Jelani's Christmas CD

A Festival of Christmas - Jelani Eddington at Sanfilippo Theatre Organ.
I have several theatre organ Christmas CDs and they are all a disappointment... except this one! Here we have the fantastic sound of the incomparable Sanfilippo organ played by Jelani. The music is a mix of classical/church with and orchestra/theatre organ. All I can say is wow! Most of the arrangements are Leroy Anderson ones. Sleigh Ride is a re-release of a previous recording which uses another percussionist (which I don't care for.) There are also organ/piano duets performed by Jealani using the computerized player action of the organ. Included also is a wonderful classical arrangement of Greensleeves by Purvis. All the other Christmas CDs I have just sound like someone sitting down to play Christmas songs.... not wonderful arrangements by Leroy Anderson, interpreted by Jelani Eddington. This CD is a must get!

Disappointment!

Walt Strony had an emergency (I don't think I should say what) and he had to postpone his trip here to voice my Q-311sp and the LL324 at Bristol Glen. While I am disappointed I will have to wait longer, I fully understand why the trip had to be postponed.

Walt Strony's Visit

I am sooooooo pumped! Walt Strony will be coming next week to voice both the Allen LL324 at Bristol Glen Retirement village and my Q311 at home. I know it will be pricey, but it will be worth it!

Practice Time

Looks like I will have plenty of time to practice both piano (for the lessons I am taking) and organ tomorrow. We are supposed to get snow up the wazoo tomorrow so school will be closed.

Irving Berlin tune - Change Partner

I just heard this Irving Berlin tune on one of my theatre organ CDs.. "Change Partner" and is great for organ. I decided to listen to some old clips on Youtubes of it.. from the original movie and other things. It game me some great ideas for arranging it.. some interesting fills.

With me playing so often at Bristol Glen, I have to keep adding to my repertoire.

Playing the 324

It has been fun playing the LL324 organ for the residents at Bristol Glen. I don't schedule "concerts" but rather just show up and play for about an hour. They dribble in as I start playing. I have installed a mirror on the music rack so I can see if people are in the room. One thing this is doing is forcing me to increase my repertoire. I now have a large list of songs on my MusicPad Pro available to play. I have told the residents that I will try to play on a regular basis Wednesday nights from 6:30 to 7:00 before their usual movie. This past week the room was ahout 3/4 full.

Voicing the Organs

I am in the process of arranging Walt Strony to come and voice the LL324 at Bristol Glen and since he will be here I might as well have him voice my 311 at home. The organs currently sound fine... but I have heard so much about his voicing that I can't wait till they are done. When the 324 is voiced I will arrange a dedication concert for the residents there. It has been a challenge linking up Walt Strony's schedule with the needs of Bristol Glen for the room the organ is in.

Don Baker CDs

I just found out that Theatre Organ Presentations as re-released some Don Baker CDS so I ordered them. I currently only have one CD of him.. the Farewell to Paramount and it is far from my favorite. I have heard so much of his playing, I can't wait to get these.