The Young Organist Collaborative

The Young Organist Collaborative OFFICIAL PAGE: The Young Organist Collaborative is a scholarship program that supports young people interested in learning how to play the pipe organ.

Dubbed the “King of Instruments,” organs need trained musicians to bring them to life. The Young Organist Collaborative ...
06/24/2026

Dubbed the “King of Instruments,” organs need trained musicians to bring them to life. The Young Organist Collaborative (YOC) was formed in 2001 to foster the next generation of organists who will continue to bring these majestic instruments —and the sacred and secular music written expressly for them—to life.

While an outreach program of St. John’s Church in Portsmouth, NH, the YOC is funded entirely through donations by generous individuals.

You can donate directly to our scholarship fund at https://youngorganistcollaborative.org/support

Can you identify this organ? Hint: It's part of a UNESCO world-heritage site and lives in a cathedral that sports a re-p...
06/15/2026

Can you identify this organ? Hint: It's part of a UNESCO world-heritage site and lives in a cathedral that sports a re-purposed minaret from the Great Mosque that previously stood on the ground.

Did you know that a memorial scholarship was created in September 2011, by the family of C. Pennington Brown to support ...
06/11/2026

Did you know that a memorial scholarship was created in September 2011, by the family of C. Pennington Brown to support and encourage additional study beyond the basic YOC scholarship?

Brown, a passionate supporter of the YOC, believed in its mission to invest in the next generation of organists. A U.S. Navy veteran and a graduate of Brown University, Penn was an advertising executive with firms including Marshall Fields & Co. of Chicago and the New Yorker magazine. After retirement he served two terms in the New Hampshire State Legislature. He was a member of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Portsmouth and sang in its choir.

The C. Pennington Brown Memorial Scholarship is open to organ students who have taken at least two years of lessons under the mentorship of a Young Organist Collaborative instructor. The scholarship award covers the cost of 24 lessons in the coming academic year.

This year, we were pleased to have FIVE talented students audition for the scholarship.

06/06/2026

We had our Penn brown scholarship auditions this morning! All 5 students that auditioned did an excellent job and we had a 1st and 2nd place winner.
1st place was awarded to Josh Tomlinson and 2nd place to William Morley. Congratulations!! 🎉

Did you know that the expression "Pulling out all the stops" comes from the pipe organ? The “stops” refer to the stop k*...
06/01/2026

Did you know that the expression "Pulling out all the stops" comes from the pipe organ?

The “stops” refer to the stop k***s on a pipe organ, which are used to regulate the instrument’s sound by selecting which sets of pipes have air traveling through them at a given time.

To pull out all the stops when playing the organ is to pull out every k**b so that air is allowed to blast through every rank as the organist plays, which creates a powerful blast of unfiltered sound.

05/26/2026

YOC student Cassie Murai plays Bach's Toccaata in D Minor, BWV 565 at the 2026 Spring Student Recital.

Congratulations to this year's class of eleven students on a successful Spring Recital!On May 9, 100 audience members we...
05/18/2026

Congratulations to this year's class of eleven students on a successful Spring Recital!

On May 9, 100 audience members were on hand to celebrate each student's hard work and dedication as they performed works by Bach, Pachelbel, Jones, Barr, Correll, Fisher, Fedak, Dupre and Powell on the Christ Church (Exeter) organ.

What have you achieved as the result of a dedicated and focused mentor? The Young Organist Collaborative's mission is to...
05/12/2026

What have you achieved as the result of a dedicated and focused mentor?

The Young Organist Collaborative's mission is to encourage the next generation of pipe organists. You can support our work with a tax deductible donation at https://youngorganistcollaborative.org/support

05/09/2026

Today we had our student auditions this morning for our 25th anniversary year coming up and also an excellent student recital this afternoon! Great work by all students! Next on the calendar is Penn brown auditions on June 6th.

Last month, some of the YOC students participated in a master class with Erica Johnson at Christ Church in Exeter. This ...
05/06/2026

Last month, some of the YOC students participated in a master class with Erica Johnson at Christ Church in Exeter.

This coming weekend they'll take to the organ bench once more at the Spring Student Recital, Saturday, May 9 at 2pm at Christ Church (43 Pine Street, Exeter).

We hope you'll join us as we celebrate the hard work and progress each of our 11 students have made this year!

Open to the public, $10 suggested at the door donation.

Address

P. O. Box 24
Portsmouth, NH
03802

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