The Adventures of Melodia and Major Octave, Volume 2: A Sticky Tracker. (Organ).

The Adventures of Melodia and Major Octave, Volume 2: A Sticky Tracker, music by Alfred V. Fedak, drawings by Kitty Fischer, edited by Wayne Leupold. Wayne Leupold Editions (8510 Triad Dr., Colfax, NC 27235), 2001. 20pp., $7. Easy.

Much has been written about the decline of the organ in recent years, but it paradoxically remains a source of captivating appeal to the very young, who are often fascinated by its size and sound. While organ pedagogy has been curiously reticent to seize the implications of such a situation, veteran music editor and publisher Wayne Leupold continues to seek creative ways to capitalize on it, most recently through an entertaining multi-volume series of materials entitled The Adventures of Melodia and Major Octave.

Designed as a coloring book for preschool through lower elementary ages, each volume introduces students to the organ through the pursuits of two resourceful mice whose travels bring them into contact with all sorts of wonderful musical experiences involving the instrument. Volume 1, entitled A Leak In The Reservoir, was previously released; a third volume is slated for release in mid-2002.

In Volume 2, A Sticky Tracker, Melodia and Major Octave learn how a tracker organ is built and save the day for a visiting church organ committee when they rescue a lost pair of eyeglasses lodged beneath the organ pipes. Pictures and accompanying verse occupy most of each page, but a short musical miniature (four measures), played by teacher or adult, appears below to reinforce the visual story. Drawings, although sometimes crowding the page, are large and attractively presented, giving appropriate age-level introduction to pipe names, families of pipes, elements of design and even the tools in Uncle Untersatz's Toot 'n Flute Organ Company.

Although music for the young organist is not included in this series, its practical approach offers a delightful introduction to the instrument and can be used with or without supplemental materials. AS computers and similar technological innovations already have surrounded today's students, even at a young age, the instrument presented on these pages is a fascinating source of sights and sounds; organ crawls or other "hands-on" experiences could easily follow. The critical connection between instrument and music is simply presented and effectively conveyed, making this volume a welcome resource in the attraction and retention of the young organist. Reviewed by Karrin Ford, Waco, Texas.