Dawn

When I was a kid, I stumbled across a copy of “The Great Organ at the Mormon Tabernacle” LP with the wonderful organist, Alexander Schreiner, playing. I was captivated by a number of pieces on the disc and one of them was “Dawn” by Cyril Jenkins.

Cyril Jenkins (1885-1973) was an obscure Welsh composer/conductor who happened to be invited to conduct the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on several occasions. Perhaps it was during one of those visits that Alexander Schreiner became aware of “Dawn” and decided to record it.

This bit of programmatic music from 1922 is definitely a period piece and it requires a symphonic organ, like the Mormon Tabernacle’s Aeolian-Skinner, to elicit the sense of mystery that Jenkins is trying to convey. I have found a similar color palette in the E. M. Skinner organ of Los Angeles’ Immanuel Presbyterian Church, which I have digitally transplanted into another acoustical space.

If you appreciate descriptive music from this era, I hope that you will enjoy this video.