Concert: Stephen Tharp
NOTICE: Due to circumstances beyond our control (water damage to Irvine Auditorium and possibly the Curtis Organ) we have had to postpone this concert. We hope to set a date next season. All involved are disappointed.
University of Pennsylvania
Irvine Auditorium
3401 Spruce Street
Philadelphia PA 19104-6323
The first concert presented by the Fans of the Curtis Organ will feature international concert organist and recording artist Stephen Tharp performing on the Curtis Organ in Irvine Auditorium.
Mr. Tharp is the New York City American Guild of Organists (AGO) 2011 International Performer of the Year, an honor bestowed at most once per year to an artist deemed worthy of the recognition by the New York AGO. He has performed more than 1400 concerts in 45 worldwide tours and has been featured at the world’s most prominent organs. In 2014 he astounded an audience of over 3000 at the “Mother Church,” The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, in the gala closing concert of the American Guild of Organists National convention. The prime feature of that concert was Mr. Tharp’s performance of his own transcription of Igor Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. Reviews were unanimous in their praise: “Tharp’s program was transcendentally superior” (The Diapason) and “...performed colorfully, rousing and splendid” (The New York Times).
When Mr. Tharp asked our president, Paul Marchesano, if he could visit Irvine Auditorium and the Curtis Organ, which he had heard about for years but never experienced in person, a brief visit was scheduled. Within an hour Stephen exclaimed, “I have to record this organ!” Thus was born the idea that a “friends” organization was needed to see this and other important concert events take place on the Curtis Organ. What better project than to have an international artist perform a concert of transcriptions and symphonic repertoire on the Curtis Organ? To record the organ and release the first commercial recording since the 1997-2002 restoration of one of the world’s largest symphonic organs seemed to be the ideal initiative to form our organization. To differentiate this organization from the numerous other friends-of-the-organ societies throughout the country, we decided upon the appellation fans rather than friends.
The Curtis Organ is unique in several aspects, and we thought our support association should be as well. Constructed in 1926 at the height of the golden age of organ building, and built specifically for a great world’s fair (The Sesquicentennial Exposition in Philadelphia), the Curtis Organ was designed by a committee of prominent organists in Philadelphia to be a public instrument capable of providing entertainment to large numbers of people. The Curtis Organ contains 162 ranks, 10,731 pipes in six divisions. It was not designed to be a church organ, nor was it built strictly along the lines of concert organs of its day. Instead, its designers imagined a palette of orchestral colors—a synthesizer of its time, if you will—fully in line with the popular musical style of the day. The builders would largely forego the standard stacking of choruses of organ tone , i.e. divisions based on choruses of Diapasons, Principals and Mixtures, but instead provide a wealth of unison and octave tone in all of the tone families of the symphonic orchestra. While some other very large instruments feature orchestral voices, they are based around a core of a pipe organ that could be identified as a “church organ” sound. Some of the same stops are present, but they sing in a voice influenced by strings and wind instruments of the orchestra.
Today, organs in concert venues are enjoying a revival, a popularity that hasn’t been seen since the 1920s. The Curtis Organ sits in a private concert hall, one built for university lectures and musical performances. The University of Pennsylvania has welcomed numerous famous performers and speakers to its Irvine Auditorium and in 1997 committed to the historically sensitive renovation of the building to be able to provide modern audiences with a favorable concert experience. In their wisdom, the university administration agreed to restore the Curtis Organ to its full glory and allow it to remain a central and integral part of the hall. This is not without its costs. Irvine Auditorium is now in regular use, and is heavily booked well in advance, which creates an environment in which the university can support the facility as well as expand the venue to the general public.
As for many such venues, labor, overhead and insurance requirements are costly, thereby making the presentation of concerts on one of the world’s great pipe organs difficult and expensive. The Fans of the Curtis Organ intends to present at least one annual concert on the organ in Irvine Auditorium, release digitally transferred historical recordings of the organ, and produce new recordings in all modern formats to help educate the public about this massive symphonic instrument. We believe that the pipe organ, especially the symphonic pipe organ, is as relevant in our time as it was when it was built. The Curtis Organ will be featured at the 2016 Organ Historical Society National Convention and possibly at the 2015 American Theater Organ Society Convention.
At 89 years old, the restored Curtis Organ is doing wonderfully. We envision a major symposium and celebrations for its centennial in 2026, which will coincide with the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, and likely a national convention of the AGO in Philadelphia.
NOTICE: Due to circumstances beyond our control (water damage to Irvine Auditorium and possibly the Curtis Organ) we have had to postpone this concert. We hope to set a date next season. All involved are disappointed.
University of Pennsylvania
Irvine Auditorium
3401 Spruce Street
Philadelphia PA 19104-6323
The first concert presented by the Fans of the Curtis Organ will feature international concert organist and recording artist Stephen Tharp performing on the Curtis Organ in Irvine Auditorium.
Mr. Tharp is the New York City American Guild of Organists (AGO) 2011 International Performer of the Year, an honor bestowed at most once per year to an artist deemed worthy of the recognition by the New York AGO. He has performed more than 1400 concerts in 45 worldwide tours and has been featured at the world’s most prominent organs. In 2014 he astounded an audience of over 3000 at the “Mother Church,” The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts, in the gala closing concert of the American Guild of Organists National convention. The prime feature of that concert was Mr. Tharp’s performance of his own transcription of Igor Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. Reviews were unanimous in their praise: “Tharp’s program was transcendentally superior” (The Diapason) and “...performed colorfully, rousing and splendid” (The New York Times).
When Mr. Tharp asked our president, Paul Marchesano, if he could visit Irvine Auditorium and the Curtis Organ, which he had heard about for years but never experienced in person, a brief visit was scheduled. Within an hour Stephen exclaimed, “I have to record this organ!” Thus was born the idea that a “friends” organization was needed to see this and other important concert events take place on the Curtis Organ. What better project than to have an international artist perform a concert of transcriptions and symphonic repertoire on the Curtis Organ? To record the organ and release the first commercial recording since the 1997-2002 restoration of one of the world’s largest symphonic organs seemed to be the ideal initiative to form our organization. To differentiate this organization from the numerous other friends-of-the-organ societies throughout the country, we decided upon the appellation fans rather than friends.
The Curtis Organ is unique in several aspects, and we thought our support association should be as well. Constructed in 1926 at the height of the golden age of organ building, and built specifically for a great world’s fair (The Sesquicentennial Exposition in Philadelphia), the Curtis Organ was designed by a committee of prominent organists in Philadelphia to be a public instrument capable of providing entertainment to large numbers of people. The Curtis Organ contains 162 ranks, 10,731 pipes in six divisions. It was not designed to be a church organ, nor was it built strictly along the lines of concert organs of its day. Instead, its designers imagined a palette of orchestral colors—a synthesizer of its time, if you will—fully in line with the popular musical style of the day. The builders would largely forego the standard stacking of choruses of organ tone , i.e. divisions based on choruses of Diapasons, Principals and Mixtures, but instead provide a wealth of unison and octave tone in all of the tone families of the symphonic orchestra. While some other very large instruments feature orchestral voices, they are based around a core of a pipe organ that could be identified as a “church organ” sound. Some of the same stops are present, but they sing in a voice influenced by strings and wind instruments of the orchestra.
Today, organs in concert venues are enjoying a revival, a popularity that hasn’t been seen since the 1920s. The Curtis Organ sits in a private concert hall, one built for university lectures and musical performances. The University of Pennsylvania has welcomed numerous famous performers and speakers to its Irvine Auditorium and in 1997 committed to the historically sensitive renovation of the building to be able to provide modern audiences with a favorable concert experience. In their wisdom, the university administration agreed to restore the Curtis Organ to its full glory and allow it to remain a central and integral part of the hall. This is not without its costs. Irvine Auditorium is now in regular use, and is heavily booked well in advance, which creates an environment in which the university can support the facility as well as expand the venue to the general public.
As for many such venues, labor, overhead and insurance requirements are costly, thereby making the presentation of concerts on one of the world’s great pipe organs difficult and expensive. The Fans of the Curtis Organ intends to present at least one annual concert on the organ in Irvine Auditorium, release digitally transferred historical recordings of the organ, and produce new recordings in all modern formats to help educate the public about this massive symphonic instrument. We believe that the pipe organ, especially the symphonic pipe organ, is as relevant in our time as it was when it was built. The Curtis Organ will be featured at the 2016 Organ Historical Society National Convention and possibly at the 2015 American Theater Organ Society Convention.
At 89 years old, the restored Curtis Organ is doing wonderfully. We envision a major symposium and celebrations for its centennial in 2026, which will coincide with the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, and likely a national convention of the AGO in Philadelphia.