new Eule organ at the Kon- statinbasilika in Trier, Ger- many; and the closing con- cert for the 2014 AGO Na- tional Convention at the Mother Church, Boston. He is pictured at the Jann organ in the German Waldsassen Basi- lika. For more information, visit Stephentharp.com.


WINNERS The Saginaw Valley AGO Chapter has announced the three recipients of the 2013 Kent S. Dennis Memorial Scholarship to encourage and enrich themusical education


of present and future church or synagogue organists. Jay Michaud, student of Steven Egler, was awarded $500; he is a graduate student at Cen- tral Michigan University. Matthew Benkert, of Hem- lock, student ofHeidi Stecker, was awarded $350; he will begin studies at CentralMichi- gan University later in 2013. CallaRinggenberg, also a stu- dent of Egler, was awarded $350. She resides in Clare. The scholarship auditions took place on May 5 at Bertha E.R. Strosacker Memo- rial Presbyterian Church in


Midland. Mair Alsgaard, Pa- tricia Bowen, and Edward Soehnlen served as adjudica- tors. Scholarship committee members included Mair Als- gaard, Patricia Bowen, John Olson, Nicholas Schmelter (chair),and Adrienne Wiley. Kent S. Dennis, a chemist at


Dow Chemical Co., retired in 1986 after 32 years as a senior research associate. He was or- ganist at Bertha E.R. Stro- sacker Memorial Presbyte- rian Church for 47 years, and was named organist emeritus in 2003. He played for more than 700 weddings and per- formed annual organ recitals for 46 years; he also taught many organ students. His community involvement in- cluded frequent leadership terms for the Saginaw Valley AGO Chapter, serving three times as dean. In 2002, Egler commissioned an organ piece, Fantasia on Dennis, by David Gillingham in honor of Dennis, who had built a pipe organ in his Alden Dow-de- signed home. When his health declined, he donated the organ to St. Joseph the Worker Church in Beal City. Kent Dennis died in 2007.


memory of the Rev. John R. Rodland. He was a graduate of Juniata College, received the MSM degree, magna


42


Abigail Rockwood is the winner of the 2013 Rodland Scholarship, sponsored by the Northern New Jersey AGO Chapter. She was awarded $9,000 at the May 19 community hymn festi- val.Prizeswere also awarded to finalistsMatthewMiddle- ton, $4,000, and Silviya Mateva, $3,000. Pictured, left to right, are SilviyaMat- eva, Matthew Middleton, and Abigail Rockwood. Rockwood is currently pur- suing herDMAdegree at the Eastman School of Music, studying organ with David Higgs and harpsichord with William Porter. She also serves as assistant organist- choirmaster at St. Paul’s Cathedral in Buffalo, N.Y., where she is responsible for much of the service playing and maintains the choir- training systemfor the boys’ and girls’ choirs. She began organ studies with Huw Lewis at Hope College, then earned her MMus degree in organ with Todd Wilson at the Cleveland Institute of Music. The scholarship is in


is awarded annually to an organist engaged in, or preparing to engage in, a course of study of music to be used in religious services. The fund has been awarding scholarships for 23 years, totaling over $206,000. Those interested in the scholarship for 2014 may consult the chapter website at Northernnjago.org or contact Gloria Norton at Glorianor@aol.com.


Sarah Svendsen Christopher Lynch THE AMERICAN ORGANIST


cum laude, from Union Theological Seminary in 1963, and the MDiv degree from Union in 1980. An or- dained Presbyterian minis- ter, he served the First Pres- byterian Church. Ruther- ford, N.J., and, along with his wife, Joanne Harris Rod- land, West Side Presbyte- rian Church, Ridgewood, N.J., from 1968 until his death in 1989. He was espe- cially knowledgeable in the field of hymnody, and one of his last great tasks was serving on the selection committee for the 1990 Presbyterian Hymnal. He was a master organ teacher, and his students hold posi- tions in churches and uni- versities throughout the country. The Rodland Scholarship


Sarah Svendsen, of New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, has won the $5,000 Godfrey He- witt Memorial Scholarship for 2013. She holds a BMus degree in organ performance from the University of Toronto and serves as assis- tant organist at Metropolitan United Church, Toronto. Currently a student of Patri- cia Wright, Svendsen will begin study for herMMus de- gree in organ at Yale Univer- sity in September. The scholarship is named


number of highly trained pro- fessional Canadian organists. Previous winners have been Craig Humber (2005), Isa- belle Demers (2006), Michael Unger (2007), Ryan Jackson (2008), Matthieu Latreille (2009), Shawn Potter (2010), Wendy Nieuwenhuis (2011), and Stephen Boda (2012). The next annual competition will close on April 30, 2014. Details are available at Rcco- ottawa.ca, website of the Royal Canadian College of Organists, Ottawa Centre.


GRANTS The New York City AGO Chapter has announced a new initiative to award grants from its Centennial Millennium Fund. This fund was created with proceeds from the AGO 1996 Centen- nial National Convention held in New York City. Grants will be awarded in 2014 in amounts of $2,500 to $10,000. Grant proposals (maximum 500 words) for projects that will promote and enhance the pipe organ as a musical instrument to the general public are wel- comed through December 31, 2013. Please direct your pro- posals in electronic format to Keith S. Tóth, dean of the New York City Chapter, at agokeith@gmail.com.


for Godfrey Hewitt, who died in 2002 at the age of 93 and was a prominent figure in Canadian sacred music for many years. The award was established to honor his memory and increase the


at Indiana University, pursu- ing a master’s degree in or- gan. He is also assistant or- ganist under Marilyn Keiser


AWARDS Christopher Lynch has been awarded the Don Marler Church Music Scholarship for the 2013–14 year, granted by West End United Metho- dist Church in Nashville, Tenn. Its purpose is to further the training of those begin- ning a career in church mu- sic; the merit-based scholar- ship is awarded each year in the spring. Lynch is a graduate student


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