Rod Paton at the organ of Norwich Cathedral

Donald became a large part of my Merchiston life, as I was very much attracted to the sound of the Memorial Hall organ, in particular to a piece he played (possibly at a service) so I wrote down the opening notes of the work and took it to Donald to ask its name.  He was delighted that someone had taken an interest in his playing and insisted on playing the whole piece through for me.  It turned out to be César Franck’s ‘Pièce Héroïque’ and it was not long before I resolved to learn to play this mighty instrument!  As a teenager, my practising was not as diligent as it should have been but I immensely enjoyed playing the instrument and listening to recorded music to gain a better understanding of other instruments and the organ repertoire.

 Donald would also take me along with other organ students (there were a couple of us in the early 1960’s) to evening recitals at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh and then on to a café afterwards for a good feed (at his own expense) and an early piece I heard which still remains my No.1 favourite today was the Reubke Sonata.  Donald would also love playing Brahms on the piano for me and as a non-sportsman a “music lesson” was always a good excuse for not turning up to play rugby on a cold and wet Edinburgh day!

 This all started a lifelong interest in the organ and its music and I eventually became President of the Glasgow Society of Organists in 2005 which was a great honour for me although I have to say it does not reflect my playing ability!

The above picture would never have been possible without Donald’s encouragement and enthusiasm for the organ which rubbed off on me! It was taken at a private playing session at Norwich Cathedral, August 2004.