Union Sunday School Concert – 7-29-18

Second Organ Concert of the Series Coming up at the Union Sunday School
Returning favorite Glenn Henriksen to perform on July 29

CLERMONT – The unmistakable sounds of America’s largest Kimball Pipe Organ will come to life during the 38th annual Union Sunday School Concert Series this summer in Clermont. The second concert in the series is set for July 29th and will be performed by a returning organist from Armstrong, Iowa, Glen Henrisken.

Glenn Henriksen is an accomplished, versatile pianist and organist. He began piano lessons at age seven, and continued through high school. At age thirteen he became the organist at his hometown church. Glenn attended Luther College in Decorah, Iowa and received further musical instruction. In the years following, he has played for a wide variety of events, including solo piano and organ concerts, church services, weddings, funerals, receptions and other social activities. Glenn’s repertoire includes classical, ragtime, blues and jazz, standards, pop and rock, country, Latin, gospel, and sacred. Glenn is also a seasoned accompanist, providing services to many vocalists and instrumentalists. He is a member of the variety rock band Galaxy. Glenn’s lifetime experience in many musical genres has enabled him to develop a unique musical style, resulting in one-of-a-kind improvised arrangements. Glenn resides in Spirit Lake, Iowa and Armstrong, Iowa.

While the concert series features highly trained musicians who perform a wide range of compositions, the Kimball Pipe Organ is the star of the show.

With 1,554 pipes – some as tall as 16 feet – people not only hear its notes, they feel them. Purchased by former Iowa Gov. William Larrabee as a gift to his daughter, Anna, in 1896, it was later gifted to the city of Clermont.

Encased in a walnut cabinet, the instrument was hand-pumped until 1910, when an electric blower was installed. The organ was restored in 1979 and rededicated on Oct. 19, 1980, which marked the beginning of the annual recital series. The organ was most recently restored in 2010 by Dobson Pipe Organ Builders of Lake City, Iowa.

If you go:

What: Union Sunday School Concert Series.
Where: Union Sunday Schoo, 406 Larrabee St., in Clermont.
When: July 29, at 2:30 p.m. and is followed by a free tea at the nearby Clermont Opera House where audience members can meet and visit with the musicians.
Admission: Free and open to the public.

The recital series is sponsored by the Clermont Historical Society, the State Historical Society of Iowa and the Iowa Arts Council. The Union Sunday School is part of the Montauk Historic Site, one of eight historic sites overseen by the State Historical Society of Iowa, a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs. More information is available at iowaculture.gov.

The Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs and its three divisions – the Iowa Arts Council, State Historical Society of Iowa, and Produce Iowa, the state office of media production – empower Iowa to build and sustain culturally vibrant communities by connecting Iowans to the people, places and points of pride that define our state. The department’s work enables Iowa to be recognized as a state that fosters creativity and serves as a catalyst for innovation where the stories of Iowa are preserved and communicated to connect past, present and future generations. iowaculture.gov.