When the season of Lent concludes with the dramatic and traumatic events of Holy Week and the glory and triumph of Easter there is a palpable - and I think unjustified sense of ’ending.’ Lent, famously, is a journey inspired by Jesus’ own 40-day foray into the wilderness... recalling the Epiphany season that basks in the Christmas afterglow, Eastertide in its turn journeys through the ministry of the Resurrected Christ to the events of the Ascension, Pentecost and the later Nicene-era observance of the Holy Trinity. This wondrous season mirrors the Lenten Fast with a kind of deeply thoughtful period in which Easter glory gives way to Jesus’ mature ministry and the consummation of His divine nature.
Spring 2023 will bring Organix’s monthly lunchtime concerts to a similar, thoughtful end - but like Easter it should not make us think ’ending.’ This ministry of Gordon Mansell, shared with and supported by some of the finest artists of the organ, has allowed us all to share incredible music and beautiful gatherings - and these will by no means end with the end of the Kingsway concerts. In tribute to Gordon, to this fine organ and beautiful church I offer a varied musical Easter journey drawing on Bach and his predecessors - and also some of the finest seasonal music from our gifted Canadian composers. Organix has been, and will remain, an invaluable gift to organ music in Canada - and now is the time to celebrate.
Postlude on a melody by Melchior Vulpius |
Derek Holman |
Prologue on ’Ascension’ |
Healey Willan |
Ich dank dir, lieber Herre, BuxWV 194 |
Dietrich Buxtehude |
Heut triumphiret Gottes Sohn, BWV 630 |
Johann Sebastian Bach |
Komm, Heliger Geist, Herre Gott, BWV 651 |
J. S. Bach |
Nun bitten wir den Heiligen Geist |
Johann G. Walther |
Toccata et Grand Choeur sur «Veni Créator» |
Denis Bédard |
Gott der Vater wohn uns bei, BWV 748 |
J. S. Bach |
O lux beata trinitas, manualiter |
Jan P. Sweelinck |
"And I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh" |
Eleanor Daley |