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"The quantity [of organists] is declining," says Louis Cantor, associate director of worship for the archdiocese and also an accomplished church musician who currently plays at St. Charles Borromeo in Detroit. "I’m not quite sure why that is, especially with the electronic age. It’s much easier to sequence and use an electronic instrument… but it’s not an instrument that people are very drawn to."

Kohn, Joe. "Church organists encourage young musicians to take up the 'king of instruments'" Michigan Catholic, a site that shamelessly steals it's design from the New York Times

More incoherent ramblings for the "shortage of organists" file.

Labels: shortage of organists

Finally, coming from the Minnesota Star Tribune, some acknowledgment of the circumstances surrounding the "organist shortage".

There's a shortage of trained organists because ...

Younger people are not pursuing it as a career because ...

They don't hear it played as much as their elders did because ...

There's a shortage of trained organists.

Return to Step 1 and repeat until the second coming.

Strickler, Jeff. Faith+Values: Modern bent squeezes classic pipe organs

So, we're really in a rut, huh? But maybe we can get ourselves out of it? I mean, we have built some really impressive organs in the past 20 years. Organ building is getting better and better. And as a consequence, there are better organs in more and more places.

As better organs make their way into churches, does it point to a change of course?

"The pendulum is starting to swing back the other way," said Beverly Claflin, Mount Olivet's music director. "Certainly a lot of churches have had a knee-jerk reaction to provide modern music. But I think that people are starting to look for that constant in their life that can come from music that has stood the test of time."

But some argue that the "praise band" is developing into an institution of its own right.

There are many different ways to spread the word of God," [Scott] Newman said. "It's the same message delivered with a different vehicle."

Fine. But I would add that the organ is a Rolls Royce, and the praise band is a VW Bus.

Some of us prefer to ride in style.

"Largest tracker organ in North America" tangent: Is the 114-rank Visser-Rowland built in 1990 organ at Wooddale Church the largest in North America as the article claims? It is substantially larger larger than the Visser-Rowland at the University of Texas.

Update: 22:35 23 January 2008: Via Osbert Parsley, per his comment below, "a somewhat different take on the article", "Imminent Demise of Organ-Playing!"

Labels: organs, shortage of organists

Presumably, Sally Casto does not mean to say that part-time organists are working full time as organists, but, rather, as something else.

"Part-time organists are now working full-time jobs," [Sally] Casto said. She said it's hard to find new organists because the ones working today "haven't done a good job with recruiting."

Hawes, Jane. "Music pipeline". The Columbus Dispatch. 15 June 2007.

Well, if Sally says that I'm not recruiting, I better get on that. Anyone want to take lessons? Email me.

Part of the problem today is that the job of church organist "rarely pays a living wage," said Robert Griffith, an organ music professor at Ohio Wesleyan University. Many supplement their income by also serving as church music directors.

Yes, because "church music directors" really make a living wage.

This coming from an "organ music professor". Is that really what it says on his door? Prof. of Organ Music?

This "music director" vs. "organist" is a strange distinction in the ecclesiastical soundscape, and its one that the profession doesn't really understand, so why should the author of this article?

The distinction deserves a little more examination. Certainly the position of "church music director", as completely separate from the organist, requires little to no technical skill or musical expertise. It's the nerdy, brooding, internet-savvy, awkward, poorly dressed, shy "church organist" that the average congregation has a harder time getting to know and value. The organist is the one who must be trained -- extensively -- but doesn't get paid or get the prestige of being "music director", whatever that is.

This is a false distinction. I don't know how these "music directors" weaseled their way into our little profession, but I think it's high time they learn how to play the organ or leave.

Bach wasn't known as a music director, but as an organist. And he was very full-time, thank you very much.

The organ is the traditional instrument of the church, and it should act as church music's gateway drug. If you can play the organ, you're qualified to get in. And I mean reasonably well. I'm not talking about virtuosity here. If you can't play the organ, you probably work at a megachurch, not that there's anything wrong with that.

At least, that's where I want you to work. Preferably part-time.

Photo admiration: I love the lead photo in this article taken by Chris Russell (above). I'm seeing it with an organists eye, though. It's a little too tightly framed to really be sure that it's an organ. If you know that we're talking about organists, however, it works beautifully.

Labels: shortage of organists

The results of Higher Education Arts Data Services's survey of music schools reveals that the number of organ performance majors is down across the board.

The number of organ majors at the baccalaureate level (237) and master's level (123) are at their lowest level in eight years.

Taken as hymn numbers in the Episcopal Hymnal 1982, these numbers correspond to "Let us now our voices raise" and "Alleluia, song of gladness" respectively.

The total number of organ performance majors (498; "Beneath the cross of Jesus") is also at an eight-year low.

The sharpest decline is shown at the critical baccalaureate level, which has sustained a 28.4% drop over the past three academic years.

With fewer students entering an organ degree program after high school, one can expect the other degree programs to suffer in the coming decade.

The good news in all this? I singlehandedly accounted for .813% of all organ students in a master's degree program in the 2005/06 academic year.

I can also infer that I hold slightly less than 1% of all master's degrees in organ performance awarded in 2006.

Labels: hymn, shortage of organists

Every month or so we at Sinden.org run across one of these articles about the shortage of organists. We're going to start posting them here with the hope of provoking some discussion. (Our thoughts being something like this: While there may not be a "shortage" of organists per se, there is a multifaceted disconnect between ecclesiastical institutions and the musical academy, if there is such a thing.)

In this find, Karen Ramos refers to organists as "almost nobody." And this church wonders why they couldn't hire anyone?

"We were very lucky" to find an experienced organist, Ramos said. "Almost nobody out there is playing the organ."

The Murrieta church is not alone.

Low pay, fewer organ students and the growing popularity of praise bands accompanied by electronic keyboards, guitars and drums contribute to the shortage, Inland organists and experts said.

Miller, Bettye Wells. "Ranks of church organists dwindling". The Press-Enterprise (Inland Southern California)

Maybe we should devise a scoring system for these articles? I hesitate to give extra credit for the "Ranks" in the headline because I doubt its author understood its meaning.

Recently

• Help wanted: church organists (Quad-Cities Online, from the Quad Cities, IA/IL)

Shortage of the whole picture: Take a look at this page from Redeemer Lutheran in Richland, Washington. Now, aside from the fact that musician has dubbed himself "Kappelemeister", do you notice anything odd? Do you know what PDQ Bach looks like? Do you? If word were to get out about this, there would be no shortage of beer in somebody's lap.

Labels: shortage of organists