The George Eastman Museum has announced the official release of Eastman’s Favorites, a new album of George Eastman’s most beloved songs performed on his original Aeolian pipe organ—recorded live in the historic mansion. The 27 tracks were performed by Eastman Museum resident organist Joe Blackburn. The album will be available for purchase online and in the Museum Store for $20 (including tax) with all proceeds benefiting the George Eastman Museum.
Following the success of last winter’s An Eastman Christmas album, Eastman’s Favorites offers a catalogue of popular songs, opera arias, waltzes and dance tunes, and classical music segments that were popular around the turn of the last century. The album includes a diverse playlist of Eastman’s favorites, including “Ave Maria” (1825), “Dreams” (1862), “Hello, Ma Baby” (1899), “Bethena” (1905), “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” (1908), and “The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise” (1919).
“Eastman’s eclectic taste in music is clear from the range in this collection,” said Jack Garner, album co-producer and George Eastman Museum trustee. “Nearly all of the tracks have stories to tell, allowing listeners a unique look into a different side of George Eastman.”
The album was recorded live in Eastman’s historic mansion on the three-story, 6,037-pipe Aeolian pipe organ. Joe Blackburn, who performs all of the selections on the album, trained at the Eastman School of Music and has been a volunteer organist at the museum for thirteen years. The album was produced by Jack and Bonnie Garner, with recording and mastering by Antonio H. Guerrero. The album will be available for purchase as a CD online and in the Museum Store for $20 (including tax) with all proceeds benefiting the George Eastman Museum.
For more information about the Aeolian pipe organ at 900 East Avenue, visit eastman.org/aeolian-pipe-organ.
About the George Eastman Museum
Founded in 1947, the George Eastman Museum is the world’s oldest photography museum and one of the largest film archives in the United States, located on the historic Rochester estate of entrepreneur and philanthropist George Eastman, the pioneer of popular photography. Its holdings comprise more than 400,000 photographs, 28,000 motion picture films, the world’s preeminent collection of photographic and cinematographic technology, one of the leading libraries of books related to photography and cinema, and extensive holdings of documents and other objects related to George Eastman. As a research and teaching institution, the Eastman Museum has an active publishing program and, through its two joint master’s degree programs with the University of Rochester, makes critical contributions to the fields of film preservation and of photographic preservation and collection management. For more information, visit eastman.org.
