Arts and Music

Trinity Cathedral is richly blessed with outstanding instruments, accomplished and dedicated musicians, and a lively acoustic environment that encourages energetic congregational participation in our worship. Our music program exists to support, encourage, and equip the worship of our faith community and offer a rich variety of music to the greater community through performances and special events.

The Cathedral Music Ministry features two of the finest instruments in the Southwest. The Great Cathedral Organ, built by the Schantz Organ Company of Orville, Ohio, is a four manual, 71 rank pipe organ, designed in the American Classic style of the famed Aeolian-Skinner organs. The Cathedral piano is a hand crafted B√∂sendorfer concert grand from Vienna, Austria. Both instruments are in high demand by performers from across the nation.

The Cathedral is blessed and thankful to have four exceptional choirs. The Cathedral Choir, the Women's Ensemble, the Men's Ensemble, and The Cathedral Choristers (children's choir) all add a beautiful dimension to our worship life. The Cathedral Choir regularly presents choral masterworks to the delight of Phoenix area audiences.

Our Olney Room serves as the Cathedral's parish hall. Located at the bottom floor of Cathedral House, this bright and airy gallery space features rotating art exhibits each month sponsored by the Cathedral Center for the Arts.

Trinity Cathedral is pleased to support the Cathedral Center for the Arts (CCA) - a distinct non-profit organization that works closely with the Cathedral. CCA is the presenting organization for nearly all of the concerts hosted at Trinity Cathedral.

For more information on our offerings of music and arts at the Cathedral, write to Canon Musician Erik Goldstrom at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or (602) 254-7126 ext. 313.

Announcing Trinity Episcopal Cathedral's newly named Organist/Choirmaster

A native of the Chicago area, Erik W. Goldstrom has been selected as the new Organist/Choirmaster for Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Phoenix, AZ where he will conduct the cathedral choir and oversee all music programs. Prior to his appointment at Trinity, he was Organist and Choir Director at St. John‚Äôs Pro Cathedral (Episcopal) in Los Angeles, CA. He was also Organist/Choirmaster at St. James Parish in Wilmington, NC, where he conducted the parish choir, coordinated the arts series, and restructured the children‚Äôs choir program. During his tenure he formed the St. James Consort, a choral group dedicated to the performance of unaccompanied vocal chamber music, and was a board member of Creative Wilmington, an arts council cooperative for the New Hanover county area. He has served parishes in Illinois, Texas, California and Indiana, where he was the assistant at Christ Church Cathedral, Indianapolis.

Erik holds degrees from Northwestern University (summa cum laude), Southern Methodist University (where he was awarded the Dora Poteet Barclay Award for Outstanding Organ Performance), Perkins School of Theology (summa cum laude), and Stanford University where he received his Ph.D. in musicology. His teachers of organ performance include Ralph Sunden, Richard Enright, Robert T. Anderson, Kimberly Marshall and Robert Bates.

Erik has performed throughout the United States, UK and Europe, most notably at Lincoln Cathedral, St. George‚Äôs Chapel, Windsor, the Madeleine and the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris. He has also appeared at national conferences sponsored by the American Guild of Organists and the Association of Anglican Musicians. An avid promoter of contemporary music, Erik has both commissioned and premiered works by several notable American composers including Jeffrey Smith, David Jaffe and Frank Ferko. Erik and his partner Michael Garland will relocate from Southern California in early January.

Thank you
to the Organist/Choirmaster
Search Committee.

Peter Lafford
Dr. Lynne Haesler
Allen Kimbrough
David Vance
Dr. Robert Spring
Elizabeth La France
Fay Marcus
Keith Cook
Dr. Kimberly Marshall (Artistic Consultant)
Richard Stewart (Chair)
The Very Rev. W. Nicholas Knisely

The committee has spent countless hours over the last several months reading and reviewing almost 90 resumes from around the world, listening and watching recordings of 21 semi-finalists and most recently, meeting and auditioning three finalists who visited the Cathedral in October and November.

Our most sincere THANK YOU goes to all the members of the committee and their service to the continuing tradition of quality music making at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral.

Last Updated (Thursday, 02 September 2010 11:41)

Labyrinth

Our Labyrinth at Trinity Cathedral

The focal point of our courtyard garden is a paved replica of the Labyrinth of Chartres Cathedral.

Although labyrinths may remind us of the mazes many of us enjoy puzzling over, there is a fundamental difference between the two:

A maze is one-directional, leading you in at one end and out at the other, with false paths and dead ends to confuse you along the way. A labyrinth has only one path, leading to the center, which must be followed out again. A maze is a test of intellect; the labyrinth, a spiritual journey.

To many, the labyrinth seems like just another fad of New Age spirituality. In fact, the Cathedral staff were amused to find that some of the bricklayers assumed it was supposed to be a landing pad for alien spaceships! In fact, the labyrinth is a tool for meditation that developed during the Middle Ages, a new take on the many, often-forgotten ancient expressions of ‚Äúsacred geometry‚Äù that utilize both form and physical activity to enhance meditation.

Originally built as a symbol of unity and spiritual journey for those who could not make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, today‚Äôs labyrinths are used in as many ways as there are individuals who walk them. Some begin by walking the twists and turns of the path with no expectations, allowing the experience to speak for itself. Others bring a problem they wish to work on, finding that the physical discipline allows the subconscious to bring forward the answers within.

Still others use the labyrinth as a tool for meditation, using a simple phrase like the Jesus Prayer (Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on me, a sinner) to center themselves and listen to the still, small voice of God.

However the individual chooses to approach it, there is no denying that the labyrinth is a powerful metaphor of our human existence and spiritual journey. We begin on a straight line that, in our limited vision, at first appears to go immediately to the center - but then there is a turn! The path seems narrow and may be a struggle to follow; we adjust our steps to it and make the turns carefully - at some time later, however, we may realize that we are no longer uncomfortable, and may even have further streamlined our steps by placing one foot in front of the other.

When we reach a long stretch of path, we can lift our heads and see the ‚Äúbig picture‚Äù, reassuring ourselves that we‚Äôre headed in the right direction and that we will eventually reach our goal. At other times, we must pay strict attention to the path so as not to lose our way. When we reach the center, there is peace and rest; we enjoy the moments and reflect on the journey. Then the pull of the world may be felt, and we know that we must journey outward - yet, the journey is lighter, shorter, as we make our return, because we take with us the peace that passes all understanding.

The labyrinth speaks to all of us in different ways at different times. We hope that you will allow it to speak to you, and often!

Organ

The Great Cathedral Organ is an outstanding example of classic organ building. The organ was installed in 2004 by the Schantz Organ Company of Orville, Ohio and has earned tremendous praise for its rich, inspirational sound.

The sanctuary organ, with 71 ranks playable on four manuals and pedal, offers a vast array of tonal color. Designed in the style of the historic Aeolian-Skinner organs, this instrument is a shining example of the traditional American Classic style of organ building. The sanctuary, with tile floors and high ceilings, is a highly reverberant environment that allows the organ to sing fully into the room.

Complimenting the exceptional tonal resources of the instrument are several notable features of the Great Cathedral Organ: three festive reeds - the Trompette en Chamade, the Resurrection Trumpet, and the Trompette Harmonique; French Horn; Glockenspiel and Glockenstern; 32' Violone on the Great Organ; five 32' ranks in the Pedal.

The Great Cathedral Organ is in constant demand as a performance instrument, with many musical artists featured regularly in concert events. The instrument is also in demand for learning and as such, we are happy to share this glorious pipe organ with the students of the Arizona State University organ department.

For more on our organ (including photos and specifications), click here for the Schantz website.

Last Updated (Saturday, 14 March 2009 05:57)

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