Wellington organist wins international prize
<p>As his fingers played the organ keys, Thomas Gaynor was transported back to the 1700s, imagining what it might have been like when his hero, JS Bach, performed on the same instrument in the Germany church centuries ago.</p><p>The 24-year-old was playing the organ that Bach once played when he worked as an organist in a church in Arnstadt, in one of six concerts that Gaynor had to perform in the prestigious organ event, the 3rd Bach Liszt Organ competition.</p><p>The Wellington College graduate won the organ prize over 18 other young organists. His win is huge and groundbreaking. Not only does it elevate him in the organ world, he also receives a $12,000 Euro prize which he will put towards his Doctorate in Musical Arts at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York.</p><p>For the German competition, he played three hours of music before judges in six live performances, mainly a mix of Bach, Liszt and Schumann. Sipping a beer in the airport lounge on his way back to his university flat in Rochester, an hour from New York City, Gaynor takes a deep breath: "I'm completely drained. That was one of the most stressful two weeks of my life. There were 18 of us trying to practice on the same instrument before each competition. I only had 1.5 hours to prepare for a concert I would normally have about 20 hours to prepare for."</p><p>Playing in the church where Bach was organist for five years, composing the pieces as he played, Gaynor says: "It's a pretty amazing feeling thinking about what he would have played and how he would have played it. The organ is as it was back then, even though a lot of organs over in Germany were melted down and turned into bullets during the war."</p><p>His father, Bill Gaynor, a Wellington musician and educator says: "It's the first time that a New Zealander has won something like this since (the New Zealand British organist) Dame Gillian Weir did 25 years ago. He's been on German TV and in the newspapers over there. They've been saying things like "All Black wins major prize"."</p><p>His mother, Ann, a member of the Orpheus Choir, says: "When I listen to him play, I'm astonished, proud, moved and dumbstruck. He has this authority when he's playing."</p><p>His achievements are even more remarkable, as he only had a short time to get to grips with each of the six historic organs he played in the competition. Says his mother: "They had such little time to get to know each organ. An organ is not like a piano, and each one was very unusual and different."</p><p>An organ isn't an organ. Gaynor sips his beer. "It's a Russian roulette."</p><p>He may have "the worst seat in the house", but this young organist who discovered a passion for the organ at a young age and nagged his mother to get him lessons has been lauded as "a formidable force" by Keyboard Magazine. Making his mark on the organ scene, his website lists his achievements so far: he won the Sydney International Organ Competition and the Fort Wayne National Organ Playing competition, as well as being a prizewinner in the St Albans International Organ Competition.</p><p>Gaynor doesn't have time to do much apart from study and his part-time job as assistant music director at Christ Episcopal Church in Pittsford, near where he lives. Each Sunday, he has to rise early to play the organ for the 8am and 10 am church services. "It's a beautiful, tiny church, which seats about 200 people, in a pretty little suburb in Rochester. When the director is away, I have to also conduct the choir, which I do using my head bobbing around, which is an interesting experience."</p><p>As a young boy, he learned the piano for a while, but was transfixed by the power of the organ when he was listening to a concert at the Wellington Town Hall. His mother thought it was unusual, but she found him an organ teacher at St Paul's Cathedral, where from the age of 11 he learned to play. He went on to be honorary sub organist there, later working as the organist at St Mary of the Angels Church.</p><p>In his spare time, he loves visiting New York and its museums. He also likes to cook. Not a fan of popular music, he finds it difficult to listen to anything when he's not studying. "I end up criticising it and analysing it," he says.</p><p>Gaynor will return home for Christmas. "But I will be playing the organ at the Christmas church services over here first," he says.</p><p>Written by Sarah Catherall. 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