A Unique Attention Screen Recording Concert in NYC, May 19

On Sunday, May 19, at 1:30pm, Stereophile readers are invited to attend a very special recording concert. Over the last six years, my quartet, Attention Screen has released three CDs of improvised collaborative jazz on the Stereophile Recordings label. This particular concert will be unique in a number of ways. First, rather than playing grand piano, I'll be performing on the magnificent Ralph and Alice Greenlaw Memorial pipe organ at The Community Church of Douglaston, 39-50 Douglaston Parkway, in New York City's borough of Queens. Second, we will be featuring our newest member, trumpeter Liam Sillery, whose fourth CD, Phenomenology, was awarded five stars by Downbeat magazine in 2010. Finally, rather than performing improvised jazz, we will be playing nine newly composed jazz and classical works by the four individual members of Attention Screen. The pieces are designed to demonstrate the broad range of textures and colors the Greenlaw organ is capable of as well as spotlighting Liam Sillery's unique trumpet phrasing style.

The Venue and the Organ
The Georgian-style Community Church of Douglaston, in Northeastern Queens County, was built in 1925 and provides worship services affiliated with the Reformed Church in America. In 1928 the Austin Organ Company installed a new pipe organ and then refurbished it 1968. However, in 2010, armed with $175,000 of donations from the church's congregation and other benefactors, New Jersey's Peragallo organ company completely rebuilt from scratch and expanded the capabilities of this magnificent instrument.

The organ consists of five separate organs, which are operated by four manuals. The Great Organ incorporates 12 stops, the Swell Organ, 19, the Choir Organ, 23, the Gallery Organ, 10, and the Pedal Organ, 23, including three different 32' stops whose lowest pipes are capable of producing dramatic tones in the 16-32Hz octave. The 2010 rebuild also provided the organ with a panoply of modern technology: 300 couplers, dozens of presets, transposers and full midi capability. But, aside from the organ's magnificent tone (it's capable of both drama and subtlety—it has the widest dynamic range of any instrument I've experienced), the keyboard's action is more responsive than any of the great grand pianos I've played. Finally, the organ couples perfectly with the church's involving acoustics.

Concert Logistics
The concert will be at The Community Church of Douglaston, 39-50 Douglaston Parkway, Douglaston, New York, 11363, on Sunday, May 19, 2013 from 1:30 to 3:30pm. There are 155 orchestra seats ($20), 70 balcony seats ($15), and 3 wheelchair access spaces ($15) available. Advance tickets are available by mailing a check to The Community Church of Douglaston at the above address and specifying "May 19 concert" in the memo section. There will be a limited number of walk-in tickets available for cash or check on the day of the concert but the concert will likely sell out so advance ticket purchases are recommended. Complimentary wines from my cellar will be served during the concert's intermission.

The Beneficiaries
All proceeds from ticket sales will be distributed equally to two charities: The Community Church of Douglaston and The Douglaston Junior Yacht Squadron. The Community Church, in addition to providing worship services, is a major force in the local community in providing outreach, children's programs and special events that are open to the general public. The church will use their share of the concert's proceeds to help fund the organ's refurbishment and ongoing maintenance. The Douglaston Junior Yacht Squadron provides sailing instruction to the children in the community as young as 7 and promotes the social interaction of all children in the community each summer. The DJYS will use their share of the proceeds to fund equipment purchases and maintenance as well as instructor salaries.

We hope you can attend this once-in-a-lifetime event. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at Robert.J.Reina@earthlink.net.