Going to Carolina in my mind

My aunt lived in Nashville. My sister lived in Nashville, Vicksburg, and now Dothan. I lived in Houston. My mother lived in Statesville (N.C.). But Mother would never mention those cities by name. She would refer to those destinations by state: “When are you coming back to North Carolina?” “We’re going to Alabama to visit Talana for Christmas.” “Aunt Sandy is going back to Tennessee tomorrow.” Mother would answer ‘North Carolina’ to the question, “Where are you from?” A rather broad-ranging yet endearing approach to geography!

A similar thing occurs, in the other direction, when American organists are referred to in printed materials abroad. For example, Stephen Tharp is represented as being from ‘New York, USA.’ James David Christie would be from ‘Boston, USA.’ I would be from ‘Houston, USA” or ‘Boone, USA.’ But we Americans do the same thing when referring to foreign cities: we talk about visiting ‘Leipzig, Germany’ or ‘Paris, France’ or ‘Toronto, Canada.’ But we skip the county or state that those locals often use. And if you say ‘Frankfurt, Germany’ or ‘Halle, Germany,’ which do you mean? There are two of each!

Well, I have just completed my first-ever visit to “Germany.” I suppose since I didn’t stay in a single city for more than two overnights, I can really say “Germany.” And what a trip! Frankfurt, Halle, Leipzig, Dresden, Naumburg, Merseburg, Berlin, Hamburg, Lübeck, Cologne, Aachen. I have always felt that the best way to tour a city for the first time is to visit its churches, not its museums. The church towers help you get your bearings, and they define so much of a city’s history. And let’s not forget the treasure trove of pipe organs that exists in most European churches. Look at my Facebook photo album “Germany & England 2012.” The photos are all of churches and organs! My first trip to New York City (“New York”) was for an AGO convention. That was perfect, because I got to visit the churches and hear the organs – the very things I would have wanted to hear in the first place but probably couldn’t on my own. Same thing for my first visit to Paris (“France”) – I was on an organized organ tour. That was even better, because not only did I get to hear the organs, but I got to play them, as well.

This trip to “Germany” is actually a trip to “Europe.” Two weeks in Germany, one night in Paris to catch the Chunnel train, and then a week in Sherborne (Dorset!) England, for recital duty. Today, “Germany.” Tomorrow, “Europe.” Next week, “the world!”