FRIENDS OF MUSIC Gloria Dei Lutheran Church 2113 Ravenna St., Hudson, Ohio Wednesday Evening, April 29th, 2026 at Seven Thirty O’clock
PROGRAM Sonata in C, Hob.XVI:50 Franz Joseph Haydn Allegro (1732-1809) Adagio Allegro molto Susan Groggs, piano
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Tango Paul Schoenfeld (From Four Souvenirs) (1947-2024) La Cumparsita Gerardo Matos Rodriguez (1897-1948) Bordel-1900 Astor Piazzolla From Histoire Du Tango (1921-1992) Michelle Worthing, flute & Joseph Licitri, piano
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Fanfare and Celebration Pamela Robson
Song Without Words Charles Demorest (1881-1950) Pasticcio from Pieces Jean Langlais (1907-1991) Prelude, Fugue and Chaconne Deitrich Buxtehude (1637-1707) Ralph Morrison, organ
MEET TONIGHT’S PERFORMERS
SUSAN GROGGS began piano lessons at 5 years old and has been in love with the instrument ever since. In addition to classical piano, Susan as an avid jazz pianist with the University of Akron Jazz ensemble as well as a her own jazz trio. For many years she has been a church musician. In 2022 she began attending The University of Akron pursuing a B.M. in Piano Performance. She is scheduled to graduate this May. Her teachers have included Joseph Licitri, Philip Thomson and Dr. Mayumi Kikuchi.
MICHELLE WORTHING studied flute with Maurice Sharp of the Cleveland Orchestra and Russell Friedewald at Michigan State University. While in Michigan she played in the Lansing Symphony. She holds a Master of Music degree in flute performance and a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education, both from Kent State University. Michelle retired from the Hudson Public Schools after teaching instrumental music for 32 years. She received the Distinguished Alumna Award for Career Achievement in Music Education from Kent State, and the Professional Fraternity Association’s Outstanding Volunteer Award. Michelle sits on the board of trustees for the Delta Omicron Foundation, volunteers for The Red Cross and makes Linus blankets for Akron Children’s Hospital. She is the author of a college text, Elements of Music. She also presents programs for all ages on hearing loss and how to prevent it.
JOSEPH LICITRI received his B.M. and M.M. degrees from Kent State University with a major in Piano Performance. He has performed in recital both as soloist and in collaboration throughout Northeast Ohio. His teachers included Florence Willey, Ruth Laredo, Earl Kelly, Margaret Baxtresser, Fred Schoettler, Olga Kuehl and Clive Lythgoe. Currently, he is teaching privately in Kent/Stow, his students are active in Ohio Music Teachers Association events, Ohio Federation Festivals, and OMEA State Solo and Ensemble Contest. He has served as Chairman for the Middle East District of the Ohio Music Teachers Association. He currently serves as president and program Chairman for TheFriends of Music as well as pianist for the Sawyerwood Global Methodist Church.
RALPH MORRISON is Organist and Handbell Choir Director at Zion United Church of Christ in North Canton, where he has served since 1991. He has held similar positions at Calvary Presbyterian Church in Canton, and Central Presbyterian Church in Massillon. Mr. Morrison holds B.S. and M.A. degrees in music from the University of Akron, where he studied flute with Raymond DeMattia, William Hebert, and John Rautenberg, and organ with Dr. Farley Hutchins and Robert Quade. He has taught flute at the College of Wooster, Malone College, and the University of Akron. He completed a tenure of over 40 seasons, playing flute and piccolo with the Akron Symphony Orchestra. Ralph is a member of the American Guild of Organists and has twice served as Dean of the Canton Chapter. PROGRAM NOTES by Ralph Morrison Fanfare and Celebration Ms. Robison, a Missouri resident, is a second-place winner in the Short Composition category of the American Guild of Organists’ 2026 Women Composer Sunday Organ Composition Competition. The music, which incorporates the tune, Hymn to Joy, was printed in the February, 2026, AGO Magazine
Song Without Words Charles H. (Charles Henry) Demorest, 1881-1950. This short organ piece was printed in “The Organ Portfolio,” 1942 by the Lorenz Publishing Company. It begins and ends with a lyrical melody, with a middle section, Allegretto, having a livelier tempo with a more detached style, marked, “leggiero” (lightly.)
Pasticcio from Ten Pieces "Pasticcio” is the Italian word for "mess" or "hotchpotch." It also is a "dramatic work or sacred vocal work whose parts have been borrowed, new texts may have been written, or works by various composers combined." When asked what he meant by the title, Langlais explained, "A pasticcio is a composition derived from other works."
Prelude, Fugue and Chaconne Deitrich Buxtehude’s influence on the young Johann Sebastian Bach is well documented. Buxtehude (pronounced: Bux - teh - HOO - deh,) begins the Prelude with a fanfare-like pedal solo and continues in a cheerful C Major tonality throughout the Fugue and Chaconne. Listen for the pedal note pattern which repeats over and over (seven times) in the Chaconne.
