Organist to study in Canada

Press, 20 August 1981, Page 2

Organist to study in Canada

Armed with a French conversation course and a reputation as one of the South Island's leading- organists, Mrs Alison Brown will leave Christchurch tomorrow for greener pastures of study at a Montreal University. Mrs Brown, who is 27, has spent the last three years saving $12,000 to pay her way through a year-long master's degree at McGill University. Opportunities for organists in New Zealand are limited and she wants to further her career.

"I am basically just going for the experience.” she said. Mrs Brown doubted that she would return to New Zealand to work but the master’s degree would enable her to teach at overseas universities.

Her other applications to Canadian and American ; Universities were’ also accepted but McGill was her : first choice because it demanded the highest perform- • ance standard and she had ; heard that Montreal had ! some “lovely organs.” Mrs i Brown has also applied for a • scholarship grant from the j Queen Elizabeth II Arts 1 Council. : The last weeks have been i a rush to complete research j work for a music perform- 1 ance honours degree at the University of Canterbury. Mrs Brown needs good honours grades’ before she can start the Canadian degree. A postal strike in Canada ! stopped mail and it was not j until last month, after longer j distance telephone calls, that I she found she had been ac- ; cepted. Music courses are taught i in English but Montreal is a i French-speaking city and so | seventh-form French books j came out of the cupboard ; and Mrs Brown brushed up j on French with a conversa- ; tion course at Christchurch ' Polytechnic. I

Her husband will remain ] at home. Mr Brown is a | former national bandsman l with several overseas tours I to his credit and Mrs Brown ' feels that it is her turn to i travel. An Arts Council grant i would, she hopes, provide i extra money for him to I make a brief visit, , The organ is a step up i from the piano Mrs Brown i started learning when she i was seven. She still teaches j the piano privately, but has j been studying the organ for the last. 10 years. ;