WAGG presents organ concert in Swedesburg

WINFIELD — The Winfield Area Grateful Gathering (WAGG) will host a pipe organ concert at Swedesburg Lutheran on Saturday, Nov. 18 at 4 p.m.

Swedesburg Lutheran Organist, Christopher Arp, will play a program that features the church’s 1928 Bennet / 2023 Karstens pipe organ which was rededicated this past summer.

The pipe organ includes 1911 pipes and 28 ranks (different voices/styles of sound).

Christopher Arp is an organist, choir director, and church musician from Mt. Pleasant. He holds degrees from both Luther College and the University of Iowa.

Christopher is a lifetime member of the American Guild of Organists (AGO) and has served as an officer of both the North Iowa and River Valley chapters of the AGO.

Christopher grew up on a farm south of Dysart and has had the privilege of playing organs across the United States, Spain, and Germany.

Christopher’s program features [i] Sonata No. 1 for Organ by Alexandre Guilmant, composed in 1874. He will then play variations on O God, Our Help in Ages Past by Paul Manz. His program will conclude with a transcription of [I]Adagio for Strings by Samuel Barber and variations on [I]Will You Come and Follow Me? by Antony Baldwin.

The concert is free and open to the public. Join in-person or online at www.facebook.com/SwedesburgLutheran.

There will be a free will offering split between the Winfield Area Grateful Gathering organization and Swedesburg Lutheran’s Organ Fund. The address is 1897 140th Street, Mt. Pleasant, Iowa.

Swedesburg Lutheran will host other local talent in concerts scheduled for 2024.

On Jan. 21, 2024 at 3 p.m. Dr. Brett Wolgast and Marita Wolgast from Cedar Rapids will play a concert featuring piano / organ duets.

Brett is Coe College Organist and Cantor at First Lutheran, Cedar Rapids. Marita is a Piano Instructor at Coe College and Choir Director at First Lutheran.

Another organ concert is scheduled for April 7, 2024 at 3 p.m. and will feature University of Iowa Organ Professor Dr. Gregory Hand.