MusingMuso

======================== I don't think it would be so difficult; I mean, this is Hollywood territory. Enter 'Batman & Robin' with buckets and sponges. "Jumpin' Jehosava Batman! Look at that glass!" "This calls for Holy Water, Robin!" MM

Here's something slightly different:- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzCPfJBJbqw and........an equally unusual technique. (Unfortunately played on an infernal electronic) I'm sure he would make a fine juggler. MM

======================== Would YOU want to be the one responsible for cleaning the windows with all that incense? MM

I don't know why this suddenly sprung to mind, but perhaps it was the fact that institutions, by their very nature, tend to be exclusive and evil. However, Stephen Fry tells the story about the time he visited the Mormon Tabernacle, and joined a group of people on a tour. The lady guide, (of a certain age), suggested that the Mormons believed that in the after life, families would be re-united in heaven. Stephen Fry raised his hand and asked, "What happens if you're good?" Everyone was trying not to laugh, and turning on him, the lady said, "Would you leave please." MM

=================== Exactly so, and of course, the Reubke was written with the organ in mind, and therefore fits naturally under fingers and toes. The problems with the Reubke, I found, were those of absolute control and the dual means of his writing expression marks, which require an awful lot of real interpretation. Broadening this slightly, another work which I learned for a recital, was the "Noel Variations" by Dupre, even though I don't generally play a lot of French music; preferring German romantic music instead. I guess Dupre must have had very large hands, because it caused me a few sleepless episodes close to the date, and something of a frantic dash towards the end of the practice regime. I think that anyone who can play a work by Dupre has potential, and anyone who can play two works deserves a French medallion of honour. Those who play more are just showing off. This reminds me of a German friend I had at university, who on hearing me play some music by Gigout, turned to me and said, "Zer is only one good zing to zay about zer French music, and zat is zat you know exactly where you stand, for you always know zat it wass written by a peasant!" MM

======================== The final comment is similar to a slogan Prof. Brian Newbould used to have on the music department notice-board at Hull University. It read, "Never leave anything unfinished," to which some nameless wag had replied, "...or some bum academic will do it for you." Brian Newbould finished Schubert's unfinished, of course. MM

================================== For some strange reason, this strikes a chord with me, so-to-speak. Somehow, I just feel that Peter and Mendelssohn's music would be right for each other.....never pompous or bombastic, entirely musical, rarely showy, frequently charming and with an undeniably straightforward honesty about it. That seems to describe Peter rather nicely, at least to those of us who had the privilege of enjoying his company. MM

Beautiful! Everything Jos van der Kooy touches always seems so right, and that superb organ makes you wonder why Mendelssohn ever came to England at the time. Thank you for posting, even if I did almost end up dating a Chinese lady, MM

===================== I'm glad Colin has responded; not because he agrees with me, but because it highlights the challenges certain pieces present. Amusingly, I think it took me twice as long to learn the Schumman no.2 B-A-C-H fugue as it did the whole of the Reubke!!!! MM

I'm sure this isn't the appropriate place to discuss the murky politics and finances of the C-C, because there is plenty to see on-line about it. For me, the real sadness is to see how a once rather inspired music/worship formula has now largely gone, and how those who dedicated their lives to the particular mission of that church have been badly let-down by unfolding events. From our point of view, I trust that we can lament the downgrading of the music, which included a full orchestra, a fine choir, a superb pianist and, of course, Frederick Swann at the huge organ; not to mention some of the star soloists and instrumentalists who appeared regularly. I really cannot see it happening elsewhere; leaving just the Mormon Tabernacle as the only alternative voice; assuming that one can even begin to believe in so many of their articles of faith. MM

Continuing with Respighi, who has ever heard of his Suite in G major for Organ & Strings? Of course, the whole world knows this, don't they? The above is Reger at his most challenging and even musically perverse; re-writing Bach's no.9 Two Part Invention by adding a third part to create a Trio.. This is music for the fearless and ambitious student. MM

I've been musing again. Two thoughts occured to me, which take the form of questions. What repertoire should we know that we don't? More importantly, why don't we know it? It really started when I wanted to remind myself of the music of Antalffy-Zsiross; the Hungarian composer. I was particularly keen to find a recording of his "Minnesang," which is one of the most beautiful quiet pieces I've come across. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kI-Jt8XBCRo However, on another thread, the mention of Herbert Howells and Vaughan Williams sent me on a bit of a search, as I reminded myself of the Italian Vaughan-Williams, Ottorino Respighi. What beautiful music he wrote, but then I discover that he wrote music for the organ, as well as organ with other instruments. I found myself immersed in a world of beautiful Italian melody and fascinating transcriptions of Bach by Max Reger. It prompted a bit of a stroll along unknown and largely overlooked highways and byways, and it was like walking down a country lane of a Sunday summer afternoon; delightful in the extreme. So I thought I'd share some of these "finds" with everyone, and hope that they inspire. Unfortunately, the new format only allows a limited number of video links per post, as they automatically form full size links, so I will have to perform multiple posts. To start with, a couple of Preludes from Ottorino Respighi; one loud and one gentle:- More to follow........ MM

============================ Long overdue; thought the reeds were not absolutely top-drawer quality by and large. Hopefully, the same revival of interest might also include Charles Brindley and Isaac Abbott; two of the other very significant northern buidlers active around the same time. There is to be found in the organs of these three builders, IMHO, the basis for a whole new potential and future direction in British organ-building. MM

Looks the same! That's very sneaky of them. You're right Barry, because I checked the dates on the YouTube vidoes, which pre-date the new organ. However, I did find this, which allows a bit of a poke around the organ and a few sounds to be heard. http://www.landeszeitung.tv/nc/lokales/video/album/galerie/bardowicks-neue-dom-orgel/ If you click on the little magnifiying glass, it comes up in a new window. MM PS: You can trust me on the train and bus times.

============================ Oh dear! I think this is what you want............... Before I stop investigating, does anyone need the airport departures, bus and train times? MM

====================================== If you'd said the "Inferno," we'd have understood! It is a bit obtuse and perverse in equal measure, and if it is played brilliantly, it's just such hard work listening to it; that much I concede The Fugue is more tolerable because it is grounded in something. In a way though, It possibly demonstrates how important themes and motifs are, and where would the harmony of Wagner be without them? Reger was at his best when he was variously using chorale melody, fugue or passacaglia form, and with all those, he created organ masterworks which withstand comparison with Bach. Considering his enomous output, it would be difficult to imagine any composer creating works of equal musical success and stature; especially since he sits at an awkward time in the development of western music, when everything was suddenly thrown into the melting-pot. Was he as great as Bach himself? I'm not sure I know the answer, but I think I can say with some certainty that his music is much less approachable, and therefore much less memorable. Perhaps the music of Reger should be a matter for careful selectivity, but I suspect that few would argue that some of the quieter Chorale Preludes, the D minor Toccata & Fugue, the (shorter) Introduction & Passacaglia and, of course, "HGZL" are wonderfully wrought works, which do not require the listener to go into training and/or take pills before hearing them. MM

I'm probably the first to see this on the board, and sometimes it pays not to say a lot. Quite simply, we have just lost one of the greatest musicians, organists and improvisers of all time, and he will be sorely missed. RIP Gerry, and thank-you. MM

========================= I would hate to get into a note by note account of anything by Howells, but even I can sing the verious "unchained" (unfathomable?) melodies from the the Set 1 No.1 Rhapsody. The trick seems to be to think up a tune about as adventurous as "Baa Baa Black sheep," splitting it up into individual lines and repeating each a couple of times while modulating in whatever direction takes your fancy; the harmony slithering about with the sort of classic, HEAVILY CHROMATIC side-slips, of which the Bentley Boys and the Battle of Britain Spitfire pilots would have been proud!! The compositional "technique" then seems to consist of losing one's direction completely, in a mass of CHROMATIC HARMONY, before remembering a few notes of the original nursery rhyme and throwing them in again, just to keep everything recognisable: all the time getting louder or softer as the muse dictates. So much for Set 1 No.1 What about "Master Tallis's Testi...sorry...Testament?" Are we saying there is not melody? God knows how I manage to remember it if there isn't. It's obvious to me that Herbert Howells listened to Resphigi and liked what he heard, because there are certain similarities in the treatment of what sounds like an old melody. For once, Mr Howells seems to have moderated his chromatic tendencies; possibly because he found a beautiful melody instead. I am just totally bemused by the idea of Reger being HEAVILY CHROMATIC all the time. The "Hallelujah! Gott zu loben!" hardly shifts from E-minor/G major. Furthermore, the notation is quite economical, and whilst the Fugue is complex, the main part of the work is quite a straightforward set of variations. Indeed, it is more direct and approachable than even the Brahms organ Prelude & Fugue in G minor IMHO. MM

======================= I'm not moving the goalposts at all; merely establishing which game they belong with. In some way, if you take the geatest composers, there are similar differences. Compare, for instance, the music of Brahms with that of Ravel; both among my top favourite composers. Brahms utilised classical formality harking back to Beethoven and Bach, whereas Ravel wrote in a much freer style altogether; often with exquisite harmonies as well as incredible virtuosity, inventiveness and fluidity. Saint-Seans belongs to another tradition altogether; perhaps more German than French, and very much a part of the "academic" set which included Guilmant. Perhaps I should know more about Howells, but I don't feel deprived that I do not. To me, the problem is one I would associate with a great deal of English music, in so much as the melodic takes precedence over everything else, and whatever counterpoint exists, is a combination of voice-leading and harmonic consenance. The fact that I can more or less improvise in the style of Howells, suggests to me that he started with melody, which was then clothed in late romantic harmony, but with a certain delight in temporary key-changes, almost for the sake of it. You don't have to take my word for it however, for I think it was Edmund Rubbra who stated that the biggest problem with English composers was a tendency to constantly change key. If you do that with late romantic (Wagnerian) harmony, what you get is something akin to dissonance and twelve-tone music, but melodic structuring can keep this within acceptable bounds; as can rhythmic motifs and chordal counterpoint....Messaien for example. Now I can never quite understand why people consider Reger dull, for in essence, with the organ-works, he restricted himself to classical, contrapuntul forms and adopted the extremes of late romantic/chromatic diatonic harmony....and then some. Unless musicians understand that his works are essentially melodic, (in that the thematic material is dominant and the linear drive is essentially that of vocal, arching phrases), then it is all too easy to get bogged down in the "cleverness" of his counterpoint. In this, he does not differ from Bach or Brahms in the slightest, yet the harmonies, if played too vertically, can kill the melodic and contrapuntal structures. As with Bach, the cleverness, (unless Bach and Reger were making an academic point), SHOULD go almost unnoticed, as indeed it does with Brahms. Digressing slightly, how many organists can really play Reger? In my lifetime, I had the enormous privilege of hearing Germani perform Reger, and also other great exponents, such as Melville Cook, Jos van der Kooy, Simon Preston and Brian Runnet, while even on radio, I can still recall my response to performances by Anton Heiller and Heinz Wunderlich. They all have or had one thing in common, which is that rare ability to keep the thematic/melodic material centre stage, no matter what else is going on. They all projected or project a rhythmic/melodic freedom, where rubato is at least, (if not more) important than changes of dynamics. Knowing "Hallelujah! Gott zu loben!" pretty darned well, I did a bit of a survey from various sources.....records, CD's, radio archives etc. Out of perhaps 15 or more recordings, I came to the conclusion that 3 of them were supremely musical, and the rest were just dull and/or musically clumsy. Germani still came out in top position, (as one might expect), a lady organist of Taiwanese origins was next, and Murray Somerville didn't disappoint. Unfortunately, I couldn't find on-line recordings of Heinz Wunderlich or Simon Preston, but I feel sure that they would be on a par with the very best. It's so tempting to get bogged down with the detail, (where the Devil clearly lies in Reger), and to marvel at the formal contrapuntal devices such as strict imitation, inversions, fugue, stretto (etc etc), but if the wild, rhapsodic nature of the music is lost, you may as well do something useful and light the fire with the score. I'm sure Herbert Howells had facility, but it was nothing as compared with Reger. MM

============================== No, no,no! That's called imitation, unless I've overlooked a double-fugue he wrote. Please tell me there IS one. MM

====================== Don't tempt me! I once did a spoof Reger in the style of Herbert Howells. You keep the harmony but do away with the counterpoint; adding lots of passing notes instead, just so people know something is going on and it's not a problem with the organ. MM

======================== In a recent PM to a member of the board, I stated that have a golden rule with Reger. I treat it exactly as if it were urtext Bach....no metronome markings and no tempo indications of any kind. I let the notes speak to me, and I choose what I regard as the right tempo. That way, it is possible to be first a musician, and then something of a reluctant virtuoso; assuming that one gets at least most of the notes right and in the right order. Of course, it's possible to miss a few out by drawing extra stops!! MM PS: I've always felt tempted to record a "5 minute Reger" video, like those splendid Shakespeare plays. It would save a lifetime!

============================ That's a crumb of comfort at least, but I think it emphasises what I've said previously about the power of particular individuals within the church; sometimes used wisely, but often not. MM

================================== I see from the cathedral website, that the the choir is in a "transitional phase." To where, I wonder, are they transiting? MM