Organ & Church Music

Studies in Organ & Church Music

• The organ department at St. Olaf College is one of the largest undergraduate organ departments in the country. The program has maintained a stable enrollment for more than a quarter-century.
• Each semester, approximately 25 St. Olaf students take private lessons from one of two professional organ faculty. Instruction in organ for music majors and non-music majors is offered in private weekly half-hour or one-hour lessons. Organ students have the opportunity to perform as soloists in solo recitals, group recitals and weekly studio classes.
• St. Olaf also offers a variety of courses that prepare students for careers as practicing church musicians or in organ performance . In addition, the January Interim term and the programs of independent study and research, and collaborative undergraduate research provide opportunities to create projects that fulfill individual needs and interest.
• Music majors may elect an interim or semester abroad; offerings include programs in Milan, Vienna or Copenhagen specifically designed for music majors.
• Skifter Hall, adjacent to Christiansen Hall, houses seven practice instruments (four mechanical, three electro-pneumatic by Dobson, Wilhelm, Holtkamp, and Schliker.) Each room has been acoustically engineered to provide a satisfying practice experience. In addition, Skifter Hall houses the Tormodsgaard-Bakken Recital Hall (commonly known as Studio A), a small hall designed especially for organ teaching, practice and recitals. Its mechanical action Dobson organ is three manuals and 42 ranks.
• In the fall of 2006 a new Holtkamp organ was installed in Boe Memorial Chapel one of the final steps in a complete renovation of this significant space on the St. Olaf campus. The chapel serves as a laboratory for church music majors as well as a locus for organ study and performance.