Eleia Bouton: Pipe Organ Prodigy Blooms in Quechee

As if fourteen-year-old Eleia Bouton’s life was not busy enough with six siblings, and home-school studies in foreign language, piano, flute, and ballet. In her “spare time”, she decided to add the pipe organ to her repertoire. Conveniently, she has a pipe organ at her disposal, since her father, Ryan Bouton, is the pastor at The Quechee Church – home to an organ rumored to have been built in the 1880s.

But the organ is not an instrument for the faint of heart. While it is a cousin of the piano – in that they both have keyboards – that’s where the similarity ends. Mastery of the organ requires focus and concentration, and coordination of the fingers, and feet. And practice. Lots of practice.

Eleia Bouton, fourteen-year-old pipe organ prodigy

The Quechee Times had the opportunity to interview Eleia at the Quechee Church, where she graciously played, and she explained her transition from piano to organ. “There are a lot of differences [between the two instruments],” she explained. “The organ requires nuances and technique, so the sound is smooth. The length of time that a key is held is the length of time its sound is produced. A fraction of a second (of pressure on a key) can make a big difference.”

Eleia credits her ballet training with helping her understand that the gracefulness essential to a dancer is also essential to an organist. Moving her feet across the pedals, to play the bass line of music, requires coordination and smoothness to blend seamlessly with the notes played on the two keyboards with her hands, all at the same time.

“It is very much like rubbing your stomach and patting your head at the same time,” explained Eleia’s Quechee-based instructor, Alice Maleski, organist and music director at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Lebanon. “It’s harder than it looks.”

Eleia Bouton at the organ in The Quechee Church

Eleia is essentially playing three instruments at once. Her eyes see the notes on the page, her brain signals right hand soprano, left hand tenor, and feet play bass. Oh, and then there are the stops – doorknob-looking things to the right and left of the keyboards that control the pressurized air through the pipes and determine the quality of the sounds made by each pipe. All these things require seamless timing to produce the unmistakable depth of sound produced by a pipe organ.

Eleia’s musical scores are marked with numbers and hieroglyphs, evidence of practice and study. She has notes for placement of her fingers, notes for expression, louder or softer, and, most critical, notes for her feet that indicate she should press a pedal with her heel or toe. Learning music theory, and to read music, is challenging. Adding a new “language” of instructions for her feet adds another dimension of complexity to the endeavor. Eleia has met each challenge with unwavering confidence.

“Eleia’s progress in one year (since she began lessons) has been amazing,” says Maleski. “She is so far ahead of other students with the same level of training,” she continued. “It is rare to find this combination of natural talent and dedication in an all-around delightful young lady.”

Ice cream night with the Bouton family

Maleski credits Eleia’s parents for providing a home that promotes study and creativity. Her parents, Ryan and Jenny Bouton, are both musical: Ryan plays guitar and sings, while Jenny plays piano and flute. So, it’s understandable that the entire Bouton clan – five girls and two boys – is musical, with enough members for a chamber orchestra or a small marching band! While the marching band concept may be unlikely, it is possible to enjoy Pastor Ryan playing guitar and singing during his Sunday services, and to find Eleia providing the organ accompaniment for selected Sunday hymns or a special prelude before service. You can join them at The Quechee Church on Sundays at 9am.