19th Annual Organ Concert Series

2025 Concerts

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IN PERSON & VIA LIVESTREAM

Join us in person at Westwood UMC or via YouTube livestream for four 60-minute concerts performed on the landmark Shaffer Memorial Organ. FREE ADMISSION.
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Sunday, June 15th (3pm)
PETER FENNEMA
Westwood United Methodist Church (Los Angeles, CA)
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Sunday, June 29th (3pm)
EMMA WHITTEN
Christ Cathedral (Garden Grove, CA)
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Sunday, June 29th (3pm)
JASON KLEIN-MENDOZA
St. James Episcopal Church (South Pasadena, CA)
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LOCATION
Westwood Church – map
10497 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90024
310.474.4511

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FREE ADMISSION & FREE PARKING: Abundant secure parking is available for all events at the church below Belmont Village, the building east of the sanctuary. From Wilshire Blvd., use the driveway by the main steps in front of the sanctuary and proceed under the overhang to the underground parking lot. Please observe the signs that identify which spaces are for church use. After parking, proceed to the stairwell and elevator located at the church end (west end) of the parking structure.

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PREVIOUS CONCERT SERIES

14th Annual – 15th Annual – 16th Annual – 17th Annual – 18th Annual

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PETER FENNEMA

June 15, 2025 (3pm)
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BIO: Peter Fennema studied piano from a young age with notable teachers including concert pianist Michel Block (Indiana University), Antoinette Perry (privately), and most recently Dr. Kirill Gliadkovsky (Saddleback College). He began organ lessons at the age of twelve and, as a student of Cherry Rhodes and Ladd Thomas, he received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in organ performance from the University of Southern California. He was twice named Outstanding Graduate by the faculty of the USC School of Music.
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Peter is the recipient of numerous organ playing awards and scholarships, including the Martha Farr and Hunter Mead competitions (Pasadena AGO), the Wanda Edmiston Competition (San Diego), the Young Artist Award (LA AGO), the David Lennox Smith Memorial Award, a Los Angeles Rotary scholarship, and several USC scholarships. Peter was one of nine national finalists at the American Guild of Organists (“AGO”) National Competition in Washington, D.C. His recording there of the formidable Octavesetude by Jeanne Demessieux has been broadcast on American Public Media’s PIPEDREAMS program several times. He has presented numerous solo concerts and has been a featured organist for the William Hall Chorale and the Carmel Bach Festival. Peter has held positions at several churches in the Los Angeles area, including First Lutheran Church (Glendale), All Saints Episcopal Church (Pasadena), Pasadena Presbyterian Church, St. James Episcopal Church (South Pasadena), and St. Matthias Episcopal Church (Whittier). Most recently, Peter has played regularly at Glendale First United Methodist Church where he has been the exclusive substitute for Dr. Ladd Thomas. Peter was previously organist at Westwood United Methodist Church, a position he held for seven years and has gratefully returned to in 2024.
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For many years, Peter maintained a parallel career in information technology, focusing primarily on systems for human resources, benefits, and payroll. He has recently transitioned back to full-time music endeavors which include organ playing and piano studies. He also designs and maintains websites and communication materials for non-profit organizations.

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EMMA WHITTEN

June 29, 2025 (3pm)
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BIO: Emma Whitten is an accomplished organist specializing in early Baroque and contemporary repertoire. She performs across the United States and internationally, captivating audiences and introducing the organ to new listeners. Her programs are engaging and diverse, drawing from an extensive repertoire spanning eight centuries of organ music.
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Dr. Whitten serves as Associate Organist at Christ Cathedral (formerly Crystal Cathedral) in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange County, California. The Cathedral campus is home to two landmark instruments, the five-manual Hazel Wright Organ in the Cathedral and the four-manual Fred Swann Organ in the Arboretum. As Associate Organist, Emma plays for major liturgies at the Cathedral and accompanies the Diocesan Choir. In September 2022, she released her debut recording, Hazel Is Back! (Gothic Records 49338), in celebration of the Hazel Wright Organ’s recent restoration. Emma also acts as Director of Music at Community Church Congregational in Corona del Mar, California. In Fall 2022, she joined the faculty of Concordia University in Irvine, where she currently serves as Senior Adjunct Professor of Organ and Church Music, teaching courses in music history, church music, and organ performance.
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Performance venues and festivals include the Dedication Year of the Hazel Wright Organ, Cathedral of St. John the Divine (NYC), Los Angeles Presidents’ Day Organ Festival, St. Paul’s Cathedral (San Diego, CA), Catalina Organ Festival (Tucson, AZ), Saints Simon & Jude Cathedral (Phoenix, AZ), University of Arizona, Saint Mary’s Basilica (Phoenix, AZ), and University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Emma has performed for American Guild of Organists chapters including Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County, Palomar, Central Arizona, and Knoxville. Internationally, Emma has performed on historic organs in Germany, Spain, Colombia, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. She particularly promotes the work of women composers, including performances of major works by Pamela Decker at the University of Arizona and Arizona State University, as well as leading workshops on women composers for chapters of the American Guild of Organists.
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Emma maintains a private teaching studio in Oceanside, California where she works with organists of all ages, from beginning students to professionals. She regularly acts as an adjudicator for scholarship auditions and competitions including the AGO/Quimby Regional Competitions for Young Organists and the AGO certification programs. She has served as both faculty and featured performer for Pipe Organ Encounters, week-long educational workshops for high school organists.
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​In December 2014, Emma graduated with her D.M.A. in Organ Performance from Arizona State University, where she studied with Kimberly Marshall. Her doctoral dissertation, entitled “Synthesizing Styles: International Influence on Organ Music in Restoration England,” explores French and Italian musical elements in the organ works of Matthew Locke, John Blow, and Henry Purcell. In 2011, Emma received her Masters of Music degree from the University of Kansas under Michael Bauer, and in 2009 she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Notre Dame, where she studied organ with Craig Cramer. Her previous teachers include László Attila Almásy of the Bartók Conservatory in Budapest and John Brock of the University of Tennessee.

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JASON KLEIN-MENDOZA

July 13, 2025 (3pm)
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BIO: Jason Klein-Mendoza is a Los Angeles Based organist, conductor and teacher. He currently serves as Organist at St. James Episcopal Church in South Pasadena, CA and has served parishes in Chicago, New Jersey and California. Most recently, he served as Associate Director of Music at All Saints’ Parish in Beverly Hills, CA. He was the featured organist on the All Saints’ Choir’s most recent recording, “For All The Saints’: Anthems, Hymns and Motets,” which was released on the Gothic label.
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He has performed throughout the United States and Canada, notably at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and a Segerstrom Hall in Costa Mesa, CA. Additionally, he has played at Canterbury, Salisbury, St. Paul’s and Wells Cathedrals in the UK. From a family of educators, he is committed to the development of young musicians and has served as a faculty member for two Pipe Organ Encounters of the American Guild of Organists.
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He studied Organ, Church Music and Conducting at Concordia University in River Forest, Northwestern University, and the Thornton School of Music of the University of Southern California. He has studied organ with David Christiansen, Margaret McElwain Kemper, David Craighead and Ladd Thomas and his earliest organ studies were with Fred Becker of Crystal Lake, IL. In addition to the standard organ repertoire, he has a keen interest in forgotten gems for the organ and is an avid supporter of new music for the organ.

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