First Tuesday Concert - Paul Chan - Organ

The beautiful Henry Willis organ at St Matthew-in-the-City will be the central feature of this First Tuesday concert.

Luckily for us, it will be played by Paul Chan, Director of Music at St Matthew-in-the-City. His expressive accompaniment of liturgy each Sunday and playing of dazzling voluntaries demonstrate his wonderful insights into the potential of the organ in a way that few others know. His concert work features tone colours from bold and brilliant, to soft and subtle, underpinning his deeply thoughtful interpretations in every one of the pieces he chooses. In this programme, Paul will play a grand Fantasia and Fugue in G minor by Bach and Elgar's Imperial March alongside some music of a more tranquil mood.

This organ was built by Henry Willis & Sons, in the United Kingdom. It includes pipes from the original 'Father' Willis instrument, which dates back to the original St Matthew's wooden church. It was restored and expanded and then finally installed in the current building in 2011.

The organ with its four-manual consoles is one of the larger church organs in New Zealand. Varieties and mixes of soft sounds are seemingly limitless and the grand solo and deep pedal stops can give an almost apocalyptic sensation.

This will be the final First Tuesday concert for 2020, and we are pleased to confirm we are planning further concerts for 2021. While it has been a challenging year because of Covid-19 restrictions, we have had some marvellous performances and the First Tuesday 2020 series has been a great success. The diversity of repertoire has continued to expand and the quality of performance continues to delight, while our audience continues to grow. Many have been reminded of how important live music is for ourselves and our larger community. We look forward to an exciting series of concerts on offer for 2021.

Entry by Koha.