Support our 2020 Study Tour

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DONATIONS ARE 100% TAX-DEDUCTIBLE (USA)

A LETTER FROM OUR STUDENTS

In recent years, Boston Organ Studio has grown to become the largest and most vibrant private organ studio in the United States. Our community of committed young organists draws from across the city’s academic institutions to celebrate our shared love of the organ and its music whilst cultivating the art of organ performance.

While Boston’s instruments are an incredible resource from which to learn, no single instrument collection can possibly inform the entire spectrum of our repertoire—the broadest in scope, yet most instrument-specific of any common instrument.

In previous summers, our student organists have embarked on journeys to Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Scandinavia. As our dear friend Alexander Ross reflected after last year’s trip: “Organists are blessed and cursed in that they cannot take their instrument with them. Since organs can be so unbelievably different from one another, it has often been said that the organ itself is the greatest teacher. Given the rather immovable nature of the beast, we are obligated to make pilgrimages and meet the instruments in person. The past two weeks have been so informative in addition to being fun. Meeting the work of master builders of yore (and a few new ones) has broadened all of our horizons. We saw things we could not have imagined. We heard sounds we had never heard before. We felt key actions unlike anything we would have ever expected — but the music written for these old spirits makes so much more sense now. As a bonus, we made several brilliant friends along the way!”

Following in the footsteps of these trips, this June we embark on a two-week journey to Southern France & Spain to continue the process of learning what can’t be learned here in North America. Our whirlwind journey begins in Toulouse, where we will encounter the vibrant city that is home to some of the greatest pipe organs in Europe — including the remarkable 1888 Cavaillé-Coll in St-Sernin Basilica. We continue to the raucous yet majestic 1774 Isnard organ in Provence, and the oft-overlooked traditions of Spain.

Along the way, we will hear and play some of the great organs of Europe, experience the grandeur of medieval churches, learn from master teachers and practitioners, and grow as friends.

This trip will change the ways we hear and perform music. It is an opportunity we couldn’t be more excited about, and we know we will remember it for years to come.

Of course, this experience also comes with considerable costs to each of us participating. Please consider supporting us in this endeavor. Any amount, whether small or large, will help us to realize this trip’s full potential as we grow as musicians, scholars, and colleagues.

Thank you for your support, and we look forward to sharing our experiences with you in the months to come!

PLEASE CONSIDER SUPPORTING THIS EXPERIENCE AT ONE OF THE FOLLOWING LEVELS: 

UNDERWRITER Gifts of $1,000 or more—                 

— a gift of this size will support airfare costs for one student

SUSTAINER Gifts of $750 or more—

— a gift of this size will support housing costs for one student

PATRON Gifts of $500 or more—

 — a gift of this size will fund one day’s honorarium for a master teacher               

SUPPORTER Gifts of $250 or more—

— a gift of this size will fund building-use fees at one church

FRIEND Gifts of $100 or more—

— a gift of this size will fund one hour’s honorarium for a master teacher

Donations are tax-deductible thanks to the support of our partner and fiscal sponsor, Old West Organ Society.