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msw

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Everything posted by msw

  1. I believe Robert Quinney is one of the few to have mastered it, during his time as Sub Organist at Westminster Cathedral.
  2. William Croft did likewise with his Funeral Sentences - using Purcell's setting of "Thou knowest Lord" when the moment comes. (As I believe he said at the time, "the reason I did not compose that verse anew should be obvious to every musician...") It is a curious twist that, where imitation was once considered the highest form of flattery, it is now considered illegal! Composers have always had to make a living; I suppose the difference now is that there's no more patronage as in centuries gone by. (With a member of Royalty employing you to supply a new work every day, copying other people's music was probably a life-saver if the Muse dried up...)
  3. I note you mentioned you haven't time for a "big project" - how about looking through some of the shorter works of Reger, Dubois, Gigout, Vierne, Mulet, Bonnet or Langlais? Reger is actually at his best in short pieces, which can be as demanding as the giant chorale fantasias but at least you won't have to drive yourself as hard (or for as long a time) in order to master them! The 12 pieces published by Edition Peters are definitely worth a try. As for the French folk: their works all include charming little "cahier-style" books of short pieces (e.g. Dubois 12 Pieces, Gigout 10 Pieces, Vierne 24 Pieces en style libre, Langlais 24 Pieces) including a fair few famous numbers (e.g. Dubois Toccata in G, Gigout Toccata in B minor, Mulet "Tu es Petra") which are often to be found available separately - but it is well worth splashing out on the collections they come from, as there are many other gems besides.
  4. I'll definitely second that - for both ARCO and FRCO, I chose tests that could either be right or wrong, rather than subjective; i.e. figured bass rather than improvisation; transcription rather than figured bass realisation. (One man's meat is another man's poison, and if the examiners don't like your style - however good it may be - you'll get what Edward Bairstow called a "moon" and some comment such as "This meandered to little effect.") If you do opt for improvisation, you should practice it as thoroughly as you would any of the other tests. Listen to Allcoat, Briggs et al (there are plenty of excellent recordings out there); improvise on given themes from past papers; find themes of your own to use, and make use of them in public (especially after services, where you have the opportunity to explore different styles). Experiment with using more than your usual vocabulary of chords, melodic shifts etc. - a German counterpart of mine once said that, when asking his teacher about English organ improvisation, he was told to "pull out the celestes, couple to pedal Bourdon 16, have a solo flute ready on another manual and just play common chords of C major for about 6 minutes!" Whereas in Germany (and France, and even in the USA) one learns to create fugal expositions, scherzos in the style of Ravel or Rachmaninov, minuets in the style of Haydn or Mozart; one also learns to use the octatonic scale and other non-tonal devices, one learns how to create a form (the simplest trick, as told to me by David Briggs, is to remember the motif you started with and come back to it every so often, particularly after a short pause - gives the impression that you're playing a written composition!); most importantly, one learns how to stop at a few seconds notice... Very best of luck with your exam and preparations for it!
  5. There's a "Concertino" by Christopher Boodle (organ and small orchestra), also "Organ Dances" by Bob Chilcott (organ, strings and percussion) a wonderful Concerto by Philip Moore for organ, strings and timpani (performed only once to date, and pending revision by the composer before it can be given another outing) and one by Francis Jackson for organ, strings, timpani and celesta (or possibly piano if everything's played up an octave or two...?) plus of course the Mozart pieces for glass harmonica and strings. For that matter, Mozart's Epistle or "Church" Sonatas can be done with minimal forces - and are truly exquisite!
  6. Yeowch! Poor fellow. I have every sympathy, and I've encountered the problem myself many a time in my own career. Your friend might want to read John Bertalot's "How to be a Successful Choir Trainer," in which there are many useful nuggets of advice about a whole range of problems, including most notably the issue of attendance. I won't spoil it (nor infringe Dr Bertalot's copyright!) by quoting anything here, but I would say that the gist of his advice on dealing with troublesome choir members is to take a conciliatory approach rather than a confrontational one - "Take the gentle path," as George Herbert put it! A member of my voluntary choir annoys me no end by simply turning up on Sundays - often AFTER their practice before service - and more often than not being clueless about what's going on, or making mistakes in the service itself. I finally decided to grill him about it, but realised that I might have better results by hinting that I value his presence in the choir and would value more commitment from him just as much. Unfortunately, his response was that he's in a local choral society which rehearses on the same night as we do - I could have snapped back that one's loyalty should be to the choir that performs the most regularly, but instead I held my tongue and simply said that we'd be glad to see him at the Sunday practices. So far, that approach seems to be working, because he was there promptly for rehearsal yesterday morning and even had time to find out (from one of the other members) what piece we were doing, what page it was on, etc. Therein, I think, lies the secret - trying to win difficult people as friends and colleagues, rather than alienating them. I don't expect your friend will have an easy task in trying to sort out his situation - vastly worse than mine, it appears! Still, it could be worth a try; either it will work (and the choir will improve and he'll enjoy working there far more) or it won't, in which case he could consider resigning, particularly if the Minister takes sides with the Choir... Good luck to him, in any case!
  7. Definitely a single-manual piece as far as I'm concerned - the c.f. sings out over the florid underneath parts, well enough not to require "soloing" out. As an aside, how do people like to register it? For me, it's usually a choice between a single Open Diapason (which I used for my swansong at Bath Abbey) or a pair of 8s, such as Gedackt + Viola da Gamba, such as was found on Thuringian instruments even when JSB was growing up in that neck of the woods... I'm sure one could also use 8 + 4 flutes, or even 8, 4, 2 / 8, 2 combinations if the voicing is right.
  8. msw

    Bach Bwv 579

    I'll second that - when I played there a couple of years back, I originally planned a Mendelssohn sonata, but Jean-Paul Ravel (one of the titulaires, I believe?) got in touch to advise that the temperament wouldn't really suit it. I was tempted to mention the experiment done by my friend Sandy MacKenzie, with a re-tempered organ playing a whole range of music from Couperin to Messiaen in unequal temperament (captured on CD and available together with his book about temperaments) but I accepted what I was told and swapped Mendelssohn for Stanley, Reading and John James of London. With Bohm to begin and Buxtehude to finish, it was a treat! Next time I'm there, I'll take some Clerambault or de Grigny... It is a truly wonderful instrument in equally wonderful surroundings, and as Nigel has hinted many times, it brings the music of its period to life like few other instruments.
  9. msw

    Shove Coupler

    I'm ashamed to say, Nigel - I had just such a moment whilst giving a recital at St Antoine l'Abbaye last year. On request, I played the well-known aria setting of "Vater unser" (or as they would call it, "Notre Pere") by Bohm. Having announced it to the audience, I jumped back on the console, drew the appropriate stops and then regaled everyone with a string of left-hand chords on Grand Flute ... coupled to Positive Sesquialtera which of course was meant for the right-hand solo. (Ugh!) Fortunately there was room during one of the quaver rests to separate the keyboards again and there was no damage to the organ. (Only to my pride...)
  10. Yes, this is another good one, especially for recitalists. I believe it also contains (for the braver and more adventurous amongst us) Rimsky-Korsakov's "Flight of the Bumble Bee" and Strauss' "Blue Danube" which is a wonderful transcription but doesn't include the full introduction or coda sections for some reason...
  11. How about some Monteverdi? There are numerous songs out there with lute accompaniment that can be easily adapted for organ if you're prepared to realise a bit of figured bass. Not long ago, I came across an exquisite song "Si dolce è'l tormento" - although my Italian is very poor and I can't say whether or not the whole text would be suitable for a wedding... I have to say, though - I'd be surprised if the couple don't like the Grandi. It's an excellent suggestion!
  12. If you're looking for a real bargain, KM publish "The Organist's Bumper Collection" (http://www.kevinmayhew.com/Shop/Products/42027/Kevin_Mayhew_Publishers/Music_Resources/Organ/General_collections/The_Organist_s.aspx) which has an immense variety of useful stuff, including some originals by Philip Moore and Stanley Vann that sound difficult but are not too hard to grapple with. There are a few howlers as well - organ only versions of "Jerusalem" by Parry - also Scott Joplin's "Entertainer" which is clearly in there for any Town Hall organists, or else for Church / Crem organists wanting to let their hair down. (Or maybe even to pre-empt the possibility that it might be requested for a wedding?!) If you only want one KM album, you could do far worse than to get this one. Actually, I have to say I've found some remarkable stuff in the KM catalogue: their Recitalists Repertoire books include the only publications of Sonatas by Philip Moore and Andrew Gant (the latter of which is astonishingly gritty and demanding for Mayhew); also Noel Rawsthorne's Variations for pedal solo on the famous Paganini theme (again, quite a challenge for the advanced player) and some lovely pieces by Graham Steed including a Prelude on Down Ampney that was approved by RVW himself. (Indeed, according to the blurb, RVW was so taken by it that he submitted it to OUP on Steed's behalf - sadly, it was rejected, so we might presume that KM are now rubbing their hands whilst OUP are licking their wounds......)
  13. I've encountered crescendo pedals at the Cathedrals of Chester, Derby and Hereford. They're identical to the Swell pedals next to which they sit. (Visiting Recitalists beware - not every Swell pedal has to be left in the "open position" at the end of practice sessions!)
  14. Possibly Andrew Moore or Andrew Gant? Or it might have been one of the other Kevin Mayhew "house" composers, such as Colin Mawby, Christopher Tambling or Colin Hand. Unfortunately I don't remember ... nor do I remember the name of the collection in which I found it, although "Christmas Preludes" rings a bell. Sorry to be so useless on this occasion!
  15. It's probably well known already by now, but: Tom Leech has left Ripon to go freelance. (I don't yet know who's replacing him, but perhaps someone else on here does?) Like Philip Moore, Bill Ives is retiring, though I'm sure both of them will still be composing a lot. Daniel Hyde from Jesus Cambridge will be moving to Magdalen. Newcastle's new No. 1 from January will be Michael Stoddart, until recently No. 1 at St Mary's Portsea and an Assistant at Portsmouth Cathedral. He was a candidate to stand in at Bath Abbey during Peter King's sabbatical - very pleasant fellow, very good all-round experience in church music (he's very active as counter-tenor, organist and choir trainer) so a good choice by Newcastle's D&C. As for Beverley Minster, I'm as stumped as anyone! If indeed "no appointment will be made," now or in future, it doesn't bode very well for the Minster's musical tradition, at least as far as Choir and Organ seem concerned. Of course it may be that they'll instead look for someone to serve as a Manager rather than as a hands-on music maker. (Christ Church in Clifton, Bristol, did likewise when they appointed their last Director of Music, as they have half a dozen different ensembles making "a wide range of music" - not the sort of set-up that one classically-trained musician can run, but more the sort of thing to be overseen by a musical manager or administrator with various volunteers doing the actual directing and playing...)
  16. Christmas greeting to you too! I can safely say that I have never encountered such a thing in all this green and pleasant land. It's possible that the feature exists (and perhaps other posters will describe their use of it, or encounters with it, here in due course) but I suspect it is extremely rare.
  17. Both of these are recorded on a fascinating Chandos disc "Tsar of Instruments" - Iain Quinn on the Winchester Cathedral organ. Also included are works by Gliere, Glazunov, Glinka, Gretchaninov, Rachmaninov (well, sort of - it's the harmonium solo from his "Trio elegiaque") and Taneyev, represented by his complete organ work. (Yes, just one "work!")
  18. There's a fantasia on The Coventry Carol (by Andrew Fletcher?) in one of the Kevin Mayhew Christmas Anthologies, although I suspect it is out of print as my copy came to me second-hand and the title cannot be found on the KM website... What about Howells Psalm-Prelude Set 1 No. 1? "Lo the poor crieth..." - appropriate enough for Holy Innocents or indeed for Holocaust Memorial Day which is also coming soon if memory serves aright.
  19. I have the Two Pieces - fairly recent publication and quite readily found on most good music shop shelves these days - "Veni Creator spiritus" and "Reliqui Domum meum." I've only played the former piece once, when I was Organist at Clifton College and getting a bit disillusioned with the levels of chatter in Chapel. It was high time to give them something to chatter about! "Reliqui" is not a particularly remarkable piece but I have had greater mileage out of it: at Compline Services in Clifton Chapel, preamble (or postludes) at Bath Abbey, even put it into a recital at the Building of Bath Museum (intriguing historic instrument with a few bugs in the system due to age - http://npor.emma.cam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch...c_index=D05738). It is quite accessible, not perhaps as much as Max's two piano pieces "Farewell to Stromness" and "Yesnaby Ground" but still enough that one can risk putting it out there without causing Joe and Jane Recital-Goer to riot! It doesn't even need pedals, so in theory you could do it even with only a harmonium or Casio...
  20. Sounds pretty good on the Bath Abbey organ post-Klais too! (I played it once whilst I was there, and heard the Norwich Cathedral Organ Scholar play it very well during a lunchtime prom.) Pedalboard has top Gs which came into their own...
  21. I'm definitely in favour of doing something fun as an encore, whatever has come in the programme proper. My favourites are the Whitlock "Paean" and Walton "Popular Song" - I've found that they never fail to raise a smile! As for the issue of whether one should play an encore or not: I think each situation has to be judged accordingly. I've played lunchtime recitals in cathedrals where I've been trying to keep to time limits (both for their sake and my own!) and so preparing an encore would be inappropriate; on the flip side, a town hall or concert hall performance, even at lunchtime, is much improved by the addition of an encore. Then again, a friend of mine inserted an encore into a recital at a certain cathedral not far from here and was actually praised for doing so by one of the resident organists; furthermore I've been to town hall programmes which were one piece too long and didn't really need an encore when the dust had settled! I've also had discussions with my fiancee, who always yells out for an encore and (on occasion) has been taken aback to find I haven't got one ready. Of course, as others have already noted, the planning of the whole programme is an important factor in considering these things. As a colleague once said to me, the trick with any recital programme is to put down slightly less than the time available requires, so that the audience goes away satisfied AND feeling as if they could have had more...
  22. Most people seemed to like it - with the exception of one gentleman who asked if, assuming we are going to have Choral Eucharists on a more regular basis (which we're not), he could be supplied with the notes so he could join in. I said he'd have to join the Choir if he wants to join in; he replied that he's nearly 90 and too old to be in choirs anymore. (It turns out he's a very experienced musician, and still active as an accompanist on the piano. He also knows his church music - at least, the stuff that used to be popular 50 or 60 years ago, such as Eyre and Somervell!)
  23. For the Daquin Noels, you simply have to have Christopher Herrick's Hyperion recording, from a church in Dieppe if memory serves. The registrations are about as authentic as you'll ever hear on disc, and the performances (needless to say) are exemplary. Not sure if it's been mentioned by anyone else yet, but the Jongen Toccata is very effective at the end of a Carol Service.
  24. I had a session with David Briggs whilst I was still working at Bath Abbey - he taught me a few tricks of his particular trade, using one of the many worship songs in currency at the Abbey at that time which we were asked (i.e. required) to play by the clergy... You'd be surprised how easy it is to transform a sow's ear (by Graham Kendrick) into a silk purse! After just one hour, we'd turned one of his all-too famous ditties into a Cochereau-esque Scherzo, an octatonic ostinato, a fugue and a chorale prelude in the style of Jehan Alain. I often use those techniques to see what can be done with hymn tunes, familiar and otherwise. I did once have a bride who asked if I could improvise on various soap themes for the Signing of the Register. She intended to provide the congregation with sheets listing the themes and pens to mark which ones they thought they'd heard! Fortunately the Chaplain intervened to say that such an activity would really be more appropriate for the reception. Speaking of soap themes, I did once sneak "Coronation Street" and "Eastenders" into a pre-service improv. at Truro, having been dared to do so by members of the Visiting Choir I was accompanying. With that handy pedal-divide control, I was able to get both themes in simultaneously on the pedals ... with the unfortunate side-effect that they weren't noticed.
  25. He was most definitely at St Margaret's Westminster. The Revd Trevor Beeson's "Window on Westminster" mentions Hickox leaving the post after many years of dedicated service, in order to pursue his conducting work. (Perhaps that explains the excellence of St Endellion Festivals - he combined all the finesse of his concert work with his already-considerable knowledge of church music to create something special and distinctive.) No doubt the RCO will note his passing: he was one of very few conductors to have FRCO amongst their achievements.
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