Martin Cooke

I have been asked to give a recital in a methodist church and find myself wanting to find some music to play that might have had its roots in the methodist church. You know, you think of people like Brewer, Howells, Jackson, Bairstow, who were all involved in cathedrals, but what organ composers were based in methodist churches? I can think of Lloyd-Webber (senior) at the Westminster Central Hall, but does anyone else have any ideas by any chance?

Sounds a bit of a nightmare to me!

Indeed! Well let's all hope there's nothing by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies!

Yes, it's Tim Johnson, currently Director of Music at Westminster School.

Regarding organs and steam trains - John Dykes Bower was one such and I remember many conversations between him, 13 year old James Lancelot and Paul Edwards on the subject before morning choir practice.

Thank you so much for all your help and advice. Clearly I need to read up Rutter's thoughts, look at his score in more detail (which I haven't yet), and listen to the Cambridge Singers' recording with pencil in hand. This isn't until May so I've got time to sort it out.

I could do with some advice, please, on the best edition to use for organ accopaniment of the Faure. (Sorry - can't see how to do an e acute on an ipad!) i have played it before but have lost my copy. I have the "new" Rutter edition but from a cursory glance at it, it goes into four staves in a couple of places and whilst I can cope with that, I just wonder if anyone has a suggestion or two. Of course, I need to have some cognisance of what the choir will be using - Novello, I think. Many thanks.

Yes, this looks very interesting indeed. I'm re-learning BWV 552 (P&F in E flat) right now so the fact that Clavierubung part III is one of their first volumes is of particular interest. I must say that the assertion that the low note usually taken by the pedals in the echo sections would more suitably be taken by the manuals makes perfect sense. Happy New Year! How many organists included in the New Years Honours list this time, I wonder?!

Just to confirm - I have successfully printed off two or three pieces now. You need to hunt a bit on this site as some PDFs are first pages only of several different items. The other problems is that you realise quickly that Christmas hymns are different over there. They seem to sing Angels from the Realms of Glory to Regent's Square, and they also sing an advent hymn - Watchman, Tell us of the Night to Aberystwyth. Mind you - if it's an American congregation, they may think you've done your research and have tried to make them feel at home. I'll shut up now!!

I meant also to suggest that you go to www.organmusiconly.com - some of the pieces advertised here are in PDF format so I think you can probably download them - I had a quick look the other day but didn't have time to pursue it. This would be a good source of American material quickly, though.

There's also good old Gordon Young. I bought quite a bit when I was in New York earlier this year but I have to say I am using none of it this Christmas - all quite disappointing!

What about Jesu Parvule - Donald Swann - two parts in canon with piano accomp - tuneful and fun!

I agree - this is a a real gem. There is also chorale prelude on St Columba, also with the tune in the feet, which is enchanting but a little bit easier. (Long out of print, I suspect - I picked mine up from ebay a few weeks ago.) A rummage through itunes will pick up a recording of this and also of other music by Milford. I discovered a CD entitled Peacock Pie (the name of a suite by Armstrong Gibbs) and discovered a composer called Madeline Dring. I thoroughly recommend her Festival Scherzo for Piano and Strings as some listening sorbet - well worth the 79p download, though I went for the whole CD - there is some more Milford on it, too.

Oh dear - what an awful mistake on my part - well, I am delighted to hear that I was mistaken. Moreover, I am delighted to find that I actually own a copy of Exultate - it comes in a volume of his works - Pieces for Organ, Set 1. It looks a little on the demanding side!!

I've looked at the website and I fear the answer to your question may be that the website is out of date. You do know that Martin How died several years ago, I presume?

Many thanks to PJW for listing the tracks. Not over exciting is it?!

Another piece worth looking is Tell out the news - Jan Holdstock - it's for junior voices - three parts - all comes together very well - fairly straightforward.

I notice that Westminster Abbey (Guest), Coventry (Lepine), Gloucester (Sumsion) and Liverpool (Rawsthorne) LPs are all available on Ebay at the moment. Slightly infuriatingly, I can't find out what music is on the Westminster Abbey one - I know it has the Howells Prelude 'Sine Nomine' - does anyone know what else is on it? I'm slightly intrigued to hear Douglas Guest's performance - does anyone go back far enough to have heard him? Was he good?

Without trespassing upon the generosity of our hosts, I am sure members who are hitherto unaware, would be interested to visit the St Edmundsbury Cathedral website to see news and photographs of the new Nicholson organ that it taking its final shape there at the present time. The new case work is stunningly beautiful. Sorry - haven't noted the website address but Google will get you there quickly. You will see after a quick rummage that there's a photo gallery as well as the home page pic.

Has anyone received their St Paul's one yet? It said for issue in September - not much time left!

Yes, something to do with the Holy Spirit would be most appropriate - Mulet, as you say, Vierne Final (Symph 1), Dubois Toccata, do you know the Ridout piece published by Mayhew - sorry, have forgotten the title, but there's an inner movement called Wind of the Spirit, or something! Bach - G major (541). Mathias Toccata Giocosa. Elgar - March from Caractacus ?? Lots, really! I presume you're thinking of the Komm Heiliger Geist from the Eighteen - wonderful! (Up early this morning - I think I'll go and run through all of those before breakfast!) Breakfast??

I think the status of the FRCO hood has altered considerably in the last forty years or so since the "new" damask hood was introduced. The old hood of chocolate and blue in a simple shape was not as attractive for your standard cathedral organist with MA, BMus, FRCO after his name especially as the BMus from both Oxford and Cambridge was very handsome. I recall Christopher Herrick appearing to conduct at anthem one afternoon at St Paul's wearing no hood at all - (he always wore his Oxford BA then MA hood when out at the sharp end). He said he'd worn it somewhere else and left it at home. I suggested (presumptuously) that he could have borrowed Harry Gabb's FRCO hood which would have been hanging next to CH's cassock and surplice at the bottom of the old organ loft stairs, but he was very dismissive of wearing an FRCO or any diploma hood. Christopher Dearnley was very much the same - never wore FRCO, tended towards his Oxford MA and put on the splendid Oxford BMus for festal occasions, but not always. Harry Gabb wore chocolate and blue but if it was a special service with royalty present he brought over his new FRCO hood from the chapel royal. At Chichester, John Birch wore chocolate a blue only on a Friday! He had two new FRCO hoods, and I think was responsible for all the new academical dress that the RCO has introduced in the last few years. His best FRCO hood may have been specially made to be slightly larger than I remember the early versions of the new hood being. I think the spec now says that the shape is Oxford Doctors shape which is quite a lot fuller than the older, rather small full shaped "new" FRCO hood. To complete the picture on John Birch - he wore and was proud of his honorary MA hood from Sussex, too. When I last saw him wearing academical dress, he was conducting Give unto the Lord in an FRCM hood. He has since been given a Lambeth DMus and I think I am correct in saying that he has George Thalben Ball's robes. On his last day as organist of St Paul's, Sir John Dykes Bower gave me his Oxford DMus hood at the end of evensong - quite a moment that - I treasure it - the hood and the moment!

It occurred to me after my opening post... what sources did Alan Ridout use for the Mayhew Bach edition?

...and new St Paul's Organ Scholar is Donald Hunt - there's a name from the past. This young man is from Canada - all according to Choir and Organ received today.

I am glad that the topic I started on Bach registration has "run on" - I have found it very interesting and have enjoyed following up the links. I am not sure if this topic has been rehearsed before, but I am also interested in editions. I was brought up on Novello and very unscholastically would happily refer to the pieces by their volume number - "C major - Book ," "C major - Book 9." My Novello scores have many useful markings, fingerings etc and my policy in the last few years has been to switch to Barenreiter when I had the time to re-learn a piece. I feel "virtuous" about doing this, and I appreciate the limited prefatory material in each volume, and I am often taken by surprise at the different variations of each piece - in Barenreiter Volume 6, for example, there are several versions of the Legrenzi Fugue (not that I have ever played any of them), and there is a D minor version what we all might think of as a Prelude and Fugue in C minor (Novello Book 2 - the dull one with the opening pedal solo). There is virtue in using the "best" edition and by that I believe Barenreiter is widely accepted at the most scholarly edition of Bach, and there is also great value I have found in looking at music I have played and with I am very familiar set out afresh. But, actually, are there any changes in the notes? (I know there are notational corrections in the Toccata in F and the Fantasia in G or should we call it Piece d'Orgue) It is certainly not in any sense easier or more helpful to learn a piece from the B edition, in my experience - indeed, when I learned the E minor (BWV 548) (OK - Novello Book 8), last summer, I ended up pasting into the B edition the opening section of the prelude from the N edition. I don't have a specific question to pose here, but an airing of views would be interesting and informative and, I hope, not just for me.