Soprano Claire Stadtmueller at the Richter House

I really enjoyed this concert. It took me away from my loss a bit.  The soprano was personable, the music introductions were readable and funny. And things got even better as they went along. You don't get the full overtone effect from this video's sound. It was quite spectacular!

 I also was surprised to find Richter had a YouTube Channel!

Cantus - gorgeous voices and arrangements

Cantus -- read that:  Lush.  A celebration of all that is human.

An all male professional a capella vocal ensemble from Minnesota, they call their performances and music the art of "spontaneous grace."   The men often weave and move and interact with each other as they sing.  They obviously love what they do, are present and focused, and the audience can't help but be swept up into their musical universe. There is no stern baton waving distraction out front and no sheet music to crinkle, no folders to block our view of their expressions as they sing. It's all from memory, all internalized. all amazing. They also create many of their own arrangements.

The program I head last Friday, at the Gardiner Theater in Pawling, NY included the classical and popular, the ancient and the modern, the sacred and the profane, never flinching as it looked at the human species and its frailty, its fragile gasp of time, at the depth of loss and the joy of living. For an idea of their range check out these two videos from YouTube. Very different. Both incredible. They have a YouTube channel and a myspace page and six or more albums, (search iTunes or Amazon or Google Play)

  Yes, it's a week and a day later. I am so far behind on my posts I may never recover.

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Measure for Measure - better than getting a seat....

Last Sunday I went to a free concert at the Yale Museum for British Art in New Haven, called Measure for Measure - the Music of Shakespeare's Plays. The Ensemble Chaconne performed about 24 songs on period instruments: Peter Bloom on flute, Carol Lewis on viola da gamba, Olav Chris Hendriksen on lute, and finally a guest artist Pamela Dellal, a mezzo-soprano.

The room was "at capacity" as they say. We arrived before it began but still too late to get a seat, so we went up to the forth floor where there is a gallery or mezzanine-type opening in three of the walls. I peaked over a bit, but mostly I sat in a big comfy chair reading while the music spilled over into the gallery from below.

This was a very relaxing way to hear a very excellent concert. I could get up and stretch, look at paintings on the wall or check my email all  without disturbing anyone or enduring scathing looks from earnest concert-goers. I think in the future, I would prefer to be part of this spill-over crowd on the forth floor.

As a bonus, I found a wonderful painting I liked very much:A Grotto on the Gulf of Salerno, Sunset painted by Joseph Wright of Derby around 1781. It seemed so cool and relaxing to be out of the brightness of the sun and hidden away - almost like hearing a concert from the mezzanine!

Afterwards we visited a nearby Thai eatery where we had small bowls of miso soup $3.50 - a bargain! A friend also had fried green tea ice cream which arrived in flames. Couldn't resist taking a picture. Nice presentation with the drizzled chocolate.

Memorial Concert for Sergei Vladimiroff, pianist, woodsman, grandpa

This post was updated on April 7, and April 12, 2011.

A musical tribute and celebration of the life of Sergei Vladimiroff of Brooklyn NY took place at the Valley Presbyterian Church in Brookfield CT on Saturday, March 26.

Players included  Natalya Shamis (violin), Bonnie Aher (violin), Zarchary Paranyuk (cello), Maragrita Nuller (piano), soprano Patricia Hulber, and Sergei's son Maxim (piano). The program, which was played with great skill and deep feeling, included Tchaikovsky's prelude "Autumn Song" Opus 37, "If we live in the spirit" by Clement W Barker, the Largo from the Sonata in C Minor (BWV 1017) by J.S. Bach, two Rachmaninoff works "Moment Musical" Op 16 #1 and "Daisies" Op 38 #3 and finally Sonata for violin and piano in F minor by Eugene Ysaye.

In addition Sergei's two grandsons dedicated performances to their gandpa - Damian on guitar and Luca on piano - both displaying the musicality and feeling of fine beginning musicians. During the Remembrances many spoke of their fond memories of Sergei including Tatyana his wife, with Max translating from the Russian.  Sergei  "would have clapped very loudly," one of his grandsons said of the performances.

Concert pianist, woodsman, showman, grandfather - Sergei died in the midst of living - of  a sudden heart attack while riding the city subway on his way to the beach on March 15, 2011. He was well known in this area as a concert pianist, having performed at the Danbury Music Center on quite a few occassions. For the past ten years he served as organist at First Church of Christ Scientist Katonah.

The official bio:

A native of Klintzi (Ukraine) Sergei Vladimiroff spent his childhood in Saratov, a major port on the Volga river. He began studying piano with his mother, and later became a pupil of Dmitri Serov. While a student at the Saratov Conservatory of Music, he met Tatyana, who at that time was attending Saratov State University. The two of them married in 1962, and a few years later moved to Sochi, a resort town on the Black Sea coast. Sergei worked as a pianist in the local Philharmonic Society, and Tatyana became a TV commentator and producer. They had two sons, Maxim and Frol. During the last decade of his life, Sergei worked as a ballet accompanist at the Steffi Nossen School of Dance in White Plains, NY, and served as an organist at the First Church of Christ Scientist in Katonah, NY. He gave a number of solo piano recitals at different venues, including the Danbury Music Centre and the Valley Presbyterian Church.

He is survived by his wife  Tatyana, two sons, composer Maxim Vladimiroff (and his wife Leisa), of Brookfield, CT and Frol Vladimiroff of Sochi, Russia, and two grand sons Damian and Luca.

Besides his musical endeavors, Sergei was an avid woodsman who loved life, loved to keep moving. He enjoyed leading his grandsons on hikes though the woods, and also taking extended hunting expeditions to wilderness areas. "His hunting trips could fill up a whole chapter," his son Maxim said this week. "Everything he did, he did with great enthusiasm. He will be greatly missed."

The  70 minutes from memory recital Sergei gave on his 70th birthday with photos.

A News Times  review of Sergei's All-Russian-Composers program from Oct 2008

Read about a joint concert with Sergei and Maxim

A Review of an All Chopin program Sergei played in 2007

Russian pianist, woodsman, rascal: Sergei Vladimiroff's 70th birthday recital

Sergei Vladimiroff is a man who likes to lead hikers into the woods. He also likes to take listeners on excursions into the hills of music - music of many kinds, from the careful weavings of Bach to the wry shtick of nightclub-style comedy at a party -- but he especially loves the high cliffs, dark woods and turbulent weather of the romantic composers. Saturday he gave a classical recital in Brookfield (at Valley Presbyterian). It was 70 minutes of music played from memory on his 70th birthday.

The first half of the program was all Bach: a partita, two preludes and two concertos. The second half was the pianist's favorites: the romantic era composers: Czerny, Liszt, Chopin, Scriabin and Rachmaninov. His love of this music, and his expertise in rendering its emotive breadth were evident. During his first encore,

Rachmaninoff’s 2nd piano concerto, Vladimiroff Sr. couldn't help himself and began to sing the cello part as he played,  surprising and enchanting his audience.  For a second encore he played and led recital-goers in singing America the Beautiful.

There were flowers and a birthday cake afterward along with a four-part rendition of Happy Birthday. 

See also: Memorial for Sergei & Concert, 2 Vladimiroffs

........... - MM Walker

Sound Clips for Walden

I have been doing a little web stuff this week – added a sample audio file to http://vladimiroffmusic.net The clip is on the About Walden page. Walden is a 20 minute musical composition by Maxim Vladimiroff for chorus, string orchestra and piano. The clip, which the composer prepared, contains a short bit from each of the six movements.

Robert Honeysucker, Danbury Concert Chorus & Strings, composer Maxim Vladimiroff shine in world premiere of 'Walden'

This time lapse picture shows composer Maxim Vladimiroff adjusting his music, as members of the Danbury Concert Chorus find their places for the second half of last night's concert. It was a world premiere of Vladimiroff's  new work Walden, the Poetry of Nature for baritone soloist, chorus, string orchestra and piano. The work was commissioned by the Danbury Music Center and its music director Richard Price.

A teaching conductor is a wonderful thing and Danbury has one in Price, who understands that people enjoy music more when they know something about it and know what to listen for as the music plays. With a new or unfamiliar work in concert  -- how does this happen?  His solution is simple: play it twice, with a little commentary illustrated by musical examples, wedged in-between.

That was how Walden was presented last night at St. James Episcopal in Danbury, and it's well worth hearing many many times. It may well be a true masterwork of this composer.  It's the kind of composition where the sound is so beautiful - the sonorities alone can tear up the eyes and transport.  The baritone soloist was the extraordinary Robert Honeysucker, the chorus was the Danbury Concert Chorus, the strings sections were from the Danbury Symphony Chamber Players, the pianist was the composer himself.  During the first performance, Honeysucker read the text before each of the six movements of the work - (Spring, The Motions of a Sail, Nymphea Odorata, Autumnal Colors, Leaves and What Beauty!)

While all of the performers got hearty applause after the work was first heard - when the composer was brought up, the whole audience cheered, whistled, and stood up almost as a body.  Vladimiroff, an unassuming and personable soul, who has worked for three different churches in the area over the last decade and taught herds of children besides, has a lot of appreciative fans, including his mother (Tattiana?) and father, (Sergei Vladimiroff, a concert pianist)  his wife Leisa and two sons, Damien and Luca who were all in attendance to cheer him too.

But then it was time to learn a little something about the piece - Richard Price reminded us of his philosophy and brought Vladimiroff up to talk a bit about Walden.   As he mentioned each concept Price lead the chorus in an example from the work.

After a very animated intermission, the house fell silent to hear Walden played as a piece, without any reading of the text between movements. And here the arc of the work could be taken in.  And somehow in this last performance, Honeysucker was carried away with the work and delivered something marvelous and transcendent. The chorus too, having already performed it well  - had lost their nervousness and let go with truly solid gorgeous performance, as did chorus member Patricia Scharr who had a short section of solo notes. Everything was just right.

Three other wonderful choral works graced the program - Choose Something Like a Star by Randall Thompson, Shenandoah arranged by Donald Erb and Swansea Town by Gustav Holst.  It was a great night, and played to a packed house. People were standing in the back, and close parking was hard to come by. Thanks to all who contributed. It was a wonderful show.

Want to commission a Vladimiroff original or arrange piano lessons: http://VladimiroffMusic.net

-- Mar Walker

A Concert with two Vladimiroffs, three really

See also: Memorial for Sergei & 70 at 70 & Walden Premiere

Saturday, November, 8,  I went to a free concert at the Valley Presbyterian Church on Wisconier Road in Brookfield.  The concert was in celebration of the church's new grand piano and a grand piano it is indeed, especially in the capable hands that played this concert.....

The players were Maxim Vladimiroff, a Russian-born pianist and award-winning composer, his father, Sergei Vladimiroff,  a beaming and emotive concert pianist, as well as two highly credentialed Russian string players who have both appeared with the Hartford Symphony: violinist Natalya Shamis,  (a former concertmaster of the Moldavian Symphony Orchestra and later of the New American Chamber Orchestra),  and cellist Zakhary Paranyuk who is a member of the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra, the Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra, etc.

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The company was great too - I got to sit with an old friend, Leisa Vladimiroff, who is Max's wife, whom I haven't seen in quite a while - long enough to notice that their boys have grown quite a few inches, while I have been away!

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Back to the music! The opening salvo was Sonata for violin and piano (KV 378(317d) with its Allegro sections, sandwiching an Andantino sostenuto e contabile. Ms. Shamis showed her beautiful, energetic and singing lines, and Mr. Vladimiroff the younger played this lighter Mozart score with precision, balance and sensitivity.

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Next was an immediate change of pace. From the tidy elegant structure of Mozart, the program moved to Tchaikovsky, and Vladimiroff the younger was tag-teamed by his father, who specialty is emotion, caprice and surprise.  Mr. Vladimiroff the senior played five sections (months) from The Seasons, which is "program music" composed to embody  some well known Russian poems.  It was all lovely - but I most loved the June and October selections because they were most meaningful to me.. In June one could feel the sea waves lapping at one's ankles, and the warm night sky arching above. In October it was impossible to not see leaves flitting slowly to the ground, and at the end even a single leaf, trembling and rocking in the breeze before it finally lets go and falls.

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For November and December, I  couldn't grasp the metaphor and I think this prevented me from immersing myself in the music itself. November involved "not trying to catch up with the troika" according to the program notes,  and I had no idea what the troika  was.... December 's metaphor was wonderful, but I was unsure of its context. The program notes mentioned maidens on Christmas eve, removing their slippers and throwing them outside the gates. How wonderfully poetic! I would love to  know more about that (someone comment and enlighten me....)

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From the Sesaons, the senior Vladimiroff moved to more Tchaikovsky - the Polonaise from Eugene Onegin (an opera based on a poem). This well-known and beloved composition almost makes one want to dance...  As always, Vladimiroff played it with strength and subtlety.

After all this work, the players got to rest during intermission, during which a silent auction took  place in the lobby.  There was a lot of friendly conversation, and a few libations as well. (I am a coffee addict and always love fresh brew...)

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And fresh from intermission - I heard my favorite piece of the night - Etude in G minor Op. 33 by Sergei Rachmaninoff.  Now, when listening to music, it's always best heard when one approaches it as a sunbather approaches the sun - peel off the protective artifice and allow the music to act directly on the most vulnerable areas of the self.  This etude took me away, filled me with melancholy, and exaltation in its exquisite beauty all fabulously brought out by this fine player.

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Next on the program was a psychological wonder -- the father interprets the son!!!   Sergei played Six Preludes, a modernist tone-row style composition by Maxim !  I loved the caprice, the smatterings of tones, contrasted with the heavier tread of discordant semi-chordal blocks of notes - yet this is not a completely atonal work. .

There was much context to center, and it was an interesting contrast to the surrounding works.

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Then, it was back to the intense emotional ride of Dmitri Shostakovich's Prelude and Fugue  NO 24 in D minor, Op 87! It was most interesting to read in the program that this was a part of the composer's 24 Preludes and Fugues written written in tribute to Bach's own preludes and fugues.  Listening with the form of  Bach's  works in mind - it was amazing what different effect emerged from  Shostakovich's simmering furtive intensity - an intensity amply encompassed by Sergei Vladimiroff. The man must have been exhausted when he was finished playing it, so much energy went into the furious build of the fugal elements.

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He got to rest though - the next item was played by Maxim instead.  The composition was another Mozart bookending the program: Trio, KV 502. And here is my second favorite work of the night.  To me there is nothing so beautiful as the sound of the cello, and Mr Paranyuk is a wonderful player with superb tone! Perhaps as a mezzo-soprano, I am systemically partial to this rich sonority. Then when the cello's sound is woven with the sound of  Ms. Shamis, singing  violin, and Vladimiroff's artful energy, well, it's like a death by chocolate desert, except more serious, more expediant!   It was so compelling my own head could not stop moving in some sort of sympathetic rhythmic echo.   Oh what a marvel - Mozart, form and controlled flash, so well inhabited.  This was truly a fine piece...

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There followed lots of applause and people rising from their seats. There was an encore, I am getting senile and cannot remember what it was.  Then followed by

FOOD, conversations, more libations.

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Valley Presbyterian - congratulations on very satisfying event.

Rutter Gloria with Lots of Brass!!!

The occasion was the Eighth Annual Fall Festival of Music at the First Congregational Church in Ridgefield, directed by Edwin Taylor, which occurred on Sunday, November 2.. (It’s that church by the stone fountain, the one in the middle of the road that gets hits by cars so very often.) In fact the concert is part of the church’s Fountain Music Series.

The primary work was the Rutter Gloria with organ and brass. The singers included Edwin’s choir, singers from Jessie Lee United Methodist, and choir members who sang under the late Robert Ayotte of St Mary’s including a few of his paid soloists singing in the chorus(me for instance, and that is how I came to be involved) and a few from out of town. The 11-member brass and percussion ensemble was all imported and very expansive! The organist who played instead of Rob was Daniel M. Beckwith from Princeton. And no one ever forgets the fabulous Celebration Ringers – Edwin’s marvelous and discplined handbell choir.

We had dress rehearsal the afternoon of the concert. It was rigorous but very well organized so there was a minimum of hassle involved. Because most of us missed lunch, and would be concertizing well into the dinner hour, a meal was served at 3p.m. And there was coffee (I am always in need of caffeine), and I was grateful for the sustenance.
The brass ensemble opened in the side isles with a Gabrieli hymn arranged by Mr. Taylor. The brass and handbells were smashing! The handbells did Fantasy No 4 a new composition by Michael Helman and on Elgar’s Nimrod from his Enigma Variations. Later the brass and Organ together had a Taylor arrangement of Pacibell’s Deus in Adjutorium.

There were also a lot of congregational hymns. All in all, the concert went of without a hitch, Although it is hard to tell when you are singing – I think the choral works went very well too. I have to report that I actually did NOT GET LOST in the 5/8 sections of the Gloria. The Counting went very well.
There was a marvelous metaphoric talk Living in Harmony with the Universe, given by the Rev. Dr. Brenda Steirs about finding the tune and the key of life…..
For me the only difficulty was, that during a lush and beautiful duet The Lord’s Prayer, written by Mallotte and arranged by Mr. Taylor and sung by Amy Montanari and Faith Ferry – my eyes teared up, my sinuses clogged. It was so so very beautiful. I suppressed a cough until after this beautiful duet was done, then lost track a bit blowing my nose. We did the benediction ( The Lord Bless You and Keep You by Lutkin), from memory. And low and behold I remembered it. YEAH.

The concert ended with Moussorgsky’s Great Gate of Kiev in Mr. Taylor’s own arrangement for brass, organ, percussion, handbells and choir. And a good time was had by all….

Priests screw up the mass - no ligntening, just screaming kids

There must be something in the air - at work (I am a mezzo soloist at an RC church, a mercenary arrangement not a religious one) the father forgot to follow the cross during the processional and got left behind. He also forgot to end the mass!!! A lay minister reminded him, and he shouted WAIT. What a riot. These guys need cue cards I guess. And the flock gets really peeaved. Deviation from the norm is not appreciated! Also, today, babies and toddlers were present in larger numbers than usual and they were so LOUD, hollering and shrieking all though mass. At least they were in a happy mood. None of those grinding and angry screams. If there were a god, surely he or she must remain baffled by this crazy flock....

Don Giovanni, Ave Verum, Poetry & Friends

This weekend was packed to the gills with music and poetry.
First on Saturday morning, with Edwin Taylor and his singers, and with other singers from St Mary’s, I rehearsed f the Rutter Gloria or two and half hours. This is Edwin’s the First Congregational Church (Ridgefield) “Concert Choir.” It’s a tough but beautiful and engaging composition with lots of time changes and spates of 5/8 just to drive us crazy. The concert which includes a brass and percussion ensemble, is Nov. 2.

Later that day, I saw the Hillhouse Opera Company’s first production – Mozart’s Don Giovanni with baritone Michael Trinik in the lead. He is a long-time student of tenor Perry Price, and at 36 years old, – and after years and years of hard work and study – this singer is really coming into his own. On the stage his voice just rolls out of him in a big grand fashion. He seems really in his element, really at home on stage, 100% engaged with his character. Another singer, really blooming in this production is soprano Victoria Gardener who’s high notes were lush and lovely. Besides sounding elegant, Ms. Gardener, all in red, tall and stately, looks like some legendary diva in training. She is also the person who made this show happen along with her parish, clergy, donors, and friends, especially Nicole Rodriquez and Regina Wagner and many others The church, St Mary’s in New Haven, is big, with its own natural reverb. There was a small orchestra under the direction of Mercy OBourke, and it was a pleasant surprise, being not only in tune but quite skilled — not a small feat for a volunteer, startup company production… I wonder if they tapped the Yale School of Music.
The score was uncut and the production was three hours. I enjoyed it all and had the company of fellow Shijin poet Eli Cleary to make the evening companionable as well.

The next morning back in the loft at that other St. Mary’s choir Mass, we sang Ave Verum and a choral version of Eye Hath Not Seen. Both seemed to go particularly well, so the experience was a good one, but I still terribly miss Rob Ayotte, our former Music Director who died in June.
Later that day there was poetry in two languages at a house warming party for Reggie and Marionela Medrano-Marra. What a lovely home, and lovely lively set of folks there to celebrate the occasion: poets, professors, artists, a college president, a radical intellect or two, not to mention the resident poet-therapists of this lovely new space. The vibes were good, the conversation lively and the food fresh, the wine, subtle, the company warm. Great day!

Birthday Baritone, the lead in Don Giovanni 10/17 & 18

After a depressing afternoon watching the DOW sink like stone once again – I went out on a birthday celebration. I had a fine time tonight at TK’s in Danbury celebrating the 36th Birthday of baritone Michael Trinik, a fellow musical employee of St Mary Parish, and a long-time student of tenor Perry Price.

I first met Michael quite a number of years ago, (when he was still a student at WestConn) during a summer production of the Mikado in New Milford CT. Michael was the Grand PooBah, I was the oldest, fattest little maid in the chorus, and also understudy to Katasha. (If I recall more names from that production I will add them later. I am in my late 50s and cannot be relied on to recall everything.) Dramatic tenor John Shackelford was the music director and Arlene Begelman directed the theatrical aspects of the production.

In any event, a few folks came down to TK’s tonight to help Michael celebrate including his friend and fellow WestConn Alumni Keith who was also having a birthday, and a very pleasant couple whose names have escaped my aging brain. Coloratura soprano Cheryl Hill, (whose lovely high notes are a delight to the ear) her father Braxton (a bass) and her very sweet mom were also there. (I had a great time taking with the Hills.) Everyone had a few of TK’s special wings because Michael said that was his tradition. We sang happy birthday to Mike and Keith in four-part harmony…. And the bar actually paused and clapped.
Later in the evening David Baranowski, who accompanied him at his most recent recital at the Danbury Music Center, and another fine singer – who so beautifully sang O Mio Babbiono Caro from Puccini’s Gianni Schicci at that recital, (might be David’s wife? Not sure.) were also in attendance.
Anyway, after all that long-winded business – I am finally getting to the reason I am making this post. Mike will be singing the lead in Don Giovanni later this month with the fledgling Hillhouse Opera Company in New Haven, started by Victoria Gardener and a few other folks. Performances will be October 17 & 18, 7:30 pm at (yet another) St Mary’s Church, 5 Hillhouse Ave. New Haven. See the Don Giovanni link website for ticket info and directions. Note: It’s fee….

Boots & Sneakers: A Farewell to Rob Ayotte

This still life, which I did in a college class, is rendered in oil pastel. It makes me think of a friend, who recently died, who had the largest sneaker collection I have ever seen. There were fireworks somewhere a little while ago, and a band is playing across the street. Now though, it's 10:30pm. It has grown hot and sticky. The dog is nervous because of the fireworks. The cat is ignoring us as usual. There are sirens downtown. And I am thinking about the Rob: Robert Bryan Ayotte /

Hometown: Tonowanda, NY / United States You can visit  RememberingRob  on Youtube, a channel setup in his memory at http://youtube.com/RememberingRob It includes clips of some recitals, some from his choir & soloists and selections from his Master's recital for SUNY Binghamton (NY) played on the organ at the First Presbyterian Church there.

  The late Robert Bryan Ayotte, who was Director of Music and Organist for St Mary Parish for seven years, died at home in his Danbury apartment, and was found on June 4, 2008. He was only 34 years old.

Rob earned music performance degrees at SUNY Buffalo and SUNY at Binghamton. At the time of his death, he was in the last stages of earning a DMA in Organ Performance from the University of Indiana at Bloomington. Through the course of his studies, his applied keyboard teachers included Roland E. Martin, David Fuller, Jonathan Biggers, Marilyn Keiser and David Smith. He was known for his devoted work ethic, his skill as a choirmaster and organist, for his dry sense of humor, his generosity of spirit, his willingness to encourage colleagues, his love of chocolate chip cookies and brownies, and for his enormous collection of sneakers and boots.

Besides his work at St. Mary's, Rob served as membership registrar at the local chapter of the American Guild of Organists. He gave his last recital on May 20, 2008 at a Old St. Paul's Episcopal Church, in Baltimore, MD, where he played on a one-of-a-kind antique pipe organ. His is survived by his parents, Peter and Joanne Ayotte, a brother Eric (Shannon), as well as a neice Devin and a nephew, Joshua. He will be greatly missed by the members of his choir, his music staff, his colleagues in the organists guild and other musical organizations he had worked with, by his many friends from college, the clergy and parishioners, his friends at St Mary's. Rob's Funeral was held at St Mary's in June, and later on July 11, 2008 his ashes were interred at St Mary Cemetery. Rest in Peace, friend.

Lessons & Carols tomorrow

• Tomorrow is Lessons and Carols. (a job not a belief). The concert is by the combined choirs of St Mary’s and the local Congregational church. Their choir has a LOT of men and they sing like vikings. TEN bases in the combined choir. I will be recording it all on my Olympus mini thing. I recorded the entire dress rehearsal which sounds pretty good. This time I placed the recorder on the shelf behind the organ with mics facing away from the singers and out towards the congregation. That resulted in a nice natural “reverb” from the vaulted ceiling!

We also have the benefit of two folks up front. The music director from the congregational church is tickling the organ keys for this one. Our director is conducting. They make a nice team! Finally, after all this churchy stuff I am heading to a solstice bonfire at a friend’s house.