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Dgw At The Rfh


AJJ

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The acoustic may be as dead as a doornail, the recording very 'close' but Dame Gillian and Priory seem to have done it again. The atmosphere is amazing and as expected the playing superb - try it!

 

AJJ

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Do you mean DGW's newly released / to be released recording of Ives, Dandrieu et al?  The good people at the Organ Hysterical - oops, Historical - Society haven't made searching for it easy, as they refer to it as being at the RAH ...

 

Rgds,

MJF

 

Yes PRCD 866 Gillian Weir On Stage at the Royal Festival Hall, London. The Sleeve Photo is very becoming too even if theLady does seem to be wearing a wedding dress so full are the skirts.

 

Anyone out there remember the LP "Organ in Sanity and Madness" recorded at the centenary celebrations of the RCO in 1966 ? GW performed a piece called Miniconcerto wearing what the notes stated to be a very short mini skirt. Since I was not at the concert I would not know. Anyone prepared to own up to being able to recall events of 40 years ago ?

 

Brian Childs

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The acoustic may be as dead as a doornail, the recording very 'close' but Dame Gillian and Priory seem to have done it again. The atmosphere is amazing and as expected the playing superb - try it!

 

AJJ

 

 

Heartily endorsed: a fine showcase for this beleaguered instrument, and for GW.

 

Actually, I get the impression that this was not closely recorded, but rather from the back of the hall: the blend is much better than from the stalls or stage, the cornet is far less agressive and there's a hint of bloom to the sound.

 

The recording demonstrates to my ears (as does this organ in recital) that the H&H excels in Reger, and other complex or contrapuntal music, where you actually get to hear the notes. (Also great for Messiaen, tho' others will disagree.) The Grison (for example) sounds fine, but its rhetorical flourishes are rather wasted in the RFH non-acoustic.

 

It will be fascinating to compare this disc with the sound of the resurrected organ in 2007.

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I played this CD all the way through last night and have to admit that DGW and Priory have got a winner here. I am not one of DGW's greatest fans, as previous postings here testify, but on this disc by and I large she passes with flying colours.

 

As with the Priory/RAH disc (the Cook Fanfare), there is one lemon - the Grison Toccata. IMHO the great lady just doesn't quite play it fast enough or give it the real sense of elan that I think it needs (Jane Parker-Smith on her recording at Salisbury really nails it). Also unless my ears deceived me, something goes seriously amiss about halfway through. DGW may have simply been doing a Simon Rattle and highlighting a line in the score not usually heard.

 

Otherwise, its a splendid CD and really makes one wonder why no else has been making recordings on it. A missed opportunity as who knows what we will end up with when the RFH reopens next year.

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Anyone prepared to own up to being able to recall events of 40 years ago ?

 

Yes, I distinctly remember my first year at Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School. One episode that remains etched on my memory was the occasion on which one of my classmates (a lad answering to the soubriquet "Pod") ate a considerable quantity of raw garlic in the moments before afternoon registration.

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GW performed a piece called Miniconcerto wearing what the notes stated to be a very short mini skirt. Since I was not at the concert I would not know. Anyone prepared to own up to being able to recall events of 40 years ago ?

 

Brian Childs

 

As I recall, the skirt was quite short, but we didn't see much of it. (as it were) . She didn't walk to the console but arrived reclining on a litter carried by four "slaves" while someone else played "The arrival of the queen of sheba". The Mini concerto was in fact a concerto grosso for organ and an unspecified number of "tin" whistles, played by members of the audience. The whistle part was one short phrase repeated several times. It was nine repeated notes, to the rythm generated by saying "Mi-ni _ con-cer-to ev - 'ry - one plays ". The event was very well attended, and there were not enough whistles for everyone to play - but a good time was had by all.

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Yes, I distinctly remember my first year at Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School.  One episode that remains etched on my memory was the occasion on which one of my classmates (a lad answering to the soubriquet "Pod") ate a considerable quantity of raw garlic in the moments before afternoon registration.

 

 

But what happened next ? Whom did he breathe on ? You, the teacher, the school nurse and with what subsequent result ? What impact did this have on your decision to become an organist, if any ? Would you say this was a life changing moment, for example, because it put you off/ irrevocably addicted you to all things French thereafter ?

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The Mini concerto was in fact a concerto grosso for organ and an unspecified number of "tin" whistles, played by members of the audience.  The whistle part was one short phrase repeated several times.  It was nine repeated notes, to the rythm generated by saying "Mi-ni _  con-cer-to ev - 'ry - one plays ".  The event was very well attended, and there were not enough whistles for everyone to play - but a good time was had by all.
The Mini Concerto was by John McCabe, wasn't it? I wasn't there myself, but I remember hearing extracts, including McCabe's piece, on the radio. This, of course, was in the days when they played organ music fairly regularly on Radio 3 - or the "Third Programme" as it probably was then. I seem to remember that the broadcast was pretty much the same as the LP that was issued (perhaps that was exactly what they played). Other highlights for me were Lemmens's Storm and Bossi's Étude Symphonique. I've never understood why the Bossi didn't catch on more than it did with English organists - at least I've hardly ever heard of anyone playing it. It's easy listening for an audience, entertaining to watch if you've got a video screen and not half as difficult as it looks or sounds.

 

For those who don't know this piece, there are a few mp3s of it on the web:

http://www.musicteachers.co.uk/journal/ind...e=bowyer&page=4

http://dseverin.club.fr/mp3.htm

http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/details/66978.asp (nice interpretation, but you can keep the organ)

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