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MMD > Archives > February 2004 > 2004.02.26 > 03Prev  Next


New 20er Organ Roll by Stephen Simpson
By Tom McAuley

I recently purchased a Jaeger & Brommer 20-note street organ.  The
facade is carved to resemble a circus tent and there is a clown
figure that taps his little cymbals with the music.  Inside the organ
there are 45 pipes arranged into three switchable registers.  It is
a beautiful-looking and sweet-sounding organ, and I have been anxious
to show it in public.  The time finally arrived this week.

I had been invited to play for a Shrove Tuesday pancake dinner at
a small church.  I arrived early and got set up in the parish hall.
As people arrived, I played a roll of nice little tunes.  People smiled
and many came over to ask questions about the organ.

After the crowd had all gathered, I put in a different roll and started
playing.  The polite smiles turned into big grins.  People started
tapping their feet, then swaying to the music, and then they got up
and started dancing and singing along!  These people were really having
_fun!_  What was the music that got these people going?  A brand-new
roll of Country & Western tunes from Stephen Simpson's Happy Cow Music.

The roll starts with "Wabash Cannonball", quickly followed by
"Orange Blossom Special."  Now, either of those tunes can sound great
(especially when played on a bluegrass fiddle), but what Stephen has
done with the 20-note arrangements is truly phenomenal.  And that is not
just my opinion -- my audience was equally amazed!  The roll includes
other tunes like "Ring of Fire" and "Your Cheatin' Heart."  Since I am
not a big country music fan, I don't know the other songs quite as
well, but the audience sure knew them and they kept right on singing
and dancing throughout the roll.

That was by far the favorite roll of the evening -- I ended up playing
it at least three times!  If you are looking for some real crowd-pleasing
music to play on your 20er organ, be sure you check out Stephen's
arrangements.

Tom McAuley
Hutchinson, Kansas
http://community-2.webtv.net/TMcAuley/TomsHomepage/


(Message sent Thu 26 Feb 2004, 20:22:43 GMT, from time zone GMT-0800.)

Key Words in Subject:  20er, New, Organ, Roll, Simpson, Stephen

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