As a boy of seven, I began taking piano lessons. (Mother made me.) But so did most of the other kids at that time. Nowadays, kids spend their extracurricular time playing soccer, football, rugby, ice skating, hockey, baton twirling, etc. But piano? Not so much. My piano lessons soon led me to after school exploration of our church’s organ—a Hammond!
That’s how it began for me. Those Hammond drawbars were fascinating! At 14 I became the church’s “organist” (note the quote marks). One Sunday morning an itinerant evangelist recruited me on the spot—before God and the congregation—to tour as organist with him and his team around the country. Of course—what a kick for a teenager! Especially with those Leslie speakers. Three summers I did this, earning enough for my first year at college. My course of studies was music with an organ major. I haven’t left the organ bench since, fifty-five years later.
All along the way there were kind and skilled organists who mentored me and awakened my musical senses with sounds that were thrilling. Unofficially at first, and then officially, I became part of a guild—an association of similar artisans who loved the organ—playing it and listening to others play. My vocation, my calling, was and is to be a church organist, serving the faithful through the gift of organ music. But I do this in the company of many talented and skilled organists from a variety of backgrounds. They bring inspiration and encouragement. We learn from each other and support one another in our craft.
The ancient medieval guilds were sometimes regarded as secret societies. Today’s American Guild of Organists is not at all secret. Join with us in our North Shore Chapter and enjoy the comradery, support and creativity that comes from being an AGO member!
Royce Eckhardt
Board member