Peter Allison
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Posts posted by Peter Allison
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I have been a member of the Darlington & District ( organists & choirmaster) Assoc for a number of years, we have an active membership, and the diary is always atractive to those who attend, both public events and members events. We have a website built and looked after by Richard Hird.here I believe it was our 50th aniversary 2006 and still going strong (ish)
Regards
Peter
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I have been a big fan of the Pastoral by Roger Ducasse for many years now, and I have just discovered how much he did write:
Stage Works Alcyone Alcyone (1902)
Orphee orphée (1913)
CanteGril Cantegril (pub. 1931)
Orchestral French Suite suite français (1907)
Small Suite petite suite (1900?)
Prelude to a Ballet prélude d'un ballet (1910)
French March marche française (1914)
Spring Nocturne nocturne de printemps (1920)
Wedding Song epithalame (1923)
Chamber Violin Sonata sonate pour vilon et piano (1896)
String Quartet No.1 quatuor à cordes (1909) <2vln, vla, vc>
Pastorale pastorale (1909)
Piano Quartet quartuor pour piano et trio à cordes (1912?)
String Quartet No.2 quatuor à cordes No.2 (1912-1952) <2vln, vla, vc>
Piano Six Preludes six préludes (1907)
Four Etude quatre études (1915)
Etude for Sixth étude en sixtes (1916)
Arabesques arabesques... (1917)
Sketches esquisses (1917)
Rhythms rythmes (1917)
Arabesques No.2 arabesques No.2 (1919)
Sailor's Song No.3 3e barcarolle (1921)
Songs White Hymn hymne blanc (1895)
A Garden of Marguerite au jardin de Marguerite (1901-1905)
Sarabande sarabande (1910)
Ulysse and the Sirens Ulysse et les sirènes (1937)
Unclear Two Rondels of François Villon deux rondels de Villon (1897- )
Pieces of Water pièces d'eau (-)
Christmans of Roses noël de roses (1903)
Sailor's Song barcarolle (1906)
Ave Regina ave regina (1911)
Three Motets trois motets (1911)
Assignment for Taking Scores ecole de la dictée (1910/1937)
Regards
Peter
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"Then there are all those Masonic organs; which I've never really understood. Why do the Masons need organs"
"The presence of a pipe organ in English masonic lodges still represents to many freemasons a
sine qua non in terms of lodge furnishings, and the position of lodge organist remains a prized
one. However, while the tradition of appointing a lodge organist flourishes, the heyday of the
pipe organ in English masonic lodges (c.1850-c.1950) is long gone and pipe organs have been
steadily disappearing from lodges, to be replaced by an electronic keyboard, or even just a CD
player; sic transit gloria mundi. Of course, English masonic lodges are responsible only to
themselves for the management of their estate and are free to make their own decisions, but a
serious consequence of this shifting musical landscape of disappearing pipe organs is that in
many cases the documentary history of an instrument disappears with it. Thus the record of a
significant slice of English masonic heritage, and of England’s musical history, is steadily
being eroded and lost to posteperity,
this includes a few photos
Regards
Peter
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Yes, he does. Incidentally, have you noticed him actually changing any of the registrations himself? I haven't!
I have not watched that closely, but it seems that his "lovely" wife seems to use a sequencer button, but what an beast of an instrument, its huge
regards
Peter
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Agreed! Wasn't/isn't he also transcribing the other symphonies?
I have heard that he is doing all nine, when they will be done and recorded, I do not know. Have you seen the dvd? he talks rather a lot
Peter
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Has anyone heard or seen Thomas Heywood playing his own transcription of Beethovens 5th (complete) on the Melbourne Town hall organ dvd ?? its rather nifty
Peter
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I would just like to draw your attention to a Recital at Durham Cathedral on Sat 27th Oct ( this sat)
My good friend david Rogers, of Doncaster (a few of you know him I believe) is being "let loose" on the marvellous H & H from 7.30pm. I am not sure what all the programme is, (although he did tell me), but will include BWV 565 at my dads request and Rheinberger no 4.
hope one or 2 of you can be present
Regards
Peter
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Does anyone else know St Thomas the Martyr in the Haymarket, Newcastle? http://npor.emma.cam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch...ec_index=N04095
A very modest sized building but the organ is very exciting to hear. A little less satisfying to play due to the very remote position of the console and a long delay! Having said that I still enjoy practicing there several times a year, when getting ready for something that needs more than the two manuals offered by my own church's Nicholson.
I made a good recording there a few years ago ( will have to listen to it tonight) with the organist, Martin Charlton, and as you say, the cosole is at the opposite end of the church nearly, makes visiting organists very wary
Peter
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Life is full of surprises! On stepping into a subterranean passage while changing trains in Lausanne earlier today, I heard a familiar theme. A young busker was playing "that toccata" on an accordion. He played the whole thing from memory with stunning accuracy. It is a sound I normally dislike, but I had to admire the courage and skill involved. At the end I thanked him and put a generous contribution into his hat, but declined the CD. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to discover anything about his background. (And, no, I don't think it was the titulaire from Lausanne Cathedral!)
JC
I remember a couple of years back, I was in Paris for a few days rest, and on the way to a recital I heard an accordian playing in the Metro, it was a bach / vivaldi concerto, and it was very very good. I did by a CD and it was ok, but obviously recorded and edited using to much reverb etc. It did make me think, what would it sound like played under the tower in Durham Cathedral,,, the acordian not the CD
regards
Peter
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Just a quickie, my dad has written in his will he wants "the" Widor Toccata when they bring him in to church, and everyone HAS to stay for a bach T & F.
Peter
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He worked on the RFH as you say, though at that time he was a console builder with H&H. I never discovered why he turned against them so vehemently. Whilst at RFH he took a lot of 8mm film of the rebuild in progress, and showed them to me a couple of months before he died. After his death, Joan his wife gathered all his film, camera gear and practically everything else of his working memorabilia and placed it all at auction. I did not know about the sale until after the event.
It all apparently went for peanuts, and I would have killed for his work journals and records.
Chris
I did not know that the hammer fell on all his "stuff", I suppose it may turn up on ebay, you never know
Peter
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I very much doubt it - he was no fool, and definitely had nothing to do with horses.
did he build the Festival Hall console in the 50's when he was at H & H???
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A few years back I was associated for a while with Bert Prested, an organ builder in Durham. He told me of St. Nicks in the market place. That they were buying a Copeman Hart instrument, and that he was retained first to remove the pipe organ, and second, to make from it a one manual organ sans pedals. I saw the instrument just once, and if I remember correctly, it is something like Flute 8, Principal 4, Fifiteenth and Nazard. I could be completely wrong, but in the short time I had on it I know I was entranced.
Moving on, the re-developement of St Nick's interior was completed, and the 'big' service was scheduled, and arranged for a date. The ceremony was to include 'opening the new CH 3 decker. Come the day however, and for whatever reason, the Copeman Hart was not ready, or could not be delivered in time.
The solution to the service accompaniment problem was solved by bringing Bert's little gem in from the back room and plugging it into the wall where the CH was to have been. By all accounts it performed magnificently and did the job without a hitch.
To the best of my knowledge, the Prested instrument is still there, tucked away and unused.
Bert Prested, now sadly no longer with us, was a fascinating old feller, but nursed a seething hatred of Harrison and Harrison. When contacted to quote on work which H&H were also quoting on, would price himself ridiculously low to keep H&H out. This ensured that he never became rich. He was a craftsman nevertheless, and gifted.
He once called me to give him "a hand with something". When I arrived at his workshop (in Bearpark), there was his yellow Reliant three-wheeler van with ten feet of Open Wood sticking out of the passenger side window, and another foot or two emerging from the back door. We wangled it back out of the van, stuck it on the roof bars of my old Montego, and took it round to Ushaw College, where I had a happy hour or so on his rebuild of their instrument.
It was for my embellishment of the St.Nicks story, and an unwise comment or two about CH that Cheryl Hart had me tossed out of Piporg-L or whatever it was called. Funnily enough, I survive to this day.
Chris Baker
I remember Bert well, did you ever sit in his front room and hear all those clocks
I remember him playing a few "cine" films from a projector he had in the kitchen and showing onto a screen on the sitting room front window. My dad introduced him to a good friend (Ralph Franklin) who at the time (1984 ish) was Dof M at St. Peters, Harrogate. Bert did a "rebuild" of sorts and Copeman hart provided the usual electronic 32ft pedal bits.
regards
Peter
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Off topic but I seem also to remember that an incumbent there at round about this time went on to hold a quite important position in the C 0f E after first being our local diocesan bishop down here!
AJJ
I cannot remember AJ, I was at the time going through the "born again" process and was into the local free church, you know the kind, 400 hundred people, a large and excellent music group and all fully commited. I used to like going to the cathedral evensongs, it was a better class of music do'nt you know
regards
peter
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It may be - but there have been examples of churches wishing to install something to be scuppered in their plans (or at least not assisted) by diocesan (or higher) authorities. Sometimes this is just as well judging from some hair brained schemes drawn up by the 'resident team' with money to spend - often on a digital - but at other times perhaps not so. I know of an example of where a small digital was not allowed even though it seemed to be the best option from the church point of view. The diocese insisted on the strict restoraltion of a one manual pipe job of no great artistic merit. In another example a major church establishment was pushed quite hard by 'those at the top' to not do things with their pipe organ that were felt 'unsuitable'. In this case the church 'won' and now have a superb instrument of great integrity.
AJJ
I remember back in the 1970's St. Nicolas, in the market place, durham had a major upheaval, both spiritualy and furniture wise, the outcome was (and others may no better) that to have their 3 manual Copeman Hart, they Had to have a "pipe organ" as well. They got around this buy having a one manual instument of maybe 2 stops and had it hidden away. My father was at the time organist at another local (6 miles away) church which also had a small Copeman Hart, and the official party from St. Nicks came to give it the once over etc.
regards
Peter
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Elgar's Vesper Voluntaries. It is definitely a mistake to play the whole lot in a single recital - I know because I sat through them once. Fortunately there was a beautiful building to look at to relieve the utter boredom.
William Bolcom's Gospel Preludes (or whatever they are called). I had forgotten about these (mercifully) but a mention by another poster caused me to reach for the air freshener.
Wagner overtures arranged for organ (in fact, almost any transcriptions of orchestral music).
Whitlock's Organ Sonata, which seems to ramble endlessly.
Whitlocks sonata is one of my favourite pieces, I am collecting recordings at the moment including a home spun John Scott at the opening of the new organ at Southall minster a few years ago and a Polish friend playing it at Durham Cathedral
Peter
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I rember on a holiday to Germany, my father and I came across a lovely church (cannot remember where) in the southern wine strasse, where on entering and talking to the organist who was practicing, he lit up a cigar, I asked if that was legal in Germany, well iI was only young at the time (28yrs
) but he said,as his full time job was as a church musician, and he was at work, he would have a smoke. I suppose you could get away with this maybe if the console was "up a height", but the cosole was of a newly built organ sat at ground level and only a few yards from the altar.Regards
Peter
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Bishop Runcie when dedicating the new Marks and Spencer window in Durham Cathedral, said somethinng like,, " I would like to thank Marks,,,,Marks,,,,Marks,,,,Marks and his friend
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I'm fairly certain it is true actually- a friend and former boss of mine at St Oswald's Durham, David Higgins (now sadly no longer with us) was a friend of Alan Thurlow's both at Sheffield and in Durham. David used to say that he heard the story direct from Alan Thurlow himself.
My own favourite Conrad story (for there are many!) is the story of Conrad going to an RSCM do in Darlington and driving Alan Thurlow. Finding nowhere to park he pulled up in an office car park (it was a Saturday). A porter came running out and said to Conrad "Excuse me, this is a private car park". To which Conrad nonchalently replied "that's ok my good man. This is a private car!"
David also told me of the time when Conrad was conducting a large choir (possibly the University Choral Society). The soporanos missed an entry in one of the choruses in Judas Maccabeus. Conrad stopped the choir and shouted "ladies, I know it says 'chorus of virgins' but please all sing".
I used to see David Higgins nearly every friday evening, he used to give my father lessons either at St. Michaels,Witton Gilbert ( copeman hart analogue toaster 1970's) or st Oswalds, then on for a beer or three. Some of the stories he told about various durham musicians would be told over the odd beer, but they could never be told , as I am sure libel action would be taken
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Just seen Durham Cathedrals web site and the assistant would have to have been Alan Thurlow. so the story must have been made up somewhere along the line
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I remember being told a story by my father that happened many years ago at durham Cathedral, how true, I am not sure. It was in Conrad Edens day, when he had a new assistant. ( a Mr D Hill was mentioned ) Said assistant thought as he was to play for his first service soon, it was time he met the organ. So he duly got the keys and went for "a play". Wanting to see how full organ plus the big tuba sounded ( must have been just after the 1970 rebuild) drew said stops, Conrad must have been listening, as he went up to the console and pushed the Tuba back in stating it was only for use on high days and holy days.
I would like to think this was true, but I am not sure when David Hill was at Durham.
regards
Peter
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http://chaos.com/product/sydney_opera_hous...264_205396.html
I've been meaning to replace my lost copy of the Melbourne Sounds Grand - From memory every track is pretty wonderful - The Beethoven being an obvious highlight. The two Rossini transcriptions are spectacular too.
Have you heard Heywood's Humoresque for Pedal Trombone? It's on the Grand Organ Gala at St Joseph's Buffalo.
I think it's a remarkably ingenious bit of composition. A piece of fluff - but a delightful one.
JG
Thomas Heywood played the Trombone Humeresque at York minster a while ago, it was good, although it got lost in the acoustic a bit, as did Bach 542.
Have you seen Heywoods DVD of the opening recital of the Melbourne Town hall, its fantastic for showing the organs inards and the funny comentary
Peter
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James Lancelot has a wonderful house organ in his sitting room at Durham Cathedral. I am not sure of the spec, although it will be on Harrisons web site. When James was president of Darlington Organists Association, he put on a wonderful "Presidents" evening with a good string quartet. Not sure of the programme, but it included the Bach Trio Sonata No 5 with said strings
regards
Peter
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I have been looking at internet radio stations and came across http://www.organlive.com and noticed that one of our forum members is lying at number 21 in the "most requested organist" section.
regards
Peter
) but he said,as his full time job was as a church musician, and he was at work, he would have a smoke. I suppose you could get away with this maybe if the console was "up a height", but the cosole was of a newly built organ sat at ground level and only a few yards from the altar.
Recommendations For Audio Editing Software
in General discussion
Posted
I just bought the newish ZOOM H2, http://www.samsontech.com/products/product...6&brandID=4 with built in mic's tried it out for the first time at a choral evensong, and even though I was quite a distance from the choir, the results were very good. It also records onto 4 channels using the 4 built in mic's. so it can be mixed into 5.1 surround sound . I use an old version of soundforge (version 4 I think) and it does what I need.
regards
Peter