Organist Brett Wolgast in Concert Reformation Sunday, Oct. 26; 3 p.m.

The final concert celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the dedication of Trinity’s Casavant pipe organ is Reformation Sunday, October 26, at 3:00pm.

Dr. Brett Wolgast, Cantor and Organist at First Lutheran Church, Cedar Rapids, and College Organist and Assistant Professor of Music at Coe College is presenting a remarkable program elaborating hymn melodies used at the time of the Protestant Reformation. The program features compositions from different ages which compare and contrast various hymn tunes.

The program— and series of three recitals— will draw to a close with J.S. Bach’s great Prelude and Fugue in G Major, BWV 541.

497 years ago, on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of the Castle Church of Wittenberg, setting in motion the Protestant Reformation. Historians consider Luther's hymns, and those of his contemporaries, to have sparked the traditions congregational singing we know today.

Handcrafted by the Canadian firm of Casavant Frères, the sanctuary organ at Trinity Church was dedicated March 17, 1974. It was the first of its kind in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois and remains a premiere instrument for the presentation of music by J.S. Bach and his contemporaries. Trinity Church has celebrated in 2014 with previous recitals by Dr. Delbert Disselhorst, Professor Emeritus of the University of Iowa, and Dr. Karen Black, Professor of Organ at Wartburg College, Waverly, Iowa.

This unique concert mixing history, instrument, and song is one not to be missed.

A reception follows the program in Trinity Church's Founder’s Hall. There is no admission charge, and the public is invited. Trinity Lutheran Church is at 1330 13th Street, Moline, Illinois. More information is also available at www.tlcmoline.org