Taking care of their organs
Musicians all keyed up to compete on important stage in new documentary
Few things can get an organist as keyed up as the prospect of performing on a worldwide stage. Director Stacey Tenenbaum’s new documentary Pipe Dreams follows five musicians as they prepare for the prestigious Canadian International Organ Competition (CIOC).
The preparation is thorough, complete with physical training, nutrition plans, and motivational speeches. Each performance is intense — a flurry of fingers and feet on several tiers of keyboards, with sound shooting through hundreds of pipes.
The film debuts Sunday on Documentary Channel, repeating Tuesday and the following Sunday. Here’s a breakdown of the featured competitors:
YUAN SHEN
As the daughter of China’s most famous organist, 31-year-old Shen is a slight woman with waist-length hair. She wants to prove she has as much stamina as the male players — especially because her dad initially wanted a son to continue in his footsteps. He’s now her teacher, and in one scene practises tai chi with her.
“My father is like a spiritual mentor for me,” she says. “Not only in this competition but all my life.”
Shen also lauds the organ’s versatility: “It can be like the lullaby for the baby, and it also can be the anger of the gods.”
THOMAS GAYNOR
New Zealand-born Gaynor is angling to be the first organist to win three major organ competitions in one summer. In the months leading up to the CIOC in Canada, he’ll also be travelling to Australia, Japan and England.
At first, things are looking up — Gaynor wins both the first prize and the audience prize at the 29th St. Albans International Organ Competition. But will he be burnt out by the time he gets to the CIOC?
Gaynor’s main competition is Alcee Chriss III, who has edged him out twice.
ALCEE CHRISS III
Chriss wants to shake things up by drawing on his gospel and jazz roots, noting: “There’s this saying that people who play safe win competitions, but I really am taking tons of liberties.”
Growing up in Texas, he was inspired by organist Catherine Crozier on gospel TV series Hour of Power, but developed his own style.
“In the black church, you’ve got to play something that’s going to get somebody moving,” he says. “And if you’ve got to play something that’s going to get somebody moving, you’ve got to be moving somewhere in here, in your spirit or heart.”
NICK CAPOZZOLI
A friend of Chriss’s, Capozzoli is also taking a chance. He’ll play a rarely performed piece by 20th-century composer John Cage.
But first he has a recital in his hometown of Pittsburgh, where he’s taking a different risk: wearing patterned socks onstage instead of black ones.
A vigorous performance and standing ovation later, he says, “I think that’s one of the reasons why organists should be fit and go to the gym, just to play pieces like that.”
SEBASTIAN HEINDL
At 19, Heindl is the youngest person to compete in the CIOC but he seems made for the competition. He taught himself to play the organ at age 11, and comes from Eisenach, Germany, the same town as his idol and namesake, Johann Sebastian Bach.
In a session with his teacher Martin Schmeding, he experiments with his organ’s settings.
“It’s registered to sound neo-baroque. That’s why it might sound strange,” he says. “I know what I’m trying here is a little risky. You need to know your limits.”