A Celebration of Schmaltz (with a little Schumann too)

If you're a fan of live organ music, here's a chance to hear a real pro. The Charlottesville-Albemarle Chapter of the American Guild of Organists presents a program entitled “A Celebration of Schmaltz (with a little Schumann too)” at 7:30pm on Tuesday, November 9, 2010 at First Presbyterian Church, 500 Park Street, Charlottesville, VA. The event, part of the Chapter’s 35th anniversary celebration, is free and open to the public and will commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of composer Robert Schumann and the 30th anniversary of the death of organ virtuoso Virgil Fox.

Visiting Organist Brink Bush from Providence, Rhode Island, will perform the music of J. S. Bach, Schumann, and Wilhelm Middelschulte in the context of virtuoso organist Virgil Fox. Mr. Bush edited "The Innermost Secrets" by T. Ernest Nichols, a book about Fox’s legendary technique.

Mr. Bush is the Organist & Director of Music for the Cathedral of St. John, Providence RI. He is one of the leading interpreters of German Romantic organ music in the world today. He has performed throughout the United States and abroad. He performed at Trinity Church Wall St. for the "Virgil Fox Legacy Twenty-fifth Anniversary Concert Weekend" in October 2005. In 2005 he also edited "The Innermost Secrets" by T. Ernest Nichols, a book about Virgil Fox’s legendary technique.

Brink Bush studied organ at Peabody Institute, the Juilliard School, and the Eastman School of Music with David Craighead, Robert Elmore, Russell Saunders and Rosalyn Tureck. His first compact disc, Volume 1 of the Complete Works of Wilhelm Middelschulte, was released in October of 1999. He is also the primary contributor to the new Complete Organ Works of Middelschulte published in 2007 by Baerenreiter.

At 6pm on Sunday, November 7, Mr. Bush will appear as my guest on WTJU’s The King of Instruments which airs every Sunday evening from 6 - 7pm on 91.1FM and streams live at wtju.net.