When Elizabethtown Church of the Brethren hosts organist Abbie Wood, organizers want audiences to experience a blend of music and fellowship.

"People attend musical events for a variety of reasons," said Joe Detrick, chair of the concert committee. "Our hope is to advance the musical arts within our community by bringing people together to be spiritually and emotionally enriched by music - providing a common denominator of a unique shared experience."

Wood will perform at the church, 777 S. Mount Joy St., Elizabethtown, at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 13.

A graduate student of organ performance at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, Wood is also employed as organ scholar for Church of the Redeemer in Baltimore. She recently graduated summa cum laude from Syracuse University, obtaining a bachelor of music in organ performance as well as a minor in jazz studies. In addition to performing recitals in Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Georgia and South Carolina, Wood has collaborated with brass ensembles, choirs and most recently the National Orchestra Institute in Washington, D.C. She has won multiple awards over her years studying the organ, most notably being named a member of the "20 Under 30" Class of 2025 by The Diapason, an international journal and magazine devoted to the pipe organ as well as other church music and instruments.

"Abbie will be performing pieces by Marcel Dupre, Maurice Durufle, Herbert Howells, J. S. Bach, Francois Couperin, Charles-Marie Widor, Edvard Grieg and Liv-Benedicte Bjorneboe," Detrick said.

It won't be Wood's first time performing at the church.

"Our church's concert committee is always searching for quality musicians - brass, organ, string quartets, choral ensembles - to provide inspiring concerts for our congregation, the neighborhood and the greater Elizabethtown area," Detrick remarked. "This upcoming concert is a return engagement for professional organist Abbie Wood. Our community was so delighted with her June 2024 concert that our committee decided to invite her back."

All of the church's concerts are family-friendly, and everyone is welcome, he said.

"The musicians we engage, like Ms. Wood, are professional persons who have excelled in their craft providing a musically delightful program that will inspire all who attend," he added. "Those who attend can expect to be delightfully entertained and leave the concert with a renewed sense of awe and wonder at how music touches the heart and soul. For some, it is a healing blessing."

All of the church's concerts are free and open to the public. The concert will also be live-streamed and available on YouTube following the performance.

For more information, visit http://www.etowncob.org.