To be successful in an occupation, one must have the right tools. A carpenter needs weighted hammers, sharp saws, a good screwdriver, and the skills to use each of those tools. An accountant needs calculators, computer programs, and the knowledge to use those tools. The organist must also have the proper tools and the skills and knowledge to use those tools to be successful in her occupation.
The most distinctive tool of the organist’s trade is your footwear. You can always tell an organist by his shoes. Rarely does anyone over the age of four wear black patent leather shoes with cheery ribbon laces other than an organist. This tap shoe is an organist’s favorite pair of shoes! Comfortable, slippery leather sole, inch-high heels, neatly laced with a ribbon through a pair of single-eyelet shoes stays on the organ or travels in your briefcase to destinations to play the organ.
So why are leather-soled shoes with patent leather laces such an important tool for the organist? The organist needs the ability to effortlessly move through the pedalboard with precise notes that span the entire gamut, from smart scale passages to long sustained tones and everything in between. For example, in fugue compositions, an organist’s feet must touch the same fugue theme as all ten fingers. Therefore, nothing should get in the way of your pedal technique.
Comfortable lace-up or buckled shoes are a must for the success of an organist. Shoes should fit snugly and remain in the ties and buckles to make sure that happens. Complicated pedal passages cannot be performed with sloppy slip-ons. For maximum success, the organist should choose her organ shoes carefully and then ensure that those shoes are not used for anything other than sliding on the organ pedals. These shoes should never be worn outdoors or as casual shoes for the house.
Well-designed organ shoes have leather soles that allow the feet to glide on the pedals. Imagine an organist trying to play the pedal passages of Bach’s Fugue in D minor in a pair of rubber-soled athletic shoes. At best, the effort would be clumsy and inarticulate.
Organ shoes with one-inch high heels give the organist the ability to play one-third scales or intervals in a legato manner. Flat-heeled shoes or those with four-inch heels simply inhibit the player’s ability. An organist who can use both heel and toe with both feet successfully plays a complicated repertoire in a more elegant way.
Today, as in everything else, an organist has shoe options. I’ve explored several of those options, cautiously moving away from the traditional black patent leather organ shoe towards slightly quirky pairs. Sometimes my feet have been shod in very elegant silver shoes or gold shoes with a stunning strap style. However, each pair is comfortable, can be tied or fastened, has a leather sole, and a one-inch high heel. These shoes are one of the tools of my trade as an organist. These “magic shoes”, as one of my students calls them, help to make an ordinary person someone different, someone special, someone different from the rest: an organist!