MusingMuso

================================== For my sins, I studied Fine Art as an ancillary subject, but my limited knowledge obviously unembraces Boecklin. Apart from the fact that the island is an ecological impossibility, the technique is formidable.....just look at that water and the reflections therein;not the mention the colouring and shading of the cliffs. I haven't a clue what it is all about beyond that, but it obviously has some significance. I had no idea that the Swiss ever did anything beyond inventing the cuckoo-clock and making goat's cheese. MM

=========================== Because his name is Patrick Bach, of course. MM

============================ I haven't had time to check, but I wonder if the Compton patent isn't actually later than the Estey patent in America? Estey were certainly producing luminous stop consoles in the 1920's, and there is some suggestion that William Haskell may have been the originator of this, and other remarkable ideas. Of course, as compared with the Estey lumionous "cash register" controls, the Compton equivalent is far more elegant. I'm quite sure that further research will reveal quite a number of ideas and concepts which flowed back and forth across the Atlantic. MM

I could have placed this under the category of "You Tube," but the music of Dezso d'Antalffy-Zsiross is little known outside his native Hungary, so it qualifies as being on the margins. Little did I realise that this particular composer (who moved to America to become the theatre-organist of the Radio City Music Hall, playing the largely "straight" Wurlitzer organ), studied with Karl Straube and Max Reger,as did English theatre-organist Quentin Maclean. He also studied with Enrico Bossi, unlike MacLean. He was also a teacher at the Feranc Liszt Academy in Budapest. I'm not quite sure what the significance of the artist Arnold Böcklin is, but clearly, his art was considered important enough to inspire. Xaver Varnus is no stranger to us on the discussion board, but what fascinates me about him, is his almost unique approach to anything he plays, which with the greatest stretch of imagination, could never be considered predictable. His Bach, for instance varies between the downright showy and dramatic, to the positively scholarly and meticulous. (The various You Tube videos demonstrate this very well). In addition, Xaver Varnus also crosses musical boundaries, which are often a source of great delight. So here is the interesting "THE ISLAND OF THE DEAD" from the pen of Dezso d'Antalffy-Zsiross; magnificently played by Xaver Varnus on the equally magnificent organ of the Palace of the Arts, Budapest. MM

========================= I've always used the word gaggle to describe clergy gatherings. Am I alone? MM

=========================== I don't think it's allowed to have a rank of pipes AND a rank of organists. Similarly, the words bench and bar act as collective nouns, (perhaps obtusely) within the legal profession. If an organist lacks personal hygeine, they are unlikely to be part of a group, but in the event that like minds gather to smell roses, I suppose one could have a "whiffle" of organists, or even a "mold" of organists if they play in theatre-pits or in damp surroundings. I don't think we could have the word grind, because that is too close to organ-grinders and barrel-organs and may confuse. No, I think we need to explore the intellectual depths a little. What about a fugue of organists? Maybe a loft of organists? Organ-builders are much more difficult to cater for; it's such a diverse craft. Perhaps a gallery, chest or case of organ-builders? MM

---------------------------------- I like the combination of organists, which is less easily misunderstood than, say, a registration of organists. For organ-builders, I quite like a kist of organ-builders, or perhaps even a swell of organ-builders. MM

Collective nouns are unique to the English language, and often a source of great delight. I think it's about time we had a suitable one for organists; whether serious or humorous. We can't have a Mutation of Organists, because that collective noun applies to Thrushes. We can't even have a Quiver of Theatre Organists, because Arrows claim that particular collective noun. We can't use the word Thunder, because that applies to Hippos. I have a few ideas, but in the meantime, can anyone porpose collective nouns for organists or even organ-related things? MM

============================ I'm not sure about that, but I do know that the organ is that which is now in the home of David Shepherd, which I believe is a kit of various Compton parts. I've never seen it....but there is a good reason why not. MM

Mentioning Richard Hills, here's an absolute delight, as he takes to the piano, with the excellent Simon Gledhill playing a privately owned theatre organ somewhere in deepest Lincolnshire. Richard is nothing of not versatile. MM

=========================== At one church, I trained the choir to take their lead from a tonic note when singing unaccompanied. OK....I admit.....it was not a good idea to give a 'g' for the opening hymn at the service of nine, lessons and carols. How that boy got through that first verse of "Once in Royal", I will never know. How the choir anticipated G major for the second-verse, I cannot begin to imagine. MM

============================= Oh come on! It's just a question of being observant; words or no words. If people are about to sing another verse, their shoulders rise, their mouths assume a figure 'O' (like this ) as they suck in breath, they look at the words, they hold their books at reading length/height and stand still by and large. If they are about to finish, the converse occurs. Their shoulders fall, their mouths assume a closed position (like this ), they stop looking at the words, they start gazing around, they close the hymn book and they start to fidget. A word of warning however. People watching in church is fine, but avoid staring at:- a) the very wealthy b ) young nubile ladies c) boy choristers d) the clergy (they have a habit of miming or being inattentive during hymns) e) handsome servers f) anyone carrying a white stick or with a labrador by their feet g) very old people, who may be about to cough or spit-out a humbug Restrict all gazes to no more than three seconds, and never gaze at the same person twice, even if your intentions are honourable. If you do find yourself introducing a phantom verse, press piston eight as you conclude with a full-cadence, shouting, "Praise the lord!" They will understand. MM

At last, a decent recording of the magnificant Rieger-Kloss organ of St James', Prague, with lots of pretty pictures of various instruments in Europe. The organist is Irena Chřibková, obviously playing Toccatas and things. My type of organ. MM

=========================== I didn't actually know that pneumatic-action was used for the pedal organ, so I've learned something. It just seems to have been there all my life, with bits of re-voicing here and there. As David suggests, the present balanced-action is that installed by Marcussen, and it does feel good in spite of the length of the runs. MM

======================= Exactly what I said to Piet Kee at Haarlem. How they've put up with 300 years of clanking old action, I do not know. MM

=========================== I think he likes to hear himself write. Precogitations of mellifluous prose; cause many a man their eyes to close. Ten words, not one; the descriptive purple; best cut by nine, for fear of urple. MM

============================ Carlo does go on a bit doesn't he? Bless him! I 'm glad that I originally said much the same thing using considerably less words. MM

============================ No mate, definitely 'andel. Better than Mendelssohn's "Zadok the priest" anyday. MM

============================= Eureka! That's what we need....a bit of gung-ho Christianity accompanied by a bit of gung-ho organ-playing. If it gets rid of "Shine Jesus shine," bring Songs of Praise back yesterday. MM

We've got the organ in bits at Holy Joe's, Keighley; or at least some of it. Since God was a boy, there's been a bit of a problem with drawing the Pedal Bourdon, which has always been very stiff. Last year, the diagnosis of a rapidly failng Pedal Bourdon seemed to centre around slider-seals, and the possibility that some had come unstuck and moved about a bit. Following the application of a little logic, it eventually became apparent that the problem was not just one of slider-seals, for by inching the stop in and out, certain pipes came back on speech while others fell almost silent. There is undoubtedly a slider-seal problem, because there is an element of leakage with various wind hisses to be heard without stops drawn, but it seems that the greater problem is that of the stop-linkage. Being "werkprinzip" in style, the pedal organ is divided, and it seems that there is lost motion in the transfer of movement from left to right, resulting in the slides being out-of-sync. As the stop action converts to about half an inch of twisting motion applied to a vertical metal rod, it follows that there must be an element of "gearing-up" at the slides, and I'd like to bet that there is a problem at the fulcrum of the C# slider operating lever. It demonstrates, I think, how the diagnosis of a problem may appear to be one thing, and then turn out to be something quite different. Hopefully, all will be well within a week or two, with the fitting of new seals and whatever needs to be done to the stop mechanism. 'Til than, it's all Stanley and Walond I'm afraid. MM

============================== I find that I am able to respond to Liam's latest post with a hint of relish, because he opened up an almost forgotten memory. I was 14 and the organ was about 84 years of age, never having been touched. (The organ that is!) Bearing in mind that I was, at this point, a self-taught beginner, the fact that I was hurriedly called in to replace an elderly organist who had suddenly died, meant that I was thrown in at the deep-end. To make matters worse, this particular service was a confirmation, at which a number of local choirs were to sing. So not only was I faced with a big service, a strange organ and massed choirs, I somehow had to provide voluntaries. Remembering this, I find myself smiling, because I do recall playing Handel's "War march of the priests" as an entrance. (The Bishop of Bradford commented about it afterwards). The organ was a nightmare, having been built by Hughes of Bradford. It had very powerful reeds, with every possible sub and octave couplers, but using too many at the same time resulted in the whoie organ vibrating violently and sounding out of tune. I've never quite come across a similar phenomenon, and it took a little time to adjust to what did and didn't work properly. Fortunately, the hymns went well and the anthem, being unaccompanied, didn't present a problem. Imagine my delight when I was given £10, at a time when a packet of fags cost 2s 6p. (About 13p in to-day's money). On the strength of this triumph, I was appointed Organist & Choirmaster by the Church Council in the absence of a vicar during the interegnum. My next ordeal was to play for the induction of the new vicar, who turned out to be a bit odd-ball; he being the "Witchfinder General" for the Diocese of York prior to his induction, and who was known for having an interesting line in exorcisms. His wife was an ARCO, and it served the new vicar's purposes handsomely that almost his first task was to sack me and install his wife at the console; immediately doubling an already generous stipend. In some ways, he did me a favour, for within a very short time, I was appointed as O & C at the senior parish church in the local deanery, with a fine, recently re-built organ and an awful lot of weddings to play for. I must have been the wealthiest kid in school at that time, with an average of 3 to 4 weddings every Saturday in Spring/Summer. (That's like a 15 year old earning £180 per week to-day, plus the usual church stipend). When the "Witchfinder General" suddenly died of a heart-attack, I rather churlishly declined the invitation to play the organ for his funeral. If I'd been capable of playing Lemare's transcription of "Danse Macabre" I would certainly have re-considered my position. If nothing else, my earliest memories as an organist served to warn me of church politics and double-dealing. MM

============================= Haven't organists been doing that for centuries? In more recent times, I can think of Indian influences on Messaien, Arabic influences on Petr Eben, Japanese influences in certain American organ works and all manner of other "foreign" influences. It's not so long ago that I suggested that Japanese melody could combine with impressionistic French modality to great effect. We are prophets and pioneers without realising it. I'm not in the least surprised that no one sings the folk music. The youth of to-day would be totally turned off by it....they have their own garbage. Music can be so depressing. I played a bit of Whitney Houston to a local kid to-day, and he gave the blankest of looks and said, "Does she have to sing so loud?" He went on his way attempting to make up some 'Gangsta Rap' words, but got stuck with a suitable rhyming word to 'situation.' We are doomed! MM

============================= I'd like to see a "folk group" tell me what I had to play! (At this point, I tried to find the "angry" Gif....not available) (Insert your own Gif, consisting of a little face with a dagger in its mouth ) I think I shall start a new movement, which seeks to banish any music older than ten years, so as to appeal to the yuff of to-day. To me, there is nothing worse than the bleeding heart piety of religious "folk music," usually sung and strummed by hippies of a certain age; all wearing wool in some deathly earth-colour, flat shoes and no make-up. Amusingly, someone once asked me if I could possibly write a worship song. In the time it took for a modest sermon, I had written the words, sketched out a really catchy tune and could improvise the rest after morning mass. The person who asked was beside themselves with joy, but I can say with absolute certainty, that it was total garbage from beginning to end; both musically and theologically. The sad thing is, I knew they would love it. I'm afraid I have little time for religion which wallows in mawkish sentimentality, milk and honey....opium is apparently far more effective, though a little expensive. I find myself agreeing with Liam, because "Songs of Praise" is a fine tome, yet it never truly caught on as it should have done. MM

=================================== Our priest regularly has "ethnic moments," so we have to sing a hymn to the tune of "O Danny boy," which of course commences on the leading note. As I haven't the music, I just busk it. In fact, coming to think of it, I busk most things these days. Unhindered by a choir, (what a terrible admission), I am able to busk on the fly, which may sound like a village on the Welsh Borders, but which is absolutely necessary in order to correct the utterly iliterate harmonisations contained in the hymn book. I would love to meet the "musicians" responsible for these master-works, and then give them a good, hard slap. Do they have any musical education at all, I wonder? It isn't just hymn books, because the same problem actually pervades the entire liturgical "settings" of the parish mass, which in most examples, wouldn't even have got a pass in GCSE (GCE?) O-level music. It's a sorry state of affairs when even pop music is better written and better harmonised, but in many instances it is. Now, "when I were a lad," I cannot recall a single flaw or a bad harmonisation in several hymn-books with which I came into contact. Ancient & Modern, The English Hymnal, the Methodist Hymn Book, Songs of Praise....all of them were superbly well crafted, irrespective of whether the tunes were good, bad or indifferent. I hesitate to name and shame any particular publishers, but be it sufficient to say that in order to throw rocks, it may first be necessary to hew them. MM PS: Perhaps hymn books make better missiles than rocks.