Page 9 - MLD Book

Waterhouse, insisted on a solo as well, as he fancied himself a singer. So he rendered movement four!!! As the years went by (to 1973 actually), our favorite designation for him was Watercloset instead of Waterhouse. The brand new Louisville Bach Society began the organ dedicatory festival on May 9, Jubilate Sunday. The program was a gigantic one, with three Bach cantatas (146, 104, 194) and a Handel organ concerto (#7). Cantata 194 was written for the dedication of a new organ in Stoermthal in 1723, a church Melvin and I would visit many years later. There were subsequently three organ dedicatory recitals on May 16, 19, and 23 (me, BT Kimbrough and Melvin). Interesting that my organ recital came three months after Michelle was born! I don’t remember that being a challenge, but looking back, it might have been a bit unusual for most organists!
Even though we had moved to Louisville in 1964, Melvin continued for a couple more years as Organist-Choirmaster in Frankfort. But in 1966, Grant Graves, Organist-Choirmaster at St. Francis in the Fields, died suddenly. He was playing the second verse of “Ye Holy Angels Bright” when suddenly he dropped dead, landing on the keyboard with a deafening crash. It was shocking and totally unexpected from a health issue standpoint. To this day, it is hard for me to play that hymn, even though it is one of my favorite St. Michael hymns. At any rate, Melvin was offered the job immediately. It was in many ways hard for him to leave the Church of the Ascension in Frankfort. The Bach concerts in those first years there became community events, and served to attract many people to the church. But after Ward Jackson, the Rector, dropped dead on the golf course at age 39, the rousing ecclesiastical support was still well meaning but in no way collegial. Louisville work with LBS and UL escalated to the point of “too much,” factor in two small children as well, and so the decision to leave had to be made. Melvin’s tenure at St. Francis was 1966-1979, when circumstances to be described later emerged.
Once we were established in Louisville, we wanted our girls to take advantage of one of the offerings at the university. Virginia Schneider became interested in the now famous Suzuki violin program and wanted our girls to be guinea pigs. It started out with Maria, but then Michelle, who always wanted to do everything her older sister did, decided she wanted to join in. We had a couple of very interesting years in that program, but ultimately, they turned out to NOT be budding violin virtuosos. I think the final straw was that I hit Maria
over the head (lightly!) with he tiny bow when she played out of tune! They were also both very irritated with me in the practice sessions because I could tell they had hit a wrong note even when I was not in the room! “HowdoyouKNOWitwasaC?”One advantage I had was relative pitch, which they did not understand. I love this picture though. It demonstrates Maria’s confidence that she knows what she is doing, while Michelle casts a furtive glance that indicates the SHE can do it just as well!!
A word about the Rev. Wilfred Waterhouse. He was supportive of me as far as music selection and execution was concerned, and appreciative that I could play well and inject enthusiasm into what was done. He knew the challenges I faced with the disgruntled choir and all of the characters in it, and was sympathetic to what I was dealing with, although he had created the crisis himself. I was actually pregnant when I came to Calvary on that first