An Evening in Portland

Several weeks ago I completed an on-line opinion survey requested by the Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ, a sophisticated fan club for Portland's municipal pipe organ located in the Merrill Auditorium at City Hall. In exchange for my time I was promised a ticket to one of the organ concerts. Having been a long time fan of the organ and Portland's municipal organist, Ray Cornils, I was excited at the prospect of hearing him play the magnificent instrument once again.


August 31 - I had arranged my work schedule to allow the evening in Portland. I knew the approximate time it would take for me to drive from home to the auditorium. With some on-line research I selected a restaurant within walking distance (Norm's Bar & Grill, touted as the gayest straight establishment in Portland), and using the distance scale on a Google Map I figured I could walk the distance within 15 minutes. It would probably take me 30-45 minutes to eat dinner, I surmised. Therefore, 5 PM would be the approriate time to leave home (OMG, I'm a clone of my friend Larry). Despite a wrong exit from I-295 I parked in a lot near to the auditorium. The temperature was 91-degrees with humidity a liitle above the median. I commenced a hurried walk to the restaurant that turned out to be more uphill than I'd remembered from past walks in the area and arrived on schedule. A chilled glass of Pinot Grigio was a cooling companion for the delicious chicken salad that I had selected from the menu; strips of grilled chicken breast atop a mound of Romaine lettuce sprinkled with crumbled blue cheese and bacon and graced with a nice balsamic vinaigrette dressing. The cost of the meal and beverage, including tax and gratuity was less than $20. I found that there would be time for a more leisurely walk back to the auditorim and a few doors away spoke to one of the restaurant chefs, who was on a smoke break, and praised the salad. A senior gentleman in Monument Square asked me if I knew any good restaurants in the area and, of course, I gave him a glowing recommendation. A little further down the hill at the public library a younger man who was seeking stability from his inebriety against the entrance steps railing beckoned me with a crooked finger to stop and talk. I waved him off with "I don't have time" and continued on my trek arriving at the Merrill at my planned time. Picking up the waiting ticket at the box office I proceeded to the Grand Tier (first balcony) with a seat three rows from the rail in dead center with plenty of time to peruse the concert program as my body cooled to a normal temperature.

The concert: The organ was placed at front center stage with its five ranks of keys flanked by banks of stops facing the audience. The stations of the accompanying Kotzschmar Festival Brass comprised of brass and percussion instrumentalists encircled the organ. The members of the Brass took their places, the lights dimmed and the organist walked on stage. Ray Cornils was dressed in formal attire with a gold totally sequined tux jacket that shimmerd with a sprinkling of reds and greens...and he wore bright red shoes. Looking pretty gay, but I don't think he is; simply a performer. There is something about air forced through pipes that produces a magnificent unique inimitable sound...for me, emotionally thrilling! Cornils had selected a wonderfully diverse collection of music to play including works by the masters; Bach, Elgar, Brahms, Wagner, Franck, Saint-Saens, and others that are not well known to me. After the intermission he approached the organ bench wearing a red totally sequined jacket and, of course, the red shoes. Needless to say, the accompaniment by the Brass added drama and punctuation to the pieces in which they joined playing. A really wonderful experience...and home on schedule before 10 PM!