1998 Casavant organ at The Church of Saint Louis, King of France, Saint Paul, MN.

Like a new car in the driveway, the installation of a new pipe organ is always a time of pride and celebration, and this week Pipedreams visits three churches in host Michael Barone’s neck of the woods where the folks are very, very happy. Lynn Dobson’s instrument at Saint Paul’s Episcopal, Minneapolis, offers plenty of color and power in a deceptively modest package. The new Casavant at Saint Louis Roman Catholic Church in Saint Paul boasts a splendidly-carved and decorated case which matches its vibrant voice, and Charles Hendrickson’s design for Wayzata Community Church builds on the ideal of an American Classic. Christopher Herrick, Daniel Roth, and Diana Lee Lucker play inaugural concerts on these three fine instruments.

There’s something for everyone on our next Pipedreams broadcast. We’ll feature everything from charming Renaissance dances played on a restored instrument from the early 1500s to an improvised waltz that’s only a few months old. Our sampler of current CDs includes the sound of the largest church organ in New England and works by Bach played on an instrument from his time and territory. We’ll light up the dawn with a poem perfectly fitted to a venerable Skinner organ in one of Detroit’s once-fine neighborhoods, reminisce about the early days of Pipedreams broadcasts with a piece we premiered here, and savor the splendor of a Vierne Symphonic Finale played in grand manner on a near-perfect organ in Toulouse. From Dupré to Dirksen, and Willan to Walton, it’s a variety sampler of the best new organ compact discs, with profound preludes, delicious dances, and scintillating sorties. To keep up with the recent and the remarkable, we’re Going On Record with new releases in review, this week on Pipedreams.

The Christmas image of a newborn babe brought into a cold world conjures sentiments of joy and astonishment. So it’s not entirely surprising that the music on this week’s program does the same. We celebrate the season with trumpets and choirs, as well as organs both in solo and duet performances. Join in and sing along with familiar old tunes and embrace some new music, too, heralding the good news of the Nativity. For Unto Us: a holiday for heart and ears.

Tune in as we take our recording equipment around the region, capturing the excitement of LIVE performances. The first of two parts, we find artists meeting the challenge of the concert experience with incomparable panache.

This week we celebrate the 125th anniversary of Canada’s most prominent organ maker: Casavant Frères.

…performances featuring soloists, composers and instruments recorded in and around Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota.