As choir masters, many organists have the responsibility of hiring and working with paid singers as well as a dedicated group of volunteer singers ranging in experience from novice to advanced. The similarities of the human voice to the pipe-organ are numerous. Using these similarities and scientific analysis of the two instruments, organists can familiarize themselves with the tuning system of the human voice. Like the pipe organ, the human voice is capable of wide variety of sounds, qualities, textures, pitches and levels of volume. Unlike an organ pipe, the voice is not a fixed resonator. The voice is the most flexible of all musical instruments. Instructing an ensemble of singers to shape their sound simultaneously is the beginning of “tuning your choral pipes.” It will be important to establish terminology with your singers in order to successfully communicate with them despite their varying levels of ability and pronunciation differences. Becoming familiar with the mechanics of the voice and an alphabet of pure vowel sounds can help organist-choir masters achieve a greater degree of success when working with singers. The stops, pipes and expression pedal of the human voice are defined by the laryngeal muscles as they relate to registration, the vocal tract shape as defined by the vowel, and the amount of volume created by the air pressure. This guide for organists covers these topics and contains exercises for the reader to apply during choral rehearsals.

Syftet med studien har varit att fördjupa kunskapen om psalmsångens funktion i gudstjänsten och utforska vilka avsikter kyrkomusikern kan tänkas ha med psalmsången i gudstjänsten. Här med särskilt fokus på att leda psalmsången med orgeln. Min undersökning bygger på både litteraturstudium och kvalitativa intervjuer med tjänstgörande personer i kyrkan. Genom litteraturstudium reflekterade jag över fyra exempel på funktion och sedan har jag försökt tydliggöra reflektionen med intervjuresultat. Studien visar psalmsångens avgörande funktioner vilka innebär delaktighet, gemenskap och budskap i gudstjänsten. Kyrkomusikern har en viktig roll i att leda församlingen och bidrar med sina konstnärliga idéer och sin begåvning i gudstjänsten. Studien visar också att det finns både utmaningar och möjligheter med psalmsången i gudstjänsten. Svårigheter är bl. a. en sångsvag församling och att många har en liten psalmrepertoar. Kyrkomusikerna tar ett stort ansvar och möjliggör för församlingen att kunna delta i gudstjänsten och idag är det mycket viktigt att få församlingen att närma sig psalmsången.

Josef Bohuslav Foerster (1859–1951), der Sohn eines Organisten an der Prager Dreifaltigkeitskirche und späterer Kapellmeister am Prager St.-Veits-Dom, hat in seinen autobiografischen Erinnerungen 'Der Pilger' zur Kenntnis gebracht, dass er gerne die anstrengende Aufgabe auf sich nahm, den Organistendienst an St.Adalbert in der Gerbergasse in Prag zu versehen.

Anlagen (Notenbeispiele)

The master's theses are meant as a monography, that informs about an important personality of the cultural life in Olomouc, doc. PhDr. Zdeněk Fridrich CSc. He made a large impact within the field of historical organ building in Moravia, where he presented the organs and made a case for the necessity of their renewal. His publications are renowned publicly both domestically and internationally. Next, he dealt with composition and created a complex work. He wrote vocal and instrumental compositions ranging from small chamber ensembles to pieces for a symphony orchestra. Not of lesser importance was his pedagogical activity. Zdenek Fridrich taught at the Institut for Music Pedagogy on the Pedagogical Faculty of Palacký University in Olomouc for thirty years where he pedagogically influenced the profiles of many graduates, that have become successful in the musical praxis. Part of this thesis is a CD with examples of Zdenek Fridrich's works.

The art of balancing spiritual, physical and emotional attributes is a daunting task for any organist. The techniques with which an organist consolidates these attributes have a direct effect on the accomplishment of a definitive goal – a successful music performance. However, this portrays the ideal situation. There is a myriad of internal and external factors that obstruct the organist from attaining this ultimate goal and – in the process – create excessive stress and anxiety. Over and above the habitual performance nervousness, an organist’s anxiety level is exacerbated when performing on an unfamiliar organ, as every organ has unique characteristics that differ from all other. Moreover, the modern pipe organ – particularly the church organ – is a complex and intricate instrument that claims the highest skills and flexibility from an organist. Performing music is inherently a stressful accomplishment that is intensified by continuous challenges, inter alia incessant preparation and the threat of criticism. Some music performers seem to thrive on stress while others choke under pressure. The music performer, however, is not intrinsically born with the innate knowledge and wisdom to manage the diverse anxiety-causing factors that are associated with organ performing. A particular kind of pedagogical training, namely coaching, is proposed as a technique to equip a scholar – particularly an organist – with tactics to manage performance anxiety. Parallels are drawn between the training of sports athletes and organists as coaching has valuable applications for both sports- and music performers. The aim with the current study was to explore how and why organists experience such strenuous anxiety when performing a repertoire. These strains can often become too overwhelming for an organist to endure. For the purpose with the study, six experienced and qualified organists were selected by means of a convenience sample design. Their stress- and anxiety levels during music performances were identified by means of 12 open-ended questions. Being an experienced organist and teacher herself, the author was able to probe deeper into the topics introduced by the research questions. Particular consideration was given to the fabric of performance anxiety from three different approaches: behavioural, cognitive and psychoanalytical. In addition, pedagogical coaching was explored as a viable alternative to teaching an organist. Moreover, the organist’s unique characteristics were emphasised from behavioural, cognitive (gestalt), socio-cultural, and psychoanalytical approaches. From the results of the empirical study is evident that all the organists participating in the study revelled in their organ performing. However, many situational and related aspects caused them habitually to experience feelings of stress, anxiety, loneliness and apprehension. Of particular concern to the organists was the inclusion of worship bands in the church. They experienced it as a threat to the church – resulting in a lowering of musical standards. All of the stressful situations resulted in tiredness, frustration and sometimes exploitation in the organists. One main finding was that an organist imperatively needs to be coached and supported in coping with such adverse feelings. Coaching improves energy levels, self-help skills, better time management and further development of emotional intelligence. It can also increase the organist’s physiological state – improve a sense of awareness, enhance learning capabilities and increase self-confidence. The all-encompassing conclusion reached was that – through effective coaching – the organist has a much better chance of overcoming inner- and outer adversities on the way to a successful and rewarding career. / Dissertation (MMus)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / tm2015 / Music / MMus / Unrestricted

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This diploma thesis is based on the analysis of primary and secondary sources, including authentic memories of living witnesses. It focuses on important personalities of the musical life in the border region around the former Sudetenland, specifically on the life and work of selected composers, musicologists, teachers, choir masters , conductors, and active musicians working in the region below the Jestřebí Mountains - the area between Náchod and Trutnov, that is Červený Kostelec, Rtyně v Podkrkonoší, Malé Svatoňovice, Úpice, and Trutnov. These are personalities who contributed not only to the development of regional music, but also to the education of new talents, between the years of 1940 and 1980 of the 20th century (however, the work with its biographical character presents some overlaps to other eras, such as the pre-war era, the times of war, or the post-revolutionary era). In the presented text, individual biographies of selected musically-active individuals are reconstructed, during whose often difficult lives significant historical events (including social repressions) took place. There was often mutual cooperation between the personalities discussed in this work, and they often influenced each other. The profiles of the personalities are arranged alphabetically. KEYWORDS Educator,...

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Denna uppsats handlar om konsten att uppöva förmåga till improvisation på orgel. Den tar upp frågor kring hur de s.k. musikaliska parametrarna spelar in vid improvisation, vilken plats improvisationen kan ha vid en gudstjänst samt hur jag gick tillväga för att uppöva en förmåga till Preludium innehållande trio och fuga. Det bestod i en klar kombination av teori via litteratur och föreläsning samt praktik med eget övande och analyserande. Reslutaten visar att det går att uppöva ändamålsenlig förmåga till improviserat spel på orgel, att det de musikaliska parametrarna spelar en central roll samt att gudstjänsten erbjudet tillfällen för organisten att improvisera.