THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 26, 1995 TAG: 9502240164
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Close-Up
SOURCE: Rebecca Myers
LENGTH: Long : 125 lines
When Deborah Carr was 8 years old, her father went out to buy a piano - and came home with an organ.
``I remember that my mother was not at all happy that we had an organ because she sent him to get a piano!'' said Carr, music director at Monumental United Methodist Church.
But instead of sending back the organ, Carr and her four siblings took lessons. By age 12, Carr was playing in church.
``And I've been playing in churches ever since,'' the Ohio native said.
Though she never discovered why her father chose the organ over the piano, Carr, now 42, has her hunches.
``I remember when I used to play the organ, that seemed to mean something to him,'' she said of her father, now deceased.
``I guess when he was a child or maybe a little older, he was real moved by the sound of the church organ, so I think that's what he had in mind.''
Of the five children, Carr was the only one who stuck with music. She is a graduate of the Cincinnati Conservatory for Organ Performance and the Westminster Choir College in Princeton, N.J.
Prior to the organ being brought into her home, no one in Carr's family had any formal training in music, she said.
``I don't even know where it comes from,'' Carr said, laughing. ``My husband and I are both musicians and neither one of us has anybody in our backgrounds who has musical experience. I think people are born with talents, and it has nothing to do with their genetics.''
Carr's husband, Lawrence, who has four degrees in music, is an organist and pianist. He works part time as the organist at St. Paul's Catholic Church and works full time for Prudential Insurance.
``In my graduating class, I suppose I'm the only one who's probably making the full-time living in music,'' she said. ``It's a very rare kind of thing.''
Not a day goes by that Carr doesn't hear music in her head.
``It's a wonderful escape,'' she said. ``It never goes away. There's a level, like a brain level, where music is always going on. And if I'm ever nervous about anything, all of a sudden I'm hearing music. So it must be an escape.''
It was the job offer from Monumental United Methodist Church that lured Carr to Portsmouth 15 years ago.
``I wanted to live in Virginia,'' she said. ``I had been to Chincoteague with a friend and saw the shoreline and the ocean, and I was living in upstate New York - where the snow is - and I said, `I think moving south would be a good idea.' ''
Plus Carr had heard great things about the local symphony and the opera.
``It was 1980 when we came here, and a lot of musicians were moving here then,'' she said. ``So the arts became quite a draw to this area . . . and we haven't been sorry.''
At Monumental, Carr started a weeklong music camp for children, held annually in July, and a lunchtime concert series, held the fourth Monday of each month. Because she never has had a problem recruiting volunteer musicians, both programs have been going strong for the last 12 years.
``Musicians work together anywhere,'' she said. ``There is a real spirit of cooperation. It's really a small world in music. And no matter where you go, they're all the same.''
In addition to her work at Monumental Church, Carr is in her fourth season as the conductor of the Virginia Choral Society, a Peninsula-based organization made up of 80 singers from throughout Hampton Roads.
``We're bringing them to Portsmouth,'' she said of the group, which will perform at 8 p.m. March 17 at Trinity Episcopal Church. ``They haven't been to Portsmouth, so we're hoping that the Portsmouth audience will be as excited as the Peninsula audiences.''
Carr's favorite musical instrument is ``the voice.''
``There's nothing more beautiful than the harmonious blending of vocal sounds,'' Carr said. ``Even the organ, which used to be my favorite, can't do what the voice can do.''
Name: Deborah Carr
Nickname: Hilda
Neighborhood: Merrifields
Number of years in Portsmouth: 15
Birthplace: Columbus, Ohio
Birthdate: Feb. 24, 1953
Occupation: Director of Music and Fine Arts, Monumental United Methodist Church; artistic director/conductor, Virginia Choral Society
What other job than your own would you like? I cannot think of any job I'd rather have than the one I have.
Marital Status: Married 18 1/2 years
Children: None
Fondest childhood memory: Designing cactus gardens for my grandfather's floral business
First concert: New York City Opera presenting ``La Boheme'' in Columbus, Ohio, in 1964 (sixth-grade class)
What song or book title best describes your life? ``Great Expectations'' by Charles Dickens
If you won the lottery, what's the very first thing you'd buy? Prudential annuity plan
If you could trade places for just one day with anyone in the world, who would it be and why? I would trade places with a 5-year-old child and live firsthand the feelings of wonder, joy and amazement of our world.
Biggest accomplishment: Designing and overseeing the installation of our 32-rank Casavant pipe organ at Monumental Church
Most embarrassing moment: Inviting a friend to be my guest for lunch and discovering - as the bill arrives - that I have no money
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? I would be more patient. I also would like to be taller.
Perfect way to spend the day: Sleep late, read great literature for a couple of hours and stroll outside in any kind of natural setting while listening to great classical music
I can't resist: Buying new rose bushes each spring
Favorite Portsmouth restaurant: Amory's Wharf
Favorite Portsmouth hangout: Sotto Voce
Biggest problem facing Portsmouth: Seeing itself as a provincial city rather than a part of a greater Tidewater area
If you had three wishes for Portsmouth, what would they be?
Leadership would really try to set aside racial differences for the greater good
Olde Towne would become the graphic arts center of Tidewater
The strengths of Portsmouth be marketed so Tidewater knows how great we are
Other than its small-town atmosphere, what do you like about living in Portsmouth? The trees were here before the sidewalks. It makes for a sense of solidity. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MARK MITCHELL
by CNB