Event details
- Saturday | April 10, 2021
- 7:30 pm
BUY TICKETS & RSVP HERE! $36 per household (Zoom link will be provided)
KI is home to the Phyllis K. Goldsmith Memorial Organ. A 2,860 pipe organ built be the Austin Organ Company and install in 1961
-Catch a behind the scenes look at how the pipe organ operates
-Plus, an organ concert by KI’s Organist Extraordinare, Andrew Senn
– Sponsored by Lois and Jeremy Rosenau
Join KI’s organist, Andrew Senn, as he puts the Phyllis K. Goldsmith pipe organ through its paces in an action packed virtual concert! Andrew has chosen a program of music spanning three centuries which will highlight all of the colors of our wonderful organ. From the quiet and melodious to the thunderous and electrifying, this program captures all of the possibilities of the instrument with the virtuosic technique of the organist! Click Here for E-Vite!
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Born in Chicago, IL and the son of a Lutheran Pastor, music was an important part of Andrew Senn’s childhood. Piano lessons began at age six but his focus switched to the organ when he was twelve, studying with William Alyesworth. He was accepted on a full merit scholarship to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, PA where he studied with John Weaver. Upon his graduation in 2000, he was offered a combined position of Organ and Choral Scholar at Truro Cathedral in Cornwall, England where he worked under Andrew Nethsingha. Further organ coachings have been with Martin Jean, Kimberly Marshall, and David Schrader. Andrew was a finalist in improvisation in the 2013 Luxembourg International Organ Competition.
Andrew has been Director of Music at The First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia since August 2006 where he oversees a professional choir, has started a volunteer choir, as well as a prestigious concert series that includes programs of solo instruments, chamber recitals, and choral concerts with orchestra. Notable programs have included J. S. Bach’s “B Minor Mass” and “Saint John Passion,” Maurice Duruflé’s “Requiem,” and Francis Poulenc’s “Concerto for Organ, Timpani, and Strings in G minor.” Bach cantatas with orchestra are frequently offered during Sunday worship services. Since 2011, Andrew has also served as Organist/Pianist at Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel in Elkins Park, PA.
Known for his commanding and colorful performances, Andrew has been featured as a recitalist across the United States and Europe. American venues have included The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine and St. Thomas Church in New York City; St. Philip’s Cathedral and Peachtree Road United Methodist Church in Atlanta, and Old West Church in Boston. European performances have taken place at Evangelische Saalkirche and Evangelischen Johannesgemeinde in Germany as well as Christchurch Priory, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and Westminster Abbey in England. As a student at Curtis, he was also an assistant organist of the Wanamaker Organ in Philadelphia where he performed over 2,000 recitals.
James Hildreth has said the following about Andrew’s debut recording on ProOrgano which includes works by Reubke, Willan, and Vierne: “These performances are a rare combination of authentic interpretation and personal flair – Élan Vital! They compel one to sit up and listen.” Gaining a reputation as a fine composer and arranger, scores and information about other recordings can be found at www.andrewsenn.com