jonadkins

Archive of Recorded Organ Music Plenty of treasures to be found here. Have just been enjoying Nicholas Danby from Lubeck/Eton and Nicolas Kynaston's peerless Dupre Deuxieme Symphonie from Westminster Cathedral. 611 subscribers

Our Austin Allegro, of course, became an Austin Adagio, then an Austin Lunga Pausa.

I guess it's down to personal experimentation, but I've always found that playing in socks means I'm more likely to make mistakes, as when playing a "white" note, the ball of the foot is more likely to catch the recessed section of the neighbouring "black" note. I also miss the depth of a shoe's heel for heel playing. I take your point about certain organists whose pedal technique renders the matter of footwear academic. I'm fully convinced that Thomas Trotter could probably play the pedals better in wellington boots than I could in organmasters. Much more pressing than any of the above, though, is the fact that playing without shoes, in an unheated church on a winter's day is b****y chilly!

I couldn't be there, but I was delighted that she played the Frank Martin Passacaille. I know this meant that there were two works of this genre, but it was her party!

Movement : Meditation from 1st Symphony Cohesive whole: Gothique or Romane.

"Evensong" - Easthope Martin!

Thomas Trotter is giving a recital devoted to JA on 31 October this year at Symphony Hall, Birmingham at 1pm: Deux Fantaisies Fantasmagorie Prelude pour l'office de Complies Suite Jannequin variations Deux danses a Agni Yavishta Litanies

Oh I see: this thread on "Congregational reactions" is "What have they been?" rather than "Have you had any?"

What I'm sensing is that it is not so much the music which gets to us so much as the attitude of the people involved. This is certainly true for me. Few of us, I think, expect weddings to be musically groundbreaking, but provided things are gone about in the right way, most of us can put up with the more pedestrian/daft choices on the understanding that it's "their day". I've found that where I play, weddings tend to fall into two categories: i) The couple is pleasant and appreciative , (in most cases local, but not always) they've been to church, so you know who they are, they communicate with you, EVEN if it's to tell you they want "Here comes" (Wagner), "There goes" (Mendelssohn) Jesu Joy, Lord of Dance (after having pointed out the sky turning black on the Friday) and Jerusalem ii) County do's, pushy parents of the couple whom you have never before seen, pushy women (sorry, it is usually women) doing the flowers, more often than not hideously over-the-top lily arrangments on mock stone plinths, braying yahs "Giles, you old b*****d, I haven't seen you since Gstaad" but for all that not a penny in the collection plate... Granted, the music for a"ii" wedding might be marginally more interesting, but overall give me "i", any day of the week.

The closest I've come to seeing anything like this was Gillian Weir, when she was the subject of a South Bank Show, where there was some brief footage of her giving a masterclass in the US. As I recall, she was trying to give a bit more character to the student's opening of BWV 564. Sorry I can't be of any more help, but I think the very best masterclasses are inspiring to all musicians, whatever the instrument. I've recently been enjoying Daniel Barenboim's Beethoven Sonata masterclasses, to the likes of Jonathan Biss and Lang Lang. One of the points he makes is that it is important for pianists to know more than just piano works, conductors to know more than just orchestral repertoire, and so on. I'm sure it's the same for organists!

I, too, miss his contributions. I hope he comes back.

It's easy to mock, but this is right up there with the finest of the First world war poets, namely Pte. Baldrick. Indeed, this hymn could even BE from his oeuvre. Whilst it breaks new ground in terms of metre, in other respects the stark, minimalist hallmarks are there: consider the classic "Wartime guns": Boom, boom, boom, boom, Boom, boom, boom! Boom, boom, boom, boom... ...how his superior, Capt. Blackadder, was able to predict how the second stanza concluded is anybody's guess.

How about a thread for those buildings which are not cathedrals but Abbeys, Priories and Minsters, as well as major parish churches? My votes would go to: Bridlington Priory Hexham & Bath Abbeys

Overall, I think York is a bit of a mish-mash, albeit a very high quality mish-mash. Nevertheless, on the DVD from there, JSW demonstrates the organ, going through all the stages of its evolution, and the Hill pipework is absolutely glorious.

God is good to me God is good to me He gave me lips To eat my chips God is good to me Thankyou very much, goodnight. (By the way, this really IS a hymn. No, really, it is)

Wouldn't a 4' stop be more appropriate for Bonaparte? I'd heard that the 32' Ceaucescu on another european organ developed a cipher, the only way to overcome it was to stage an uprising in Bucharest...

This series of DVDs is a triumph, and the latest offering from Canterbury is certainly no exception. The playing is absolutely first class, and he speaks engagingly and naturally afterwards about the instrument, his enthusiasm for it undimmed by marginal limitations. As for the programme, whilst it may appear not to work "on paper" (3 passacaglias? (passacagliae??)), in performance the pieces were so varied that it actually came off well. I particularly liked his own transcription of the Debussy "Footprints in the snow" piece: at times it reminded me of Vierne, but at others it made me think of Arvo Part...

I attended a recital given by Simon Preston on the Frobenius at Kingston upon Thames. This was the first time I had actually heard SP in the flesh, and wheras I was expecting, and got, wonderful playing, what I was expecting less was a somewhat gallows humour. He played, as one might expect this year, Liszt's Ad nos and some Messiaen. He prefaced this by saying: " I suppose, in a way I should apologise for playing these two composers, as they divide people so much. One either loves it or hates it. The only thing I can say is that the Liszt lasts for half an hour, so those that began by loving it might hate it by the end! Needless to say, given his performance I doubted there would be any who "hated it by the end" but it did make me think of this issue of addressing the audience. Have you heard any classic examples, that were witty, interesting, and enhanced the recital? Any disasters? If you regularly give recitals, do you say anything?

I think the previous posters have steered you in the right direction here, but generally I always find Blackwells in Oxford very helpful and knowledgeable (in particular Peter!) Can I also say how much I miss Allegro (ex of Birmingham)

I just wanted to "bump" this thread back up to the top and ask the original poster how his improvisation is going. I remember I started a similar topic a while ago, wanting to know if there were any "secrets" to improvising, but I suppose in my heart of hearts I knew: 1 - have rules and/or a theme in mind 2 - don't waffle/prevaricate 3 - completely expunge Howells and Messiaen from my mind, because I am not as clever as Howells or Messiaen 4 - don't go on too long or loud 5 - but then, don't be to timid, for this might just lead to 2 above 6 - Don't beat yourself up for not being as good as the very greatest.

I have just bought a wonderful new(ish) recording of the works of Mulet, which I would unhesitatingly commend to fellow board members. Unfortunately, I cannot tell you who the organist is; suffice it to say it is a Priory disc...

Who else remembers the RFH concert on or near her 60th birthday? There were as many people there as I have ever seen at an organ recital. She gave searing performances of, amongst others, the Reubke sonata and the Healey Willan passacaglia; a wonderful evening.

Gaudete?

There is one available actually: http://www.ohscatalog.org/danrotschwei.html I'm not very au-fait with posting links - I hope you can get this to work somehow. Anyway, whilst not as sophisticated in production terms as the Priory DVD's, the quality is perfectly good, and features Roth speaking with great charm about the history of St Sulpice and the organs, before playing two pieces on the Orgue de choeur (itself a masterpiece): Widor's version of the last movement of the St. Matthew passion from "Bach's memento, followed by Widor's Meditation (Symphonie I). He then goes up to the Grand orgue to play an improvisation on Herzlich tut mich Verlangen and Victimae Paschali, O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig from Bach's 18, the first movement of Widor 6, Franck's Priere and a Saint-Saens scherzo. Highly recommended.