HarmonicsV

I'm not sure that this is particularly secret - I've heard this, & have no connection to the South Coast church dedicated to the Prince of Apostles or the alma mater of Ralph Downes... Unless I'm mistaken, in which case apologies...

I'm not sure these kind of economic arguments really help - are you suggesting we don't embark on any new cultural projects until world poverty is eradicated? If new organs aren't commissioned, then organ-building firms will go bust, won't they? I'm more worried by the prospect of another bland new chamade-ridden Euro organ cropping up in the UK. A good Fisk, however, would be lovely... ;-)

The Antiphonal Organ is really an orgue de choeur to accompany the monks. The main organ has of course to be able to accompany hearty congregational singing on a daily basis. Surely the size of the building is at least part of the reason for the (effective) use of extension? There are many more huge organs in smaller rooms than this... How about your average Oxbridge chapel or City of London church?

[Also on this organ, the Hohl Flute is why I hate Hohl Flutes, and the Large Open on the Great is far too big to build even a chorus to mixture on - it just dominates everything. I tend to use it as one might (very occasionally!!!!) add the Tuba to full organ. But surely the Edwardian (and later) Large Open wasn't designed as the basis for a chorus - that was the function of the Small Diapason (or number two). Rather like the tuba, the Large Open was for special effects - or huge congregations!

Another spectacular example is the concert hall organ at Sydney Opera House: http://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/uploadedFi...sGrandOrgan.pdf I've only heard this instrument in an album of lollipops recorded by Peter Hurford in the 80s. Does anyone know how this organ handles/sounds in the flesh?

Absolutely - a similar instrument of the same vintage; it's in er... St Pancras New Church.

How nice to be remembered - especially given my oft ill-tempered & uninformed opinions. I should like to confirm that my composition is very definitely 10.17.19.b21.22, and could therefore add some considerable value to the imaginative scheme above...

A late organ built by our hosts had a couple of synthetic 'reeds' on the Choir (I think the Clarinet as well as the Musette): http://npor.rcm.ac.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?...ec_index=N17674 By the time I knew this instrument it was showing signs of wear and tear, so I couldn't really give any objective assessment of these stops...

Bm on a theme of Corelli - but I had to google!

This is gorgeous isn't it - I have a weakness for Italian Bach myself... I've heard it played in a variety of ways, but imho it sounds fab on a singing 8' principal - particularly in unequal temperament!

I'm delighted St Michael's has received this grant. It's an instrument which sounds glorious in this acoustic, and is part of a splendid tradition. The 1926 instrument would have been well known from Harold Darke's broadcasts, of course, and although not in the aesthetic of the new Oxford instrument mentioned above, will have a valid stylistic integrity of its own. Making fundraising applications is quite an art, and best done by professionals - this is where many worthy projects fail. Bodies like the HLF have varying resources and priorities in different years, and also have to balance their awards - there is no 'absolute' standard. I would also suggest that an Oxford college (to respond again to the comparison made) has rather more resources/fundraising potential of its own at hand than a small City parish? Why the sour grapes - can't we just be glad that this money is going to an organ project...?

Without a doubt - what could be more genuinely supportive than a party? I was referring to a certain frosty snobbery exhibited by 'so-called supporters'...

I heard CC's recital at the RAH last year, as well as John Scott's the following evening. Each, in their own way, was superb. CC has, without doubt, the most dazzling technique I have ever seen. I took my youngest sister, who I've dragged along to many a dreary recital over the last thirty years. She loved it. As to musicianship, CC's improvisation on TV themes (which I was dreading) was the finest improvisation I've ever heard. What a change from the sub-Cochereau-esque offerings we get from august Frenchmen these days! I think part of what non-organists find off-putting about the instrument can be the organ's so-called 'supporters'...

A great day! I'll be going to this: http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/music/pro...y-concert-17948

Why? There are plenty of better ways of having 'fun', surely...? What's wrong with 'serious', 'profound', 'beautiful', etc.

Having just heard the Royal Albert Hall organ last week (John Scott), one realises how superior St Pauls is, in terms of its beauty of tone and in its cohesive and useful range of colours and volumes. I don't know why this should be. Perhaps the flying saucers have not improved the RAH acoustics. Maybe it is intrinsically different in concept, through being a concert organ..? And possibly St Pauls is better because of the experience gained by Willis in builidng the RAH first? Hey hold on there - horses for courses! I was also at both concerts; the St Paul's instrument is very fine indeed, but for 'beauty of tone etc.' I'd choose the RAH every time. It's all a matter of personal taste... And I wonder what superlatives we might use if the poor old RFH organ were to be moved into St Pauls?

At the NFT last night I saw Powell & Pressburger's wonderful 'A Matter of Life & Death' (1946). The music is by Allan Grey, and the 'court' scenes contain some improv on a large-sounding instrument (hefty diaps, tubas etc.) in a spacious acoustic. Does anyone happen to know which instrument this was? The usual film sites (imdb etc.) aren't very illuminating. Cheers.

Wonderfully characteristic piece, and recorded a fair bit. Particularly splendid performances being those by Christopher Nickol at the Caird Hall on Priory and a certain contributor to this board, at Eton.

[quote name='Peter Clark' date='Sep 8 2008, 09:00 AM' post='40216' (should it be Finale?) Has it been recorded? Yes - Final=French, Finale=Italian It's the last work (Final) in the suite of six pieces op. 16-21 published in 1868. Lots of recordings - Arthur Wills at Ely on the then newly-rebuilt organ was my first experience of this piece...

Absolutely - my particular problem with these kind of performances is the way the Chorales are sung: far too precious. Wouldn't they have been belted out by the congregation with big organ accpt? Aren't we told that this is why the German organ developed powerful pedal tone? And how 'authentic' is the use of womens' voices... ;-)

Absolutely to all that. Slavish adherence to 'authenticity' as currently perceived is bound to lead to ruin. ;-) Shouldn't we temper historical awareness with good taste? And good taste (just like bad taste) is cultivated, not innate, and therefore subjective... A small example: my organ teacher urged me to follow the registration instructions printed at the start of my edition of the Franck Third Chorale (fonds, anches 8' or something). To my ears, on the 20th C English organ in question this sounded thoroughly rotten, and quite un-French. (There's an illuminating and surprising interview with John Eliot Gardiner on 'authenticity' in the new Gramophone.) And wasn't it Tovey who said that to deliver an authentic performance of a Bach cantata, the choirboys would have to be given a sound thrashing afterwards for getting things wrong...?

I believe it was RVW himself, during the Great RFH Organ Controversy.

But really - as someone who naturally inclines toward Arthur Harrison for Proper Organ Tone - do go to hear this instrument in the flesh (if it's ever resurrected). It sounds remarkably well in the hall (certainly better than recent European instruments in UK concert venues), and in the hands of top-class players (recently David Goode, Jennifer Bate, John Scott) can perform magnificently. Recordings really don't do it justice. Interestingly, the idea of the solo as a 'bolstering' division for use with orchestra etc. seems to have been influential in American concert-organ building (Fisk, Dallas etc.).

Just heard the repeat on R3, and wish I'd been there! OK - perhaps not a performance I'd turn to for reference (and why should I, with at least 4 'integrales' from OM specialists on my shelves), but how marvellous to hear an organist with fire in his belly! After all, this was very cruel programming: the audience had just heard the world's favourite song-cycle in the venue of its first performance, sung by a much-loved diva who had replaced another much-loved diva at short notice. How on earth do you follow that? WM pulled it off triumphantly... Of course an intellectually considered performance can be tremendously exciting, but in a live performance - one not destined for repeated listening - isn't context vitally important? After all, when he re-opened the RAH organ, David Briggs made a similar observation regarding his own performance of the Sinfonia from Canatata 149. How great to have so much organ at the Proms this year, and such a variety of performers - after the 'Livre' at Westminster Cathedral last month, I can't wait to hear Jennifer Bate play 'Dieu' in quite a different context in August! Could things be looking up for the organ at last?