headcase
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Posts posted by headcase
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It looks glorious. If it sounds half as well as it looks, St.John's is a very lucky college indeed.
Imagine going from a 1970s HN&B rebuild of a 20s H&H to that!!!
yeah...but with about the same amount of kopex, by the look of it !!
H
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I, too have been a victim of 'sermon slumber'...last weekend our NSM was preaching and she is usually worth hearing but a late night, a very warm church and the comforting words of 'footprints in the sand' proved too much. I remember hearing the first line or so and awoke with a start as the incumbent announced the offertory hymn. Lucky the hymn book was open at the right page and since I am seated well out of sight of all but the clergy, I think I got away with it.
Short survey :
How long does it take your eyes to focus when urgently required ?
H
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If you want to include more detail than the booklet allows, how about posting it to a website - plenty of room for photos, biography, registration, blah blah blah ?
H
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Guilmant, Rheinberger, Dupré and Heiller all spring to mind. The Heiller is rather good but rarely heard these days.
DGW's recent (2000/2001) recording of the Poulenc and Barber (ECO/David Hill, Linn CKD178) also contains a Concertino for organ+strings+percussion by Pierre Petit, which is quite fun.
Oddly this CD was initially released in a version all conducted by Raymond Leppard (Linn CKD160) . It was then withdrawn and re-released with David Hill conducting the Poulenc. I have both copies on my shelf.
H
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Through a family member, I have been made aware of a large Grade II chapel, galleried and seating up to 600, plus adjoining halls, which is soon to be redundant, and likely to be put on the market. Location is in very central Trowbridge, Wilts, a flourishing town with good road and rail connections.
The chapel contains a pleasant II/P organ, in pretty reasonable condition, situated on the gallery above the pulpit.
The building might be suitable for residential conversion or light industrial purposes, or a combination of both ? That's something that would need to be established by any interested parties.
The complex of buildings is not in the best state of repair and it is likely that the selling price would reflect this.
If anyone is genuinely interested, please PM me and I will put you in touch with the right person for further discussion.
H
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Do the packing labels suggest a point of origin, or which regional railway carried the goods. This might yield some clue ?
H
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Many composers have favoured formulae for composition.
Could one not accuse J S Bach of being formulaic ? What sets his work apart is the breadth of invention within the disciplines of the selected format.
With me, a little Rutter goes a long way but fellow singers do seem to find his music very singable.
H
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My thought ... 'Tuba' is so much easier to engrave on a stop knob. Euphonium is just asking for trouble.
H
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Tuners/organ builders normally refer to sharps only. Never assume all tuners can read music - notes in the tuning book are best denoted c1, c#2 etc., rather than scribbled staff notation.
The old English system of notation, which I happen to like, changes at each G - like this...
32ft octave
CCCC CCCC# DDDD, DDDD# EEEE FFFF FFFF# GGG# AAA AAA# BBB
16ft octave
CCC CCC# DDD DDD# EEE FFF FFF# GG GG# AA AA# BB
8ft octave
CC CC# DD DD# EE FF FF# G G# A A# B
4ft octave
c c# d d# e f f# g g# a a# b
Confusingly, Hill adopted the German system where B=Bb and a natural sign denoted b natural.
H
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I'm glad I'm not alone...
Battleships, locomotives, industrial engineering, classic sports cars, aviation - all meat and drink to me.
And (pedantically) it's Bishop Eric Treacey
H
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10-70 Worshipper arrested for destruction of chamades
(10-69 omitted for reasons of fidelity...)
H
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What is a metronome?
MM
Didn't someone with your initials have something to do with it, MM ?
H
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My nomination for loudest organ - Frome Parish Church. In the early '80's, the console was equipped with headphones, which fed back sound from a pair of mics on the screen. Without the headphones one couldn't possibly hear the congregation in the nave. Unusually, the Swell soundboard had an extra octave of pipes for each rank so that the Swell octave coupler didn't stop dead at c49, rather like the Holdich diocton coupler.
Anyone of you west-country yokels know if the organ is still there/used ??
H
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Ah, but which one? Gerald Knight, Douglas Hopkins, Sidney Campbell, Allan Wicks - doctors all!
Campbell seems the likeliest culprit, not least because I heard him do it at least once. This was long before Peter Williams published his article, but the reasoning was the same - namely that in a large Bach work, ending on a major chord is (while not out of the question) so very much more likely.
...ha ha - how right you are ! 'twas the last on your illustrious list.
H
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Sounds to me like someone had been doing their homework. Just out of interest, are you able to put a year to this recital, roughly?
No, I can't put a year to it - my organ tutor is sadly no longer with us. Said performer was the good Doctor, DoM at the Archbishop's seat in the Garden of England...though the actual performance may not have been there.
H
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How do we judge great performers ?
There are great RECORDED performances and there are great LIVE performances.
I find the great recorded performances are those that are technically accurate and respectful of the score, executed with obvious understanding of structure, instrument and building, conveyed without excessive gestures that wouldn't bear repeated listening.
In the greatest live performances, small mistakes are easily forgiven, there is still the respect and understanding but the playing is shaped to the audience, the building, the mood of the moment, a greater freedom of expression to affect the emotions of the listener. Such gestures, though right at the time, can seem overdone with hindsight. I remember my organ teacher recounting a recital in which the (then eminent cathedral) organist ended BWV 565 in D major... it shocked and delighted the audience but, my word, THAT wouldn't bear repeated listening, would it ?
H
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.... the Grand Prix had ended at the nearby Mangy Cours circuit.
Mangy ? Shome mishtake, shurely ? Or is it an MM version of Franglais ?
H
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I've just learn't, via another forum, that Stephen Bicknell passed away at the weekend.
The organ world has lost another pivotal figure.
H
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There's also a recording of him playing on the big Klais at Altenberg (I think) including a transcription of Danse Macabre - an amazing sound with chamades all over the place, celestes and even a glock. I'd love to know if that were on CD - I've got it as an LP but have not seen it reissued anywhere.
AJJ
It is! MITRA CD16176
H
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The organ of St Asaph Cathedral has a 32' reed named "Sarff" (Welsh for "Serpent").
Graham
Pronounced as in "Sarff London" ?
H
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How easy would it be to transcribe the Resphigi for organ ? It's a fine piece.
H
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I, too, use Capella. Easy to use and very flexible when it comes to choosing the number of staves required. I would recommend it to anyone and I've also found the support from Software Partners prompt and efficient.
H
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In a Liturgical context I would be content to use a P & F to frame the service, i.e., on Trinity Sunday, Prelude in Eb before and 'St Anne' Fugue after, in the same way that these pieces frame the Clavierubung.
Doubtless there are many other pairings that could be used this way. The Great B minor BWV544 springs to mind.
H
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Unnecessary interpolations (including announcing hymns) in liturgical services irritate me beyond!
Quite agree - new priest introduced a new system, which puts me in control of hymns...
He makes his welcome speech and then suggests quiet prayerful preparation, which is only terminated by my playover when I see the procession is ready. Gradual hymn follows the readings...I start when I see the readers walking back (I can make them scurry for their burrows!). Offertory hymn follows The Peace - for maximum destructive effect wait until everyone's hopelessly out of position and then begin playover (rabbit caught in headlights moment). Only the final hymn is announced to allow flexibility for notices/short digest of junior church activities, etc., and even this only with the words "we stand to sing our final hymn."
I agree with
slight rall in playovers
last verse harmonisations (if tasteful)
last verse modulations
longer twiddly intro's on special occasions
last line intro's for certain hymns (Repton, Woodlands, Michael, etc)
occasional verses unaccompanied (but I do warn the choir!)
no rall at ends of verses except last
not being frightened of silence (if your communion voluntary/motet finishes early)
H
New Oxford Aubertin
in Nuts and bolts
Posted
I stand corrected - perhaps it is lead conveyancing.
Lashings of humble pie, etc etc !
H