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Brenda Portman is a talented young organist whose repertoire ranges from the great "masters" such as Bach, Mendelssohn, Dupré, and Vierne to contemporary composers like Dan Locklair and Pamela Decker. She has been noted for her ability to connect with audiences through programming unique and varied music, giving simple and effective commentaries, and helping non-organists to appreciate the organ by including "humorous" music and pedal features. In recent years she has met with great success in competitions, having won First Place in the Albert Schweitzer Organ Competition in Wethersfield, CT (2006), the Arthur Poister Organ Competition in Syracuse, NY (2007), and the Bank District British/American Organ Competition in London, England (2009). She is currently a semifinalist in the AGO National Young Artist Competition in Organ Performance (2010) and was a finalist in the Fort Wayne National Organ-Playing Competition (2010).
Brenda is the Resident Organist at Hyde Park Community United Methodist Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she plays for three Sunday morning services, accompanies the Wesley Choir and Cathedral Choir, and is the Executive Director of the Organ Concert Series. Previously she was the organist at First Presbyterian
Church of Flint, Michigan and the dean of the Flint chapter of the American Guild of Organists. Through her role in the Flint AGO, Brenda was instrumental in bringing several educational programs to Flint that allowed young schoolchildren to meet the King of Instruments with an entertaining and hands-on approach.
In 2008, Brenda completed a recording entitled "All Might and Majesty": organ music of Edwin T. Childs, performed on the Schantz organ at College Church in Wheaton, IL. The recording was released in February 2009 and is available at www.brendaportman.com. Selections from the album have been featured on American Public Media's weekly radio program PipedreamsŪ.
Brenda began studying piano at age 4 and began organ in high school. She received the Bachelor of Music Education degree from Wheaton College in 2002, and the Master of Music degree in church music and organ performance from Northwestern University in 2003. She has studied with John Behnke, Edward Zimmerman, Douglas Cleveland, and Marilyn Mason. She lives in Cincinnati with her husband Patrick and son Micah.
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