Thursday Night Hymn Festival

Last night we all headed over to St. James Episcopal Church in Hendersonville, about 15 miles away. We trooped over there for the Music Week Hymn Festival.Why did we need to change location? In part, because the organ is better. In part, because more people could come. In part, because we've always done it this way, at least for the past decade or two or three.Last night, at times, the organ took center stage. Even if you think your church has a magnificent organ, it's likely 2-5 times smaller than the organ at St. James. I know this because my mom is an organist, and at her last church, she was the organist who helped do a capital campaign for a new organ. I thought it might be the same size as last night's organ, but she said it's about a quarter of the size.David Cherwien was the organist and director of the Hymn Choir last night. He showed us all the ways the organ could perform, and I was happy with the way the music illuminated the hymn itself. At times, I wanted less organ and…