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The University of New Mexico鈥檚 Keller Hall will reverberate with pipe organ music on Saturday, May 23, when four organists, 11 string players and soprano Jordyn Tatum present a free concert of organ-forward music, spanning more than three centuries.

New Mexico-based composers Frederick Frahm and James Yeager co-curated the concert under the aegis of the American Guild of Organists鈥� sa国际传媒官网网页入口 chapter. Starting with a concerto by the 17th-century composer Arcangelo Corelli and ending with an 18th-century concerto by Michel Corrette, the concert features more recent compositions, as well, including Yeager鈥檚 2025 鈥淏irches for Organ and Strings鈥� and the world premiere of Frahm鈥檚 2025 鈥淪an Miguel Chapel.鈥�

鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to 鈥� provide people with an opportunity to hear a really extraordinary instrument in an extraordinary hall, and to hear 鈥� our New Mexican organist stars, who live and work here in central New Mexico,鈥� Yeager said.

The four featured organists are Stephen Brodsky-Montoya, Edmund Connolly, David Solem and Maxine Th茅venot.

But the real star of the show is the pipe organ itself, Keller Hall鈥檚 1967 Holtkamp organ 鈥� one of the largest in the state. The organ boasts three keyboards, a 32-note pedalboard, 42 stops and a whopping 2,741 pipes.

鈥淓ach stop has a different, particular sound, and each stop has one pipe for every note that鈥檚 on the keyboard or in the pedals 鈥� which is how we get to 2,741 pipes. It鈥檚 all those different sound combinations,鈥� Yeager said. 鈥淢any people say the organ is like an orchestra, although, in some ways, it鈥檚 really the first synthesizer.鈥�

Yeager鈥檚 鈥淏irches for Organ and Strings鈥� was inspired by the 1915 poem, 鈥淏irches,鈥� by Robert Frost, which begins, 鈥淲hen I see birches bend to left and right / Across the lines of straighter darker trees, / I like to think some boy鈥檚 been swinging them.鈥�

鈥淚 heard a recording of Frost reading it, and it鈥檚 just so touching, because he鈥檚 an older guy talking about his youth 鈥� about childhood and growing up,鈥� Yeager said.

In Yeager鈥檚 composition, the boy is represented by the organ and the birch trees by the strings. The poem describes the trees clicking and cracking as the ice on them starts to thaw, which Yeager represents by having the string section hit the wooden part of their bow against their instrument 鈥� a technique known as col legno (with the wood).

鈥淭he instruments are clacking their wood against the strings, making different pitches and sounds, which, to me, evokes the image of those birch trees with the ice cracking from them,鈥� he said.

Frahm鈥檚 鈥淪an Miguel Chapel鈥� was inspired by the 1610 Spanish colonial mission of the same name in Santa Fe.

鈥淲hen I first listened to the piece, I told (Frahm), 鈥業 can actually imagine the building standing there in the blue New Mexico sky, and the quality of timelessness there,鈥欌�� Yeager said.

The American Guild of Organists, founded in 1896, is a nationwide organization with over 10,000 members. Yeager said the sa国际传媒官网网页入口 chapter, which serves northern and central New Mexico, has about 40 members.

鈥淥ne of the things our local guild does is we provide recitals like this,鈥� Yeager said. 鈥淏ut that鈥檚 not the main thing. We do educational events, (including) 鈥� 鈥楶edals, Pipes and Pizza,鈥� which is aimed at children of elementary and even junior high age 鈥� even if they鈥檝e had no background at all in music or in organ. 鈥� We invite them to come, and everybody gets a chance to try out the instrument, learn about it and ask all the questions they want to ask. And, of course, there鈥檚 pizza.鈥�

Yeager anticipates a robust turnout for the Saturday, May 23, concert, since it鈥檚 free, and advises people to arrive early to get the best seats.

鈥淭he hall seats 275 people, and we鈥檙e hoping it鈥檚 absolutely packed, so come early,鈥� he said.

Logan Royce Beitmen is an arts writer for the sa国际传媒官网网页入口. He covers visual art, music, fashion, theater and more. Reach him at lbeitmen@abqjournal.com or on Instagram at .