The mission of the American Guild of Organists is to enrich lives through organ and choral music. We encourage excellence in the performance of organ and choral music; inspire, educate, and offer certification for organists and choral conductors; provide networking, fellowship, and mutual support; nurture future generations of organists; promote the organ in its historic and evolving roles; and engage wider audiences with organ and choral music.

There's so many exciting things happening in our chapter and we have added a lot of content to this newsletter! If you are viewing this on a desktop or laptop computer, be sure to click "View entire message" at the bottom of this email so you don't miss out on job listings, upcoming events, suggested repertoire and more.

Don't miss any of the excitement!

Join us for ALL of the excitement and fun at our May Chapter Event! We've got so may things on the agenda and here's how it will all shake down...

5:00pm - Optional (But always encouraged!)

Happy Hour at Bin 152 Wine Bar

Many wines by the glass, plus cheese & charcuterie, in an art-adorned, rustic-cool space.

6:00pm - DINNER!

Clergy and Chapter Members are all welcome to join us for a catered dinner at First (Scots) Church. Reservations are required if you plan on dining with us. Click the button below to sign up and pay for your meal. $20 per member and your clergy dines for FREE, so invite them all!

Our scrumptious dinner will be catered by Janet's husband, Mike and the menu consists of:

Beef tenderloin

Scalloped potatoes

Haricots verts

Yeast rolls

Tea

Dessert will be Guiness Chocolate Cake by Nancy Lefter’s husband, Phil!

7:15pm - Creative Worship Service with our annual Installation of Officers.

(This part is free for everyone, so make sure you stay after dinner!)

Sung Stories—Hymns for Life

I have a Sunday morning memory from childhood in which my father would awaken me in search of an acolyte for the early morning Eucharist. It was often cold and dark. Little did I know that this scene would soon become hymnotic! My father, who also happened to be the rector, couldn’t share his request in any normal fashion. No, he preferred to offer it up via the hymn book. What did he say, you ask? Channeling the hymn writer W.F. Merrill, he proclaimed,  “Rise up, O men of God, The Church for you doth wait…”

It would be some thirty years later when my daughter Abigail was barely talking, I was reminded how much hymnody had possessed me. I was changing Abbey’s diaper in the middle of the night and I needed her to step into her sleeper to complete the task at hand. As I got more and more frustrated with the necessary action not happening, I strongly suggested, one more time, “Abbey, stand up!” To which she immediately responded by standing at attention and with a strangely sounding and deep adult voice began to sing, “Stand up and bless the Lord...” I wonder where she might have heard those words before?

And so, it comes as no surprise that hymnody played an important part in my upbringing. True enough, having a father who was a priest and a mother who was a singer, one shouldn’t be surprised that hymns became a part of my regular childhood diet with choirs and services filling up much of my weekly routine. Ever since those choirboy days I have been drawn to the storytelling that is at the heart of hymnody. And, if the truth be told, I write hymns because I love to tell stories too.

As it turns out, I’ve been writing hymns for most of my priestly life. I fell into this ministry (like many other parts of the parson’s job) as special events in my parishes arose and with them the need to personalize the celebration in some way. Before too long, I found I was writing hymns as a regular part of my daily life and work.

Hymns are a part of me and I treasure the gift they are to the church and to the building up of the Body of Christ. Yes, we can teach the faith through speaking and teaching but we can even more effectively, in my opinion, teach the faith through worship and song. At the very same time through this precious art form, we can inspire God’s people, move their hearts and open their minds to receive grace beyond measure. “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound…” My hymns usually take the form of reflecting on a biblical text or theme. On other occasions, I will take a part of our liturgical heritage from the Book of Common Prayer and attempt to tell a story in poetic song where our prayer book has given us a text in prose. Inevitably, I find myself ending the hymn with an invitation for the one singing the hymn to enter more fully into the story being told. After all, we share the Christian story so that it might be, just that, continually shared.

I’m aware that what is being shared in my hymns is an understanding of belief and faith. Words convey meaning as they strive to make real the faith once delivered to the saints. I have been shaped, theologically, by the hymns I have known and gladly sung. How could I not be? When Dean E. H. Plumptre penned the hymn “Thy hand, O God, has guided” (one of my father’s favorites), he offered a simple summary of the Christian faith: “Their gospel of redemption, Sin pardoned, man restored.” The Dean had captured a large piece of the Christian story in two lines of hymnody.

When my mother was on her deathbed and I was journeying to be with her I found the words of her favorite hymn washing over me. She loved John Newton’s hymn “How sweet the name of Jesus sounds.” There, I was arriving just after she had passed from this world and the second stanza of Newton’s hymn came to me and lifted my heart:

 “It makes the wounded spirit whole,

And calms the troubled breast;

 ‘Tis manna to the hungry soul,

 And to the weary rest.”

Let me give my last word in hymnody to my grandmother, whom I never knew, except that my mother told me regularly about her favorite hymn. To say that hymnody keeps us together as a family of faith is an understatement. Just ask my grandmother Gertrude on the other side as she sings her favorite hymn: Blest be the tie that binds…

Your membership is important to the Charleston Chapter and it’s easy to keep up to date!

• Watch for your renewal notice from the National Office.

• Check your renewal date on the back outside cover of The American Organist magazine. In the white box with your address, you’ll see your 4-digit membership number followed by your renewal date (example: 1234 1/1/20).

• Renew online: Visit the American Guild of Organists website and click “Membership.”or click HERE to renew now.

• 📞 Renew by phone: Call the AGO headquarters at 212-870-2310.

This is the last chapter newsletter for the season! The Voluntary Trumpet will resume in September, but if you have any events you would like us to promote over June, July and August, send them our way and we will be happy to share with the chapter. Email your submissions to agocharlestonchapter@gmail.com

Emily Remington (1916-2020) was a renowned pianist, organist, and influential choral conductor known for her vibrant personality and dedication to the Charleston music community and beyond who significantly shaped Charleston's music scene after moving here in 1976; she founded the Charleston Symphony Chorus (originally the Singers Guild) in 1978, served as Choirmaster and Organist at Grace Episcopal Church for almost 20 years, taught at the College of Charleston, and established the Remington Concert Series at her retirement community, leaving a lasting legacy in the arts.

Emily studied at Coker College, the Peabody Conservatory, and the Juilliard School. Before moving to Charleston in 1976, she was a major figure in Augusta, GA, where she founded the Augusta Choral Society in 1951 and taught at Paine College and Augusta College. Notably, she was an early mentor to world-renowned opera star Jessye Norman. She was named the second runner-up for NPR’s Classical Woman of the Year on Performance Today and was honored by the Taylor Festival Choir as one of the "6 Pillars of Charleston Music".

Miss Emily left us in 2020 at the age of 103 and the Remington Fund was established in her name to help sponsor and encourage organ study by young organ students in the Charleston area. Donations of any size are welcomed and encouraged to help the Charleston AGO invest in a younger generation of upcoming organists and continue her legacy.

Organist needed for musical production: Happyland

Times needed:

May 31st, 2-5PM

June 1-3 6-9 PM (final rehearsals) 

6/4,6,&7 and 6/11,13,&14 , 6:30 calltime for evening shows, 2PM call times for matinees.

“Happy land is a sweeping new musical set in Charleston, South Carolina, in the decades leading up to the Civil War, inspired by true events surrounding Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim, the birthplace of Reform Judaism in America.”

Rehearsals and performances are on the Ontko organ at KKBE synagogue. Toby Singer was our director of music at KKBE several years ago. He lives in NYC, composing and producing musicals there. 

 This is a paid position. For more information, contact: Linda at     Happyland@gmail.com

Happyland is a new site-specific musical set in pre–Civil War Charleston, inspired by the true story of one of the first Reform Jewish congregations in America.

Brought to life by a New York–based creative team and professional performers, the piece blends intimate storytelling, rich vocal music, and moments of warmth and humor within an immersive, place-driven experience.

When a young immigrant rabbi finds unprecedented safety, love, and belonging in the South, he is drawn into a community struggling to define what progress means in a place built on profound moral contradiction. As religious innovation collides with the realities of Charleston life, Happyland asks how much of ourselves we’re willing to compromise to belong—and what happens when history demands more courage than comfort.

Happyland explores how communities grow, how identities take shape, and how the choices we make, even with the best intentions, can echo far beyond us.

Music on Madison Square – The North Carolina Baroque Orchestra: Les Élémens: Celebrating Spring

Sunday, May 24, 2026, starting at 5 p.m.

St. John’s Church, 325 Bull St, Savannah, GA 31401

Enjoy music by Georg Telemann, Wolfgang Mozart, and others! This ensemble makes a return to perform for the second time as a part of the Music on Madison Square series with a larger group of performers and more period instruments for you to enjoy.

This is free and open to the public, with ample parking available in the church’s parking lot behind St. John’s.

To purchase tickets, visit stjohnssav.org/mms

Augsburg's 2026 Summer Music Clinics

Greetings colleagues—since I last sent this list out three months ago, I have added a lot of new things. Happy Hunting!

Used music and other items for sale. Packing/handling: $3.00 per order (not per item), plus postage. If paying with PayPal, 3% will be added to the total.

Ordering: please let me know what you would like to buy in an email. I operate on a first-come, first-served basis. All music is used unless noted. Normally the original owner’s name is written on the cover. I rate the condition of the musical score; covers are sometimes slightly damaged even if the score is in relatively good shape:

New—prices are 20 to 25% off the retail price

Excellent—like new. Might have writing on the cover

Very good—typically clean text or only lightly marked; could also have writing on the cover

Good—marked with other slight condition problems; could have writing on the cover; could have pages taped in to facilitate page turning; could be some minor cover damage or creasing

Fair—all of the above, plus other condition problems (creases, discolored covers, damage to the spine, for instance) and more heavily marked; faded; old; could have photocopied pages taped into the score; could be slightly musty.

Poor—all of the above, plus could be tattered, heavily marked; slightly musty; loose pages.

Old—items that you might find in your grandmother’s attic. Sometimes these are rare, even first editions.

I am always interested in purchasing used organ music. If you have things that you are interested in selling, please contact me.

Craig Cramer

ccramer@nd.edu

AMERICAN GUILD OF ORGANISTS

Charleston Chapter – Board of Directors

Minutes of the Meeting – April 20, 2026

Location: Grace Church Cathedral

Time: 6:15 PM

Presiding: Dean Lee Kohlenberg

Present: Dean Lee Kohlenberg, Edmund LeRoy (Acting Secretary), Janet Kelly (Treasurer), Tony Williams (At-Large), Nancy Lefter (At-Large), Justin Wham (Webmaster, At-Large)

Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 6:15 PM by Dean Kohlenberg.

Approval of Minutes

There being no amendments to the minutes for February 9, 2026, Justin Wham moved to accept them as presented. Janet Kelly seconded. The motion carried.

Treasurer’s Report

Janet Kelly presented the Treasurer’s Report (attached).

• Beginning balance:    $5,020.38
• Ending balance:         $5,256.27
• Note: $500,00 of the ending balance is restricted, leaving a working balance of $4,756.27.
• Note: Receipts from the Grand Strand organ crawl in March were $215.34.

Expenses for the use of First (Scots) Presbyterian for the clergy dinner on May 11 are $201.34 (insurance) and $150.00 (sexton). Nancy Lefter moved to approve the expenses, and Tony Williams seconded. The motion passed.

Election Results

Justin Wham presented the results of voting for chapter bylaws and for the slate of officers for the coming two-year term.

·     Bylaws: 21 yes votes; none opposed or abstained.

·     Slate of officers: 32 yes votes, none opposed or abstained.

New Member

The chapter welcomed Dr. Douglas Holtzman to chapter membership.

May Meeting

Happy hour be at Bin 152, 152 King Street.at 5:00 PM. Dinner will follow at 6:00 PM at First (Scots) Presbyterian. The menu will be catered by Mike and Janet Kelly and Phil Lefter.

·     Beef tenderloin

·     Scalloped potatoes

·     Haricots verts

·     Yeast rolls

·     Guiness chocolate cake

·     Tea

It was agreed that the charge for the dinner will be $20.00, with clergy dining gratis. Justin will create the invitation with a May 6 deadline to reserve a space. The invitation can be shared with clergy.

Lee Kohlenberg will construct the program for the installation of officers that follows the dinner:

·     Tony Williams will play opening and closing voluntaries

·     Nick Quardokus will play extended hymn improvisations prior to singing

·     Pastor Nathan Rice will conduct the installation

·     Reading and leading will involve Pastors Holton Siegling, Andrea Rice, Robb Harrell, and Nathan Rice.

Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 6:49 PM.

Submitted by:

Edmund LeRoy, Secretary

Charleston Chapter, American Guild of Organists

Treasurer's Report

As of March 31 2026

Starting Balance (March 1)

 5,020.38

Donations

 100.00

Friends Dues (Morris)

45.00

Remit from National 

131.00

5,296.38

Communications Expense 

40.11

 40.11

Net Assets

5,256.27

Restricted Net Assets

 500.00

Total Net Assets

 4,756.27

If you have or know of an open position and would like to be added to this list, email Justin at charlestonagocommunications@gmail.com with all of the information. The more information included, the better the outcome. Open positions will remain posted until we are notified they have been filled.

BLUFFTON UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

is seeking a part-time Organist/Accompanist for Sunday worship services (48 of 52 Sundays each year) and all music ministry rehearsals and/or additional services during Lent and Holy Week. Qualifications: Professional level of musical talent from training and experience, Bachelor degree in Music is desirable. For more information, send resume and letter of interest to: Bluffton United Methodist Church, Attn: SPPRC Chair, P. O. Box 368, Bluffton, SC 29910-0368 or email to: sprc@blufftonumc.org.

Covenant Presbyterian Church

3131 Walton Way, Augusta, GA 30909

706-733-0513

covenantaugusta.org

Contact for Employment:

Brock Daniels, Search Committee Chair

kcdjbd@gmail.com

706-825-0961

Title of Open Position: Director of Music & Organist

Full or Part Time: Part Time

Hours Per Week (including prep time): 20

Salary: 29,000-31,500

Continuing Education Days Per Year: 1 week

Sick Days Per Year: 1 per month (12 days accumulated)

Additional Benefits: 1. Two weeks vacation; 2. Use of facilities & instruments to teach private lessons; 3. Preschool Tuition Discount - staff employed at least 20 hrs/wk are eligible tor receive 50% tuition reduction of 1st child & 25% reduction for 2nd child.

Number of Rehearsals Per Week: 2

Extra Services Per Year: 6 - Ash Wed., Maundy Thursday, Easter Sunrise, Longest Night, 2 Christmas Eve services

Additional Compensation for Weddings: Yes

Organ Builder: Zimmer & Sons

Year Built: 1989, Opus 418 (8 memory levels)

Number of Manuals: 2

Number of Ranks: 31

Messiah Evangelical Lutheran Church

1106 Yeamans Hall Rd. Hanahan, SC 29410

843-670-2327

https://messiahlutheranhanahan.org/

Contact for Employment:

Jacob Davis (2026 Congregation President)

Jacob.davis721@gmail.com

843-209-0073

Title of Open Position: Organist/Pianist

Full or Part Time: Part Time

Hours Per Week (including prep time): ~10

Salary: Negotiable (most recent was $11,100)

Continuing Education Days Per Year: Negotiable

Sick Days Per Year: Negotiable (up to four (4) paid absences per year, not to include major festival Sundays, depending on duration of the agreement).

Additional Benefits: N/A

Number of Rehearsals Per Week: 1 regularly scheduled rehearsal (from time to time we have held a Saturday rehearsal for special music)

Extra Services Per Year: ~22

Additional Compensation for Weddings: Yes

Organ Builder: Allen ADC 5000 (Note: We also have a Yamaha Clavinova CLP-330 digital piano)

Number of Manuals: 2 (with full pedal board)

Johns Island Presbyterian Church

2550 Bohicket Road

843-559-9380

Church Website: jipc.org

Contact for Employment: Linda Deeter

Contact Email: ldeeter@jipc.org

Title of Open Position: Director of Music/Organist

Full or Part Time: Part Time

Hours Per Week (including prep time): 14

Compensation: $32 per hour

Additional Compensation for Weddings: NO

Organ Builder: Allen 2 manual digital

Seeking a person with competence in church music to lead a traditional weekly worship service with organ and/or piano accompaniment, along with directing an adult choir. Additional duties include directing a children's choir for monthly appearances, supervising a bell choir, and providing music for weddings and funerals as needed. This person should be able to actively recruit and develop volunteer choir members, including youth. He/she will work with the pastor/staff to plan music, integrating with the service theme and should have a strong knowledge of liturgy and repertoire selection. Technical requirements include experience leading a choir in a ministry setting, proficiency in organ and piano accompaniment, and the ability to collaborate with instrumentalists.

Church of the Holy Cross, Sullivan’s Island, is prayerfully seeking a temporary and/or permanent Pianist/Organist.



This person will rehearse with our praise band and choir on Wednesday evenings and play on Sundays, a prelude, hymns, offertory, and postlude for two services. 

We have two different organs, one in our Historic Chapel (Baldwin) and one in our Main Sanctuary (Johannus). The salary is based on experience both with organ and piano so the range would be $18-22K but negotiable for the permanent position.

Please contact Eddie Schorder if you would like to apply, or have any questions.

Eddie Schroder

Operations Associate

843-883-3586 dial 3 (office)

760.889.7742 (mobile)

eddie@holycross.net

holycross.net

Organist/Pianist Wanted

St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, a member of the ELCA, located on the Isle of Palms, South Carolina.

Our organ is a Rodgers, and we have a Clavinova as well.

Salary of $325 weekly includes

    •    10 a.m. Sunday Service

    •    One practice session per week

    •    Meet quarterly with Worship committee

Additional compensation for Weddings, Funerals, and Holiday Services.

We would be delighted to discuss further opportunities as we restructure and expand our church.

Contact Pastor Denise Seymour 864-431-8117

May Birthdays

5/3 Johanna Vroon

5/10 Nancy Lefter

5/13 Murray Somerville

5/18 Loretta Haskell

5/21 Hazel Somerville

5/23 Bob Gant

5/25 Doug Holtzman

June Birthdays

6/3 Bill Gudger

6/7 Dan Beaman

6/11 Donald Flickinger

6/21 Alphonso Brown

6/28 Nicole Arsenault

July Birthdays

7/1 Matthew Wilkinson

7/7 Daniel Damaschke

7/22 Lin Harness

7/27 Larry Long

7/27 Tony Dunlap

Organ and Sacred Piano

We have - lots - of free music in the AGO Music Exchange! Contact Julia Harlow at juliah.6@juno.com for more information. You are welcome to come and browse (downtown Charleston), I can also email you a pdf of the listings in in the Organ/Piano part of the Exchange. It isn't a library - you don't have to bring the music back. It's FREE. Also, if you have organ or sacred piano music you no longer use and would like to donate it to the Exchange, please let me know.

Choral and Vocal Music

Contact Larry Speakman at  larryspeakman@gmail.com

Won’t you be our Friend?

The late Fred Rogers taught generations of children that everyone is special and can be

a friend. The Charleston Chapter of AGO celebrates the same idea and wants to grow

our membership, including, and especially, our friends.



There is no profile of the “typical” AGO member. We are young and, er, mature. Many of

us are church organists, but not all. We have composers, arrangers, hymnists, and

liturgists. One member writes music for video games. Another teaches music to

elementary children. Some members have 50 years of experience on the organ and

others are beginners.

And a small but hopefully growing group of members just really like organ music and

hanging out with this diverse group. They are chapter friends.

Effective September 1, 2024 the designation of chapter “friend” will no longer require

using the national AGO portal to join. From now on, all local chapters can set the

membership dues for friends and manage the membership themselves. Our annual

dues of $45 are one of the lowest among the chapters, and we have lots of social and

service opportunities. For example, we needed all hands for the twelve (free)

performances of the Spoleto L’Organo series. Our members and friends helped the

performers, set up video equipment, passed out programs and “passed the hat” for

donations.

Chapter friends enjoy all the same privileges as members and are included in all

chapter activities. They receive the monthly newsletter that spotlights organ

performances in the Charleston area and our own special events. They are invited to

the monthly Coffee with Nancy (Lefter) where we share a cup and catch up on each

other’s news. They are invited to our lunches, dinners and cocktail hours. And our

friends are especially appreciated at our musical events such as the installation service

on September 16th.

So won’t you be our friend? Click the button below to join us. You can pay dues online with any credit card or by e-check. If you have questions or want to join the old-fashioned way with a paper check, call or text our treasurer, Janet Kelly, at 502-377-3449 and she will cheerfully assist you.

Do you know any youth or children musicians that might be interested in joining the Charleston chapter? Maybe a student musician you are currently teaching? In an effort to draw the interest of our youth to the organ, the Charleston AGO has decided to offer FREE memberships to anyone under the age of 18. This is such an exciting opportunity for the young musicians in the Charleston area to become more involved, find a mentor or just learn about the king of instruments! Contact anyone from chapter leadership if you would like assistance in registering someone or to answer any questions you may have.

Your financial support helps further the mission of the Charleston Chapter AGO.

You can make a one-time donation or set up recurring contributions to our general fund or the Remington Scholarship easily with your debit or credit card.

Thank you for your generous contribution!

Submissions for the next month's issue of the Voluntary Trumpet must be received no later than the 25th of each month. Email your submissions to Justin Wham at charlestonagocommunications@gmail.com