International performer plays organ to silent film at Jacobs

High school students arrived Sunday to kick off a week of immersing themselves in their musical talent. However, unlike the other events at the IU Jacobs School of
Music, this week focuses on the pipe organ.

“This is just like the camps for the string academy and percussion,” said David Kazimir, IU academic specialist and organ curator. “But it is exclusively for the pipe organ, which is wonderfully unique. They focus on good performance, technical learning and advancement of repertoire.”

Amidst the week full of lessons and events, Tuesday night will feature a silent film presentation of “The Phantom of the Opera,” accompanied by Dorothy Papadakos’ improvisation on the pipe organ.

Papadakos started playing the piano when sound synthesizers became popular, and at 15 years old, she made the transition from piano to pipe organ.

“The pipe organ is really cool and can make all these different sounds, like a synthesizer on steroids,” Papadakos said. “The deep bass notes are very powerful. It’s artistically and musically thrilling.”

She became the first female organist at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, the world’s largest Gothic cathedral, from 1990 to 2003.

“You play the organ with your feet, and it’s like a one-woman orchestra,” Papadakos said. “Your feet play the bass notes, your hands play all the instruments of the orchestra, and that’s what I like — total control and power.”

An international performer, Papadakos is well known for her improvisation of Charlie Chaplin and Lon Chaney films and has played in Germany, Finland and other theaters across the United States.

In August, Papadakos will embark on a silent film tour in Norway.

Her improvisation of “The Phantom of the Opera” will not only be her first trip to Bloomington, but it will also be the first silent movie event performed with the organ in Auer Hall at the Jacobs School.

“We let Dorothy choose the movie she wanted to play,” said Janette Fishell, chair of IU’s organ department. “That’s probably the best-known silent film, and for a reason. It has great appeal to all ages and experience levels, it’s a great film and, of course, it has allusions to the organ. It’s just a great fit with an event like this.”

This gig differs from her current work as a member of the Grammy Award-winning Paul Winter Consort for a number of reasons, Papadakos said.

The consort creates a combination of jazz, classical and world music with the sounds of nature and animals.

“The silent movies are all improvisation, and they are different every time because every organ is different, every audience is different and I’m different,” she said.

“Depending on my mood, I’m always unpredictable. In Paul’s pieces, everyone has set parts, and I’m playing with a band of seven or eight guys.”

Although the Jacobs School put on a similar event two years ago, this year’s Pipe Organ Encounter is IU’s first advanced course — and the only one offered in the U.S. this summer — and will include 26 students, Kazimir said.

“A silent movie has a special appeal to an event like this, and we definitely wanted someone to bring this very unique program to the wake,” Fishell said. “Dorothy is just superb. We asked, and we’re just delighted she could fit it into her schedule.”

Kazimir said there has been a recent resurgence of improvisational music to silent films.

“It’s based around skill, instant creativity and technique, and Dorothy Papadakos is one of the best out there,” he said. “It’s art. She’s bringing art and music to Bloomington, and that’s one part of the greater offerings of the Summer Music series.”
Papadakos said she is excited for the new experience.

“I can’t wait because I believe it really is one of the top five organ departments in the United States,” she said. “It feels like I’ll be right at home. The organ looks gorgeous. It’s a large instrument with lots of varieties of colors, so I think I’ll be right at home, and it’ll be a nice evening.”