Organ & Sheet Music Blog

An organist's hands playing two manuals of a pipe organ console, with piston buttons below the keys and warm wood behind

How to Practice Hands and Pedals on the Organ

Hands and feet won't cooperate on the organ? Here is the layer-by-layer routine I use to learn new music, from the pedal line alone to all three parts.

How to Practice Hands and Pedals on the Organ

Hands and feet won't cooperate on the organ? Here is the layer-by-layer routine I use to learn new music, from the pedal line alone to all three parts.

Three-manual wooden pipe organ console with hymnbook and sheet music on the music desk, flanked by drawknobs

Organ Legato for Hymns: Finger Substitution and...

Keep hymns smooth on the organ with finger substitution and tied common tones, plus when to re-strike the melody so every word is heard.

Organ Legato for Hymns: Finger Substitution and...

Keep hymns smooth on the organ with finger substitution and tied common tones, plus when to re-strike the melody so every word is heard.

Organist's hands writing notes with a pen on sheet music resting on a warm wooden organ music rack above the pistons

How to Mark Your Sheet Music Before Sunday

A soft pencil prevents most Sunday slips. How I mark fingering, pedaling, registration, breaths, and page turns so I am ready at the organ.

How to Mark Your Sheet Music Before Sunday

A soft pencil prevents most Sunday slips. How I mark fingering, pedaling, registration, breaths, and page turns so I am ready at the organ.

Close-up of an organist's hands playing the warm wooden manuals of a pipe organ in soft light

How to Plan Prelude Music for Sacrament Meeting

Plan sacrament meeting prelude music that invites reverence: choosing hymns, soft organ registration, and ending gracefully before the opening hymn.

How to Plan Prelude Music for Sacrament Meeting

Plan sacrament meeting prelude music that invites reverence: choosing hymns, soft organ registration, and ending gracefully before the opening hymn.

An organist's hand on the upper manual of a warm wooden pipe organ console, with drawknobs at the side and open sheet music on the music rack

How to Sight-Read a Hymn on Short Notice

Asked to play hymns at the last minute? A ward organist shares how to sight-read with confidence: what to check first, picking a tempo, and simplifying.

How to Sight-Read a Hymn on Short Notice

Asked to play hymns at the last minute? A ward organist shares how to sight-read with confidence: what to check first, picking a tempo, and simplifying.

Organist seated at a warmly lit pipe organ console beneath the pipe case, seen from behind

How to Play a Hymn Introduction the Congregatio...

How long should a hymn introduction be? A ward organist on how much to play, setting the tempo, and the beat of silence that starts everyone together.

How to Play a Hymn Introduction the Congregatio...

How long should a hymn introduction be? A ward organist on how much to play, setting the tempo, and the beat of silence that starts everyone together.