Gail Archer: GRAMMY-nominated trailblazing organist

Conversations with Musicians, with Leah Roseman

Dr. Gail Archer is a GRAMMY-nominated internationally touring concert organist and trail-blazer for women organists. She has fantastic advice on not only approaching a career in music, but in living life to it’s fullest. We talked about learning languages, some fascinating history, the magic of choirs and much more. This episode features music from several of her acclaimed recordings, and we discuss women composers, and the challenges facing women organists. We also speak about Musforum the international network for wormen organists that she founed. Gail’s work highlighting composers from many Eastern European countries including Poland, Ukraine, Bulgaria and Russia was a big part of this conversation and you’ll hear some of this music as well as that of Fanny Mendelssohn, a discussion of the Bach revival and interesting details about J.S. Bach himself, and one of Gail’s recordings of one of his sublime Chorale preludes. I learned a lot about the history of the pipe organ and gained not only a better understanding of the instrument and it’s vast repertoire, but I also gained important insights into the work of choir directors. One of the main topics Gail addressed was how to build a robust career and live a full life, with sensivity, curiosity, intelligence and determination.

Gail Archer website: http://www.gailarcher.com/ Musforum network for women organists: https://musforum.org/ This is also available on YouTube, and the transcript is linked there as well: https://www.leahroseman.com/episodes/gail-archer

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Intro

(03:32) playing on different organs

(05:55) J.S. Bach Chorale preludes, Fritz organ

(08:30) Chorale Prelude An Wasserflüssen Babylon, By the Waters of Babylon, from Gail Archer’s album "J. S. Bach The Transcendent Genius"

(13:02) history of the organ

(26:17)Fanny Mendelssohn Prelude in G major from Gail Archer’s album “Mendelssohn in the Romantic Century”

(28:36) Musforum and sexist challenges facing women organists

(36:47) please support this series!

(38:23) scene in England and Europe for women organists

(39:25) Eastern European organs, Chernivsti

(45:22) Chacona by Svitlana Osgtrova from album Chernivsti

(48:28) St. John Cantius in Chicago rescued organ from Canada, Polish album

(51:28) excerpt from Grazyna Baciewisz Esquisse on album Cantius

(51:53) interpreting repertoire, choosing registers, Messiaen, Bulgarian project

(58:08) Baroque performance practice

(01:00:01) choir director, the magic of choirs, building her career, Harriman institute at Columbia

(01:07:07) learning Russian and Italian

(01:10:02) choral director, priorities working with choirs

(01:15:10) books and history, Mendelssohn family, Clara Schumann, Bach revival

(01:24:02) advice, how Gail built her career

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