How to become and Organist

In this time and age it seems very "uncool" to play the organ. The main reason for that is the organ is presented in a very dull way and amateuristic way, more or less an instrument fit for funerals only.

 

In reaction to that most church denominations have gone to "worship teams" of mostly amateur musicians that play drums, guitar, piano and other instruments. These, in fact, are in my opinion the main causes of lack of animo for playing the organ.

 

But, there are lots of churches out there that are actively using the organ and there are many vacancies. To become an organist may not be cool at first thought, but it is, and it is also  financially very attractive indeed, just look at all the vacancies in our " Positions Available" section.  

 

Here's how to start becoming an organist:

 

Brush up on your piano. If you have had lessons as a child, but gotten rusty, go through the piano books you learned on. If they are no longer available, get books from a music store. Go through it from the very beginning, reviewing as you go. Don't make the mistake of using too difficult books or diving right into advanced songs or hymns.

If you feel that you enjoy what you are doing and you want to see if you are a good candidate to become an organist, contact a teacher! there are lists of good teachers available from the RCCO ( Royal Canadian College of Organist ) You can find the link here. 

Next, start playing hymns on the piano. This is very important if you want to become a church organist. If you are unfamiliar with hymn playing, it may take a little while.  Hymns are a wonderful tool to progress in piano and organ. You may have to separate hands, working on right, then left, than together, but you can get it. Hymn playing is an art form, especially on the piano. Luckily on the organ, you can get by with much less complication because you can use your feet as well

This step here I almost left out.....but I decided to include it. I spent a year or so working as a church pianist. I had the experience of playing for congregational singing. This was very helpful, and it takes some getting used to. I have seen concert pianists who could not accompany congregational singing. If you want to become a church organist, you should get as much experience as you can at congregational singing.

If you can volunteer to play at church or accompany a small choir for a while,  fill in or for Sunday School Assemblies, or whatever, it will be a benefit to your playing as well.

Next, you may need to spend a little money because you will have to find a practise organ. Usually a used electric organ that needs two keyboards and 30 foot pedals. Good ones may be hard to find, but we may have some.

The top keyboard is called Swell, and the bottom is the Great. All the stops may seem kind of overwhelming, but don't worry about it, ask your teacher to explain the differences, he/she will be glad to explain.

Now you are ready to learn to play hymns on the organ. This is not hard. It just takes some practice.
Looking at a hymn in the hymnal of your choice, you will see basically four notes that you need to worry about. If these were vocal parts, it would be soprano, alto, tenor and bass. Your right hand will be the women, your left index finger the tenor part, and your feet will play the bass notes.  

As you now play the organ, you hold down a key until the other key is played so that you achieve a smooth sounding piece. The bass cleff notes, left hand and foot, just usually sustain a note until it changes. They don't play a "melody line" like the right hand.

With your feet, you want a smooth transition. You will just hold the note down until it changes. Trained organists use a different foot technique, employing heel and toe, and often, two feet. When you study organ books, this is the method they endorse and write their instructions for. There are symbols for heel and toe.  This would be the way you would play a large pipe organ. Your right hand can play in the same place you normally would or an octave higher, which I sometimes do for congregational singing.

Your right hand is playing the top line, and your left index finger the top note of the left hand, and your foot the bass. The reason you aren't using your pinky to play the bottom note is that your foot is playing it. Since I started, I often do all kinds of stuff now with my pinky.

After years of playing, I of course do all kinds of stuff now. But starting out, I played one base note. Now I play my feet like a hurdy gurdy man sometimes! Bomp, bomp, bomp, bomp!
But, just concentrate on playing a sustained bass note. You will have to change with the song, but you can stay on one note as long as you can. I found out real fast that it is better to just not hit a bass note than to try to move too fast and get them all messy.

I wish you good luck!