A WEDDING EXPERIENCE

Weddings at churches are always special and unique. But the one I am writing about was extra special!

It was a wedding of an Indian bridegroom and a bride from the Caribbean.

Everyone was seated and waiting for the bride to arrive. Initially we learnt that there is a 20 minutes delay. Well, that's alright.

The 20 minutes stretched to 30, 40 and 50 minutes, but there was still no bride. After 90 minutes the wake-up call came: the bride is near. And after one hour and forty minutes she arrived indeed. What a joy!

But what did this mean for our patient organist, Klaus Bung?

Klaus played the organ without a break during all this time.

Among the themes and chorales on which he improvised was significantly Bach's 'Sleepers, wake', a voice is calling' ('Wachet auf', ruft uns die Stimme') which refers to the parable of the wise virgins waiting for the bridegroom to arrive. They 'know neither the day nor the hour'. He spiced this up by occasionally inserting the opening fanfare from 'Here comes the bride' and from and bits from Mendelssohn's Wedding March from the "Midsummer Night's Nightmare", which produced smiles or laughter from the waiting congregation.

For the Indian parents, Klaus inserted the tune of the popular Indian evening prayer (aarti), 'Om Jay Jagadishe hare'.

Having so much time at his disposal, Klaus used the opportunity to demonstrate the sounds of the many voices (stops) of our three-manual pipe organ.

Klaus was unflappable and displayed his customary patience and sense of humour.

After the ceremony, the bridegroom and several guests congratulated Klaus and thanked him for his beautiful music and for his patience.

Thank you, Klaus!!

Rt Rev Joachim Kreusel

Hornsey Moravian Church
Priory Road
London
N8 7HR

Summer 2015