Welcome!

​Welcome to the web site of the District of Columbia Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.

Our city and its surrounding areas boast a lively pipe organ culture, to which our Chapter members contribute significantly.

We invite all who love the pipe organ and its music to explore this website for opportunities to attend AGO-sponsored events as well as concerts in our churches and concert halls. All are welcome, no matter if you're an official AGO member or not. Our mission is to share the glories of the "King of Instruments" with everyone.

Perhaps you found this site because you are interested in becoming a member of the Chapter. We would be delighted if you would join our ranks. To join, go to agohq.org. Click on the Membership tab, then Join the Guild, and Join as a chapter member. We also welcome you to become a dual member with us and your home chapter.

Thank you for visiting us. We hope that you will join us for one or more of our seasonal events.

Competition deadline Oct. 1

The AGO Task Force for Gender Equity invites women composers, and composers who identify as women or nonbinary, to submit new and unpublished organ compositions to celebrate Woman Composer Sunday on March 9, 2025.
 
This year, entries will be accepted in two categories: concert works (5 – 7 minutes) and shorter works (2–4 minutes / 2–3 printed pages) suitable for use as preludes, voluntaries, or postludes in a worship service:
Concert Work (5–7 minutes) $1,000 First Prize
First Prize award generously donated by Christian Mucha.
 
Short Composition for Worship Services (2–4 minutes/2–3 pages) $500 First Prize / $300 Second Prize
First Prize award generously donated by Billie Busby Smith, former Denver chapter Dean, and Sid Smith. Second Prize award generously donated by the Women’s Sacred Music Project.
 
Young Composer Prize
$500 for highest placing work by a composer under 30 in either category Young Composer Prize generously donated by an anonymous sponsor.
 
In addition, the three highest placing short worship compositions will be published in the January, February, and March issues of The American Organist magazine for performance on Woman Composer Sunday. Videos of all entries will be posted and promoted on the AGO’s social media channels.
 
Competition Requirements:
·    New, unpublished, and not yet performed works. The composer will retain copyright, with the AGO granted permission to publish in The American Organist magazine and/or post the video performance on social media, in conjunction with competition.
·    Original in theme, or based on a public domain hymn or folk tune. Submissions:
·    PDF of score with the composer’s name or identifying information omitted.
·    Live MP3 recording (performed by the composer OR an organist of their choice).
·    Video recording (.mov or .mp4 file in landscape YouTube format, performed by the composer OR an organist of their choice) suitable for posting on the AGO social media channels leading up to Woman Composer Sunday.
·    Email files or links to files to G[email protected] by OCTOBER 1.
 
Winners will be selected by a committee appointed by the AGO Task Force for Gender Equity. Winners will be notified by November 1.

Kennedy Center organ crawl in September

Our new chapter board is working on a lineup of events for 2024-25.
First up will be a crawl of the Rubenstein Family Organ at the Kennedy Center on Saturday, Sept. 14 from 3 to 6 pm. The tour of the nearly 5,000-pipe Casavant organ has been arranged by technician David Storey, who has been working with the instrument since its installation in 2012. 
Chapter members, please sign up soon, as a maximum of 20-30 people will be allowed.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd9WoSP_reLTjCQh9VVpfRDcea628s6UMJaf9nTBbVQzl3UtA/viewform?pli=1

Upcoming organ recitals

Tuesday, Sept. 10, 12:10 pm: Dayeon Kim, organist  at First Presbyterian Church, Midland, TX, presents J.S. Bach’s Fantasy and fugue BWV 542,  Franck’s Pièce héroïque, and Widor’s Symphony No. 6 I. Allegro, IV. Cantabile, V. Finale. Church of the Epiphany, 1317 G St. NW. 

Friday, Sept. 13, 12:15 pm: University of Chicago scholar and organist Jacob Reed  performs works by Fanny Hensel, W.A. Mozart and J.S. Bach. National City Christian Church, 5 Thomas Circle NW.

Sunday, Sept. 15, 4 pm: Six organists open the 2024-25 season of Music at the Monastery, Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land, 1400 Quincy St. NE.

Sunday, Sept. 15, 5 pm: Aaron Goen, director of music at St. John's, Georgetown Parish, performs a recital titled "SPACE and CYCLES" exploring heavenly bodies and circles on the three-manual Casavant Freres organ. Music from Star Wars and Interstellar, and works by Holst, Bach, Landmann and more. Suggested donation $40. Details about the recital here. Reception to follow.

Friday, Sept. 20, 12:15 pm: Composer and organist Angela Kraft Cross (San Mateo, CA) performs two of her own works, including the recently composed “Homage to Martin Luther King, Jr.,” along with works of R. Nathaniel Dett, Maurice Duruflé and Charles-Marie Widor. National City Christian Church, 5 Thomas Circle NW.

Friday, Sept. 27, 12:15 pm: Boston organist Justin Brueggeman performs works by Frank Bridge, J.S. Bach and Marcel Dupré. National City Christian Church, 5 Thomas Circle NW.

Click on the calendar tab for more upcoming events.

Free lessons through POI

The Potomac Organ Institute provides a year of free lessons to accomplished piano students who wish to learn the organ. Check it out at https://www.potomacago.com/poi.