andyorgan

I couldn't agree more. 4 has a couple of good movements, as does 8 (excellent finale, and that ravishing slow movement with the double pedalling, or is that 7). The one that I think works best as a whole, is 6, and I don't think that the last movement is that banal, as one previous contributor put it.

There's quite a big rambling chunk in the middle of the last movement of the 6th which I manfully struggled to learn (its very fiddly), and I went to hear Gillian Weir play it, and her edition just missed it out (unlikely she chose to miss it out because she found it difficult!). The orchestral version of the same movement also omits it. To say I was a bit cheesed off was an understatement!

I haven't got both versions I own to hand, but from what I remember, in the Toccata it is the articulation that differs. The long held high F at the end is also ommitted from the early version I have. To list a few changes in the 1st movement: (Dover (which doesn't have bar numbers!)/the more modern French published one) -MM 76 / 69 -pedal in bar 3 and similar places first two notes ar staccato / slurred -5 bars before 1st time bar, 3rd beat chord of A flat / has an added G flat in it -just before variation 2, no change in tempo / addition of Adagio -varation 4 is marked for 16' and 4' in the pedal / pedal 8' only (this one makes quite a difference) -at the scherzando there are some differences in the octave placement of the As in the pedal (some have the ped part above the bottom of the left hand) -there are various other additions of dynamics and occasioanl changes of manuals and some met marks and tempo changes that are different The one that has always puzzled me is just after the last key change back to F minor. In the second bar after this, instead of playing the Fs in the pedal twice, Ian Tracey changes the second one to an F flat. I rather like it (and confess to having played it once or twice), but I haven't found an edition which has it in yet. Any offers?

I'll get shot down for this, I know, but I use one of the early editions pub by Dover. I don't have any issues with clarity, good paper and well bound. You also get 5 symphonies in each volumer for about £12, as opposed to those hideoulsy overpriced French modern editions (I Have, it was £25 a while ago). There are some differences that may be worth noting, I went through my score and pencilled in some of the later changes, there's quite a few in the first movement of % and the last movement of 6.

I can't find the Lemare one, and I thought all of his transcriptions were here: https://www.wayneleupold.com/frameset.asp?s...olos_trans.html

His keyboard interpretations may have been great, but his Brandenburg recordings are the slowest and most turgid on record. However, I agree with all the other positive comments about him. As an avid 'tape' collector in my teenage years, I have many recordings by the man.

I forgot I have a CD called Organ at the Opera from Australia which is all duet stuff. Mostly transcriptions (William Tell, I've always thought this would be easier with at least three hands), but a rather intruiging set of variations of duetting pedals (is that the right term?) based on 'Waltzing Matilda'. I guess you really have to know you partner here, and much of the novelty would be in the watching, rather than the listening.

I know of an organ in Guildford that had the MIDI fitted and the organ was left playing scales for 24 hours to really run the instrument in after it had had some work done to it. I remember one of the organs at the old Addington Palace had some sort of MIDI sequencer fitted, and as a 15 year old spent (back in the 80s) a morning trying to master a particularly difficult piece of Bach, recording it, then adding the pedals live.

Thank's for this so far, but keep it coming. Does anyone know what sort of toaster it is, and whether there are firm plans for a pipe organ. Enquiries at the college have drawn a blank so far.

I'm not sure how often Robert is 'on' here, but congrats on the new disc (your last from Truro?) of Paul Spicer's organ music. Anyone looking for something to spend idle pennies on and prepared to try something a little different, give it a try.

Does anyone know or play this regularly? I was looking something up on the NPOR the other day while researching something, and it seems to imply that there is an electronic there at the moment. Is it being used regularly, or is the pipe organ still in use? http://npor.emma.cam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch...ec_index=N12459

As one of the regulars on the recital list, I can heartily endorse this series. You can't get away with very much quiet music, though the flutes are so good, even they cut through the noise of the coffee shop. First timers at organ recitals there are always very pleasant when they come up and chat afterwards, asking lots of questions etc, its quite a privilege to play. The real fun hoever, is when the place is shut during practice the night before!! The thumb pistons are of the awkward lozenge variety, and they aren't settable, deliberaely being left on Lewis' settings, and attempts to add generals/any sort of player friendly aids were fiecly resisted in the last refurb.

Me, me, me, pick me sir!!!! I promise to practice the pedals for weeks.........

Can't lay my hands on the book right at the moment, but I think it is called something like, music for pedals, or pedal solo music. The helpful man at Allegro might be worth contacting. How do you reply to two posts in the same post?.......

The Soler are great fun. Me and a uni pal gave a recital for music for two organs at one of the first Paisley festivals. Threre's a volume in that English Organ Music series (ed Langley?) which you can get on reprint. We also played a piano duet version of both the Mozart F minor Fantasias and they worked really well as a duet (I know there were an organ piece, then a piano duet etc.). There's a good Briekopf little book of pieces for pedals, one of which is a duet version of the blue danube. You have to know your duet partner very well, or at least, not mind getting to know them....

You should see the forthcoming changes at GCSE/AS and A2, i wondered how hard it would be to water down water, but that is in fact, what we're getting. For the kids I teach, they learn far more outside the classroom than they do in it. Choir, even the Jazz Band and the improv skills are much more worthy, ditto trips out to live concerts. I do take the point about serialsim though, we do OCR and I've been amazed at how a number of kids have latched on it in a positive way. I think its becasue its SO far removed from anything familiar. The same can be said when we've listened to people like Ligeti, to name but one.

Does anyone know what's happenning here? http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/showJob.asp?i...nd%20Layworkers

Well, on the subject of toasters, when reading about this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/JOHANNUS-OPUS-20-CLA...1QQcmdZViewItem it says that the owner is moving to a Hauptwerk Virtual Organ, and he is building his own console. I haven't come across this before, can anyone offer a brief explanation? Does anyone know where this is, or know what the stoplist is? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Church-Pipe-Organ_W0...1QQcmdZViewItem

After some earlier posts about the Howells, I got my copy out today for a play through to remind my self why I never learnt the whole thing. And then I remembered; the 1st movement. I just can't make any sense of it at all. The second movement is fine, just sounds a bit like one of the Psalm Preludes, in fact I'm sure if you dug out a suitable verse from the psalms and programmed it as such, you'd probably get away with it. Even the fugue in the last movement is half decent, but that first movement..... I also took the trouble to remind myself why I never bothered with the Stanford SOnatas, and the only reason I have them is because they were cheap in a second hand shop. Too long!! However, the Bairstow remains up there with the best of them.

I was once asked to play this during the communion at a Roman Catholic wedding. The priest said I wasn't allowed, so had to disguise it in a sort of improvisatory baroque style chorale preulde. Sounds like a horrid suggestion, but the priest didn't recognise the tune, but all the rockers in the bridal party did. Success!

Very briefly: Bairstow: Sonata, better as a whole than the Elgar, though nothing to beat the 1st movement of the Elgar If there has to be a second place, the Hollins C major overture (far better than the C minor) Perhaps we need a separate catergory for British minatures (in which members have already voiced preferences for the Thalben-Ball Elegy). Can I start the ball rolling with Leighton's CP on 'Rockingham', much under-rated?

Light beyond shadow? (or something like that). I have the St Alb CD as well. It never feels quite right being sung by boy choristers and lay-clerks?

Thank you so much for these. Very sorry to see the bottom picture. I passed the other side of St Mark's off Meanwood Road over Christmas, and from there you could see it was overgrown! I must pop into All Souls next time I'm up. I wonder if news of the organ resurfacing in Suffolk is any closer?

I did last year! Played it as an encore in a couple of recitals that included the Bach G major among other things. Its a sort of home produced arrangement based on the Shearing version.

By two choirs, do you mean one choir plus men? We did it a few years ago at Ely at the MMA conference, but I have a feeling we all bought copies.