JONATHAN OLDENGARM

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Organist, harpsichordist, teacher, conductor, arranger and composer Jonathan Oldengarm leads a life of joyous musical learning.

He has recording credits on the ATMA Classique, Klanglogo and Analekta labels, and has appeared with the Montreal and Toronto Symphonies, the BachFest Leipzig and Montreal Bach Festival, and at conventions of the Royal Canadian College of Organists, the American Guild of Organists, and the Organ Historical Society.

Jonathan is Minister of Music and Organist at Toronto’s Metropolitan United Church, where he oversees an extensive musical programme that includes multiple ensembles and two concert series.  He holds degrees from Wilfrid Laurier and McGill Universities, the Fellowship diploma of the Royal Canadian College of Organists, and studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Stuttgart, Germany. From 2008 until 2022 he taught at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University, while serving as Director of Music and Organist at the Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul, Montreal.

Jesus, Lover of My Soul

by Jonathan Oldengarm

SATB a cappella – CP 2347 – duration 4:45

This arrangement was commissioned by Dr. Jean-Sébastien Vallée to commemorate the 130th anniversary of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, founded by A.S. Vogt in 1894. The melody and verse 1 harmonization are Vogt’s own setting of Charles Wesley’s iconic hymn text, penned in 1740. The a cappella setting honours Vogt’s skill as a choir trainer; his singers at Jarvis Street Baptist (where he served from 1888-1906) were renowned for their unaccompanied singing. The fauxbourdon settings of verses 2, 3 and 4 are a tip of the hat to Vogt’s solid training in Leipzig, where he studied under the greats Salomon Jadassohn, Carl Reinecke, Adolf Ruthardt and others.