Donald Teuma-Castelletti
BRISTOL Nov. 19, 2017
The Bristol Memorial Presbyterian Church was graced with the stylings of two talented musicians Sunday afternoon, when it held a concert to bless the donation of a baby grand piano.
Filling the church, around 40 people attended the afternoon concert when the church’s music director, Laird Graham, was joined by Sharon Adams, a well-studied pianist with many distinctions under her belt.
Hymns, classical melodies and Dino Kartsonakis tunes, as transcribed by Adams, helped break in the keys, as the audience sat in awe of the stylings of both musicians. Initially, Graham played the piano and led the singing of hymns, while Adams joined him on the organ.
Pretty soon the two changed things up, as Graham took the podium to belt out a solo and Adams took a seat at the Julianna piano. The show was rounded out by the Kartsonakis music, as she ran through over 20 minutes of near nonstop playing, much to the audience’s delight.
The show was rounded out by one final hymn, sung loud and proud by the congregation.
The concert was only broken up briefly when student minister Dave McFarlane held a special prayer and blessing of the gift and donor, Roy Fawcett, of Fawcett Pianos and Organs.
Fawcett came to the church in September, hired to fix issues with the organ. However, once he got speaking to Graham and heard him play a bit, he knew he had to make a contribution to the ministry in some way.
“He came in to repair our organ and while doing that, he mentioned he wanted to make a gift to benefit the life and ministry of the church,” said McFarlane.
In October, the Julianna baby grand piano arrived, wowing the staff. Of course, there was only one way to honour such a gift, so when Adams offered to play a concert, the church and Graham were all onboard.
Church-goers can expect Graham to be bouncing back and forth between the organ and piano in upcoming services, though judging by his adoration of the gift, many more piano tunes can be expected. Those interested in getting a glimpse of the piano, while hearing Graham do his magic on it, can join the church at 9 a.m. on Sundays.
“This is a huge investment into the church’s life and ministry,” said McFarlane. “It’s able to host concerts, such as this, and opens up a lot more community outreach programs and opportunities.”
