American Perspectives

Composer and critic Virgil Thomson had the right idea. For him, regardless of style or attitude, if a piece of music was written by an American it qualified as American Music. And that’s what you’ll hear on our next Pipedreams program. There’ll be several zesty settings of popular hymns, jazzy toccatas, and dances including a boogie-woogie, picturesque scenes, historic take-offs, and even a profound Passacaglia, played on sonorous instruments by Rosales, Skinner, Hendrickson, and Wurlitzer.

From California to Connecticut, from Bingham to Bitgood, ours is a coast-to-coast survey of colorful organ scores. Frances Nobert, Diane Belcher, James Biery, Diana Lee Lucker, and Charlie Balogh with the Wichita State University Jazz Ensemble are all part of the party as we sample American Perspectives, this week on Pipedreams.

Listen to the program

Program Broadcast dates:

November 5, 2001

Music played in the program

LEO SOWERBY: Passacaglia, after Frescobaldi –Peter Stoltzfus Berton (1937 Aeolian-Skinner/St. Mark Episcopal, Philadelphia, PA) JAV CD-109

ROBERTA BITGOOD: Chorale-prelude, God himself is with us. EMMA LOU DIEMER: 3 American Hymn Tune Preludes: The lone, wild bird; Many and great, O God, are thy things; Whenever I may wander –Frances Nobert (1998 Glatter-Götz; Rosales/Claremont UCC, Claremont, CA) Raven OAR-550

TIMOTHY TIKKER: Tiento de Batalla sobre la Balletto del Granduca –Diane Meredith Belcher (1998 Glatter-Götz; Rosales/Claremont UCC, Claremont, CA) JAV CD-115

SETH BINGHAM: Roulade –Ken Cowan (1926 Skinner/Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian, Detroit, MI) JAV CD-118

LOUIS PRIMA: Sing, sing, sing. DUKE ELLINGTON: Caravan.

GEORGE WRIGHT: G. W.’s Boogie –Wichita State University Jazz Ensemble, Tom Fowler, conductor; DeAndre Manning, drums; Charlie Balogh (1926 Wurlitzer/Century II Convention Center, Wichita, KS) Pipedreams Archive recorded May 12, 1999

CALVIN HAMPTON: Suite Number 2 –James Biery, recorded July 7, 1999. ANDREW WAGGONER: Prelude on Forest Green –Richard Waggoner, recorded June 30, 1999. PAUL FETLER: Toccata –Diana Lee Lucker, recorded October 18, 1999 (1998 Hendrickson/Wayzata Community Church, Wayzata, MN)