturday casual. For a printable flyer, click here.
Sunday, May 21, 5:25 p.m. Festive Evensong, Annual Meeting, and Dinner
Saint Andrew's Episcopal Church, Denver
The Saint Andrew's Choir presents the traditional service of choral evensong every Thursday between September and May, as well as special Sundays. This full choir service, led by choirmaster Timothy J. Krueger and organist Ralph Valentine, will celebrate the occasion of Ascension Sunday. Music will include David Drinkell's "Saint Martin's Responses," the Denver Evening Service written for the Saint Andrew's Choir in 2021 by Iowa composer Ross Jallo, and Gerald Finzi's magnificent anthem, "God Is Gone Up." Free and open to the public. Ample street and lot parking is available north of the church at 2015 Glenarm Place. For information about the annual chapter dinner, contact Linda Mack.
Saturday, June 17, 3 p.m. The Denver Brass with Joseph Galema, organist
Saint Andrew United Methodist Church, Highlands Ranch
Joseph Galema is Principal Organist at First United Methodist Church, Colorado Springs, and Instructor of Organ at the University of Denver's Lamont School of Music. The Denver Brass is an elite ensemble recognized throughout the Rocky Mountain region and the world for its innovative programming. This concert is free and open to the public, but an offering will be taken, with a suggested donation of $20 per person. A reception will follow the concert; ample free parking is available.
