1993 Dargassies organ at the Church of Saint-François-Xavier, Paris, France

The door is wide open, and the variety and intensity of performers involved in the world of the pipe organ continues to astonish and delight. Our next Pipedreams program explores the vivid work of a dozen European soloists, and the determined involvement of an excellent audio engineer. Christoph Martin Frommen who has documented several grand masters, and some relative youngsters still in their early twenties, for whom musicianship is crucial and the pipe organ is only the means of their expression. The air is alive with beguiling sounds and an astonishing array of talent, as we sample the catalog of a young European CD label, with fresh breezes from abroad enlivening the realm of the King of Instruments. Sail along with us on the Continental Zephyr new sounds from Aeolus Records of Germany, this week on Pipedreams.

Ours is a pilgrim’s progress of sorts, traversing a year in retrospect and looking into the future. Join us as we take measure of the year 2003 and celebrate the art of the organ and its practitioners the builders, players and composers whose lives contribute so much to our experiences each week. We’ll play some recent compact discs, share shapshots of a trip to Italy, honor the memories of those who have passed to their rewards, and prognosticate a bit about what might come along in 2004.