After more than 16 years as a staple at Juneau’s State Office Building, a local musician has played his last theater organ concert. In a holiday-themed show on Friday, T.J. Duffy said goodbye to a packed audience filled with longtime listeners and soon-to-be regulars.
A crowd of people gathered in the State Office Building on a frigid afternoon. Sunshine streamed through windows as they listened. Some sang along with classic Christmas carols performed on a nearly century-old Kimball theater organ.
T.J. Duffy manned the keys of the massive organ, using his hands and feet to control pedals that play various pipes, wind instruments and drums behind a nearby glass display case. Duffy moved to Juneau in 2008 but heard about the rare organ even before arriving. He said he had to clear a couple of hoops before the state approved him to perform.
“I contacted the State Museum, who owned it, and they had to interview me and vet me to make sure, you know, that I knew what I was doing, because it is a museum piece. And they said,’ Sure, go ahead,’” he said.
In 2009, Duffy started joining another organist, J. Allen MacKinnon, in performing on Fridays at noon. He kept it up for more than 16 years.
He said some of the younger audience members are one of his favorite parts of performing.
“I used to have what I called my cult following of preschoolers,” he said. “They would come over here, they’d take their jackets and their boots off, they’d eat their peanut butter and jelly, and then they would get up and dance. So I would specifically save my danceable music for when they were ready to dance. And then they would rush the organ.”
After concerts, Duffy typically gave what he calls an “organ tour,” where he let children check out the instrument and play a few notes. Friday’s concert was no different. He said it’s a way to get them interested in music.
“The State Museum prefers I don’t, but I’m a big believer that if you want your kids to be musicians, you have to put musical instruments in their hand and take them to musical events,” Duffy said. “Everybody says, ‘How can I get my kid interested in piano?’ Get him a piano. Let him play it, let him see people playing it.”
Runa Curry went to the concert with her mom. It was a first for both of them.
“I like the sounds because, and then, you look in the case and there’s all, there’s like drums that go with it too,” Runa said. “There’s so many different, like, instruments that go with the organ.’
She said she’s sad that it’s Duffy’s last performance but wants to come back for future concerts with other musicians.
Duffy said his last concert coincides with his retirement from the state’s law department. The years have also taken their toll.
“It’s affected my hearing and my abilities are decreasing, so no more public,” he said.
There are still two other performers who will continue the Friday concerts, but it’s unclear how much longer that will go on. The organ is near the end of its usable life, and it would cost $250,000 to ship it to Portland, Oregon for repairs.
On top of that, Duffy said it’s hard to get young people in Juneau to play the organ.
“There’s not that many organs in Juneau. Organists are a dying breed. AI starts manufacturing music now, you know?” he said. “So this organ may very well be in its final days. And I want everybody to know that.”
Now he hopes to leave the state and pursue another interest.
“I’m actually hoping to move to Las Vegas this summer and check out professional poker,” Duffy said. “I love playing poker. That’s my other passion, next to music.”