King of instruments will be on display during free concert

About three years ago, Rev. William Gorman, administrator of St. Paul 's and St. Peter's churches in Troy , was in San Diego to give a retreat to a group of Carmelite nuns.

One day, they sat down in a park for a light supper. He had just begun to eat when the unexpected happened: "Magnificent" organ music came vibrating through the park.

An organist himself, Father Gorman and the nuns set out to meet the phantom player, who turned out to be Dr. Carol Williams, San Diego 's civic organist.

Understanding music

"Her playing was absolutely enjoyable," Father Gorman told The Evangelist. "We were so grateful that we could meet her. She makes [the organ] so attractive that people suddenly begin to understand the music and to love it."

On Feb. 18, 2 p.m., Dr. Williams will present a free concert at St. Teresa's Motherhouse of the Carmelite Sisters of the Aged and Infirm in Germantown .

She is the seventh San Diego civic organist and the first woman to hold such a position in the U.S. In that role, her job is to present a free concert of organ music each Sunday afternoon. She is also artistic director of the Spreckels Organ Society there.

Life of notes

Her life, Dr. Williams told The Evangelist, is practicing, presenting concerts and introducing audiences to exciting organ repertoire. She also tours throughout the U.S. and Europe .

She is familiar with a wide variety of organ music: from the long tradition of religious and liturgical music to secular stylings like ragtime composer Scott Joplin.

Since the sound of an organ partially depends on the kind of space it is placed in, she said that playing outdoors is "kind of like looking in the mirror the first thing in the morning: You see everything. You have to really use your ears, because there are certain things that just don't work."

Love of music

Originally from Wales , Dr. Williams was raised in a family of organists, and a Hammond organ was passed down through the family. Her aunt even played jazz organ.

A serious piano student and teenage theater organist who could read music "before I could read" words, Dr. Williams admitted it was only a matter of time before she turned her gaze towards the "King of Instruments," a term used by Mozart.

"It's got so much majesty," Dr. Williams explained. "You can play almost every style -- jazz and romantic. I love all types of music, and that's the biggest appeal [of the organ] for me. It's a bit like a really good menu in a restaurant. It's got everything. It's exciting, rhythmical and memorable -- not a boring instrument."

No matter what style she chooses, however, "it's all music, and all one language," she said.

Concert

Dr. Williams' concert in Germantown will include a mixed, "bubbly" program of spiritual and secular pieces, including Herbert Chappell's "Songs of Praise," an arrangement of "Amazing Grace" by jazz pianist George Shearing, Khachaturian's "Sabre Dance," Brahms' "Hungarian Dance No. 5," pieces by George Gershwin and music by Welsh composer Karl Jenkins.

Dr. Williams said that Jenkins' music evokes the valleys and mountains of her native Welsh countryside, and "you can really wallow in that lovely atmosphere. I'm privileged to play this music."

(For more information, call the Motherhouse at 537-5000 or Father Gorman at 274-4083.)

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