ajt
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Posts posted by ajt
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You might want to suggest they try Royston Orme - http://ormatronixorgans.co.uk/. Failing that, temporary Hauptwerk setup?
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Excellent, some new descants to try out - thank you Paul; very generous of you to share.
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I would appreciate opinions about tuning celeste stops.
I prefer them sharp. Do most builders tune them this way? (When the Walker at St. Leonard-at-the-Hythe, Colchester was restored by ex-Walker man Ken Canter, he tuned the celeste flat because he said that Walkers' did it that way. I didn't like it and persuaded him to tune it sharp, as it had been before - a particularly nice one, I always thought).
I've always understand that Celestes were always sharp and Angelicas flat. But I'm ready to be told I'm wrong :-)
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It would be worth looking at how much renting a similar property would cost - then work add that annual cost to your "day" salary, then do the normal tax calculation based on that higher salary. It should give you an idea just how much HMRC will be taking off you.
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It will almost certainly work the same as accommodation in a boarding school. I am not taxed on my accommodation because it is a requirement of my job that I live in during term time. However, other colleagues who do get accommodation onsite but aren't houseparents either pay rent or get taxed. If it can be demonstrated that it's a REQUIREMENT - i.e. you couldn't do your job without it, then you won't get taxed. Unless you're going to be called to play for an emergency service at 3am, I can't see it being the case for an organist's post.
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The genie in the bottle though is Hauptwerk, and I don't think any of the British digital organ building companies are set up to build consoles for Hauptwerk as yet. Meaning that to play a reproduction of a complete and real organ you must either commission a specialist console builder or put the bits together yourself, which I suspect is why it has been perhaps slow to catch on, especially in churches.
Should anyone wish to, do come have a play with our church Hauptwerk installation (Boldre, near Lymington, Hampshire - PM me if likely to be passing by). Proper drawknob console, no computer screens in sight. I would never advocate Hauptwerk over a pipe organ, but I would definitely push Hauptwerk over any other organ substitute. I'm sure that the toaster makers could get something that sounds as good, given a lot of time and a lot of money, but out of the box (assuming you choose the right sampleset), Hauptwerk sounds very good indeed. Converting our toaster to Hauptwerk cost us £2000.
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It has just been announced that Makin acquired Copeman Hart yesterday.
The two companies are to be run as separate entities, though Dr Keith Harrington will be Managing Director of both, and Ernest Hart will remain as a Director of CH.
Interesting - when I had lunch with Ernest a few weeks back (because he was helping me convert our CH toaster to Hauptwerk a job which has transformed the toaster into an instrument), we talked about the future of the company and he said it "was all planned for". I guess this must have been it.
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Hi there, organists,
I would be very grateful if I could receive some advice or guidance how to get into performances, how to start, where to go, who contact etc.
I'm preparing for professional performance diploma, and would like to start performing on public, but I've been living in the UK only for 4.5 years and have no idea where to start. Please, help me. I love organ so much and I want other people to hear its beautiful music, and I love performing (I was doing it a lot in my childhood, performing on the accordion).
Lucia
Whereabouts are you based? I'm sure there's a few people on this forum who might have church posts near you who'd be willing to let you play a voluntary or even a recital?
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This is going to bug me all night; I really can't think of anything of more than 12 stops which has done more than about 30 or 40 years without what I would call significant alteration from its original state. Can you?
St. Mary's, Southampton might just count; 1956 installation, 2 alterations by HWIII in '58 - Vox Humana replaced with a mixture, Claribel Flute replaced with a Gedackt. Does that fit the bill?
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Apologies for raising an issue that isn't directly related to a conventional pipe organ but I don't know any other way of asking a wide spectrum of people who may know.
In anticipation of the dry version of the whole of the Salisbury cathedral Hauptwerk system being released sometime in the next year (hopefully!) does anyone know what sized touch screens Daniel Cook has on his own console, please? My present screens are fine for the Illinois Skinner instrument but I wonder whether they may prove inadequate for the Salisbury instrument. If I am going to need bigger ones I need to start saving!
Thanks.
Malcolm
19" are fine. Anything that does 1280x1024, basically. Why not download the trial and find out?
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Thank you, everyone, that's very helpful. As I feared it looks very much as if the Mayhew volumes would be a false ecomony. There seem to be a few secondhand copies of "Music for a Bride" around, but I see it's another Mayhew book and it sounds as if it has perfect binding with the usual problems that that entails.
The Oxford book looks as if it has most things, though I'm surprised it omits Handel's Largo and Bach's "Sheep may safely graze"; perhaps the younger generations no longer know these.
Also, considering what sparked this whole issue, it would be useful to have Schubert's "Ave Maria". The other day, a bride specifically asked the priest for "Ave Maria", but, when asked which one, could only say, "Oh, I don't know. The usual one!" The Gounod is easly arranged (fortunately I have a nice 2' pedal flute for the melody), but the Schubert is less adaptable and I have better ways to spend my time.
From that point of view, it looks as though the Cramer volumes might be the ones to go for - thanks, AJT. I can't find a list of contents online, but the synopsis of Volume I looks promising. Any chance you could give a few more details, please? Does Volume II contain any music that couples might request?
Off the top of my head, I can't remember what's in which volume, but stuff I use or will use once I've learnt all the dots from them:
Pachelbel's Canon
Mendelssohn A major
Widor V
Widor Marche Pontificale
Lang Tuba Tune
Elgar Pomp Circumstance (no ?? in G)
Charpentier Te Deum
Clarke Trumpet
Purcell Trumpet
Purcell Rondeau
The usual Fireworks suite suspects
Vierne Finale from Symph 1
Grand March from Aida
Queen of Sheba
Jesu Joy
Both Ave Marias
Nun Danket
Stanley Trumpet Vols
Guilmant Grand Choeur in D
and obviously the brainless bride's choice, Wager and Mendelssohn wedding marches.
Ah hah - just found this on the web:
Organist's Wedding Album Vol 1 - Cramer Contents: Bach-Gounod Ave Maria, Bach Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring, Parry Chorale Prelude on 'Melcombe', Karg-Elerg Chorale Improvisation on 'Freu Dich Sehr, O Meine Seele', Pachelbel Canon, Schubert Ave Maria, Faure Apres un Reve, Bach Chorale Prelude on 'Nun Freut Euch, Christen G'Mein' BWV734, Stanley Trumpet Voluntaries 5 and 6 from Opus 6, Handel Minuet from 'Royal Fireworks', Clarke Prince of Denmark's March, Mendelssohn Organ Sonata 2 (3rd movement), Mendelssohn Organ Sonata 3 (1st movement), Wagner Bridal Chorus from ' Lohengrin', Elgar Sonata 2 Op 87a (extract), Charpentier Trumpet Tune (from Te Deum), Purcell Trumpet Tune in D, Verdi Grand March from 'Aida', Handel Hornpipe from 'Water Music', Guilmant Grand Choeur in D Op 18, Handel March from the Overture to the 'Occasional Oratorio', Karg-Elert Chorale Improvisation on 'Nun Danket Alle Gott', Lang Tuba Tune, Mendelssohn Wedding March from 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', Vierne Finale from 'Symphony No 1', Widor Marche Pontificale from 'Symphony No 1', Widor Toccata from 'Symphony No 5'
Organist's Wedding Album Vol 2 - Cramer Contents: Arne Ayre and Gavot, Bach Air (from Suite No 3 in D), Bach Fugue a la Gigue, Bach Sheep may safely graze, Dubois Cantilene Nuptiale, Dubois Grand Choeur in B flat, Elgar Pomp and Circumstance March No 4, Elgar Triumphal March (from Caractacus), Farrar A Wedding Piece, Felton A Little Tune, Handel Air (from Water Music), Handel Arrival of the Queen of Sheba (from Solomon), Handel March (from Scipio), Hollins Trumpet Minuet, Lemare Minuet Nuptiale, Lemmens Fanfare, Mendelssohn War March of the Priests (from Athalia), Nicholas Toccata Giubiloso, Parry Bridal March (from the Birds of Aristophanes), Purcell Rondeau (from Abdelazar), Saint-Saens Benediction Nuptiale, Salome Marche (from Douze Pieces Nouvelles), Smart Postlude in D, Wesley Air (from 12 Short Pieces), Wesley Gavotte (from 12 Short Pieces
And yes, the other volume I referred to was the Music for a Bride. Bit "large print", and reasonably straightforward arrangements.
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2. Assuming I go for the bigger volume, it's bound to be thick. Is it actually practical? How easy is it to keep open on the music desk? Does one need to break/crack the spine. I don't mind doing this, but can the binding take it?
3. How durable is the volume? (Perhaps not too big an issue since it probably won't get used much.)
My experience of Mayhew books is that they're cheap for a reason; poor bindings, won't lie flat, and fall apart quickly. I've not used the wedding volumes you describe, but the 2 or 3 Mayhew organ volumes I have purchased, probably all around 3 years ago, are falling apart. As are the church's music copies of Hymns Old & New. The only Mayhew book I've got which has survived is a collection of Stanford/Parry/Brahms Preludes. It's not great to play from though; won't stay open.
I've got The Organist's Wedding Album Vol I and II (Cramer, maybe?), and they're good, and a collection edited by Noel Rawsthorne that I forget the name of. These have lasted well and contain good music and good arrangements.
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Lots of people seem to rate the Ives 'Salisbury Service'- personally I don't.
I'd agree with all the comments above - Thorne goes down well with congregations. How Gloria is good, the rest not good for congregation (though I like the Agnus). Grayston Ives Salisbury Service is tosh. We've been doing it since before I started here 3 years ago, and, whilst the congregation know it, it's incredibly dull.
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I'm struggling to find a performance of that piece on Youtube by Oortmerssen, but, to my mind, that's the chap who gets the most music out of most of Bach's organ music. Everything's beautifully articulated and phrased.
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I wouldn't say I am a skilled improviser by any means but I am delighted to say that I am perfectly comfortably twiddling away to fill time.
That's exactly the bracket I'd put myself in. Anglican waffling...
However, a decent improviser makes the improvisation sound like a composed piece. I cited David Coram earlier - I've had conversations with other respectable organists whilst he's been improvising, along the lines of "which Bach trio is this?" "E flat?" "Nah, I can play that, it's not that - C major?" etc... To hear someone do it well is quite stunning. Most organists you can tell when they're improvising, a rare few, you can't.
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As with most musical skills, it's about just doing it, over and over, developing those skills. I can do neither particularly well, though I must say I find improvising easier on some instruments and not others - acoustics and beauty of tone help.
Martin, if you want some guidance, then down in our neck of the woods I would recommend having a chat with David Coram; without a doubt a very fine improviser - one of the best I've ever heard.
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I can't think of any quite like this, but I'd be willing to start one if there was someone else to share the moderating. (As has been seen here, a modicum of benign moderation is probably essential.)
I'm happy to moderate.
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They must have missed it by two - marks which cannot be awarded are 99 (and possibly 98), 119, 129 and, I believe, 149 and 150.
I've come across a 150 (and seen the mark sheet) for Grade 8 piano. (not me, I hasten to add). This was a school friend of mine, who was already playing regularly in Ronnie Scott's by 17, had taken her Trinity G8 at 11, but had been recommended to take ABRSM to give her more options for music college.
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This is a motive for reengraving expressly for the new medium. As many virtual pages use no more natural resources than one it's possible to have page breaks at more user-friendly moments.
Assuming the iPad uses the same "swipe" technique as the iPhone I can imagine getting reliably good at "turning".
Alternatively a piston, connected wirelessly, that moved the music up one system might be better. There's nothing better for improving my sight-reading than being able to see what's over the page!
Have a look at :
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3069...p;id=1033620954
To Colin - I agree about CH. I have one at church, and hate it with a vengeance. Partly because the speaker placement is dreadful (swell and choir speak to the top of the elderly choir's head, which they hate), but mostly because there is no stop on it that stands on its own. Colour is reed or mixture, any they sound dreadful anyway, everything is nondescript and non-organ sounding. The great flute is pathetic - I can whisper over it, and the Gt OD is more like an 80's Casiokeys rendition of a "violin". No blend, no chorus, no beauty, nothing. Absolutely not one stop that has any merit. I have no doubt that Ernest could come down and spend some time improving matters, but the fact remains that the organ still went in like that. (Or was allowed to be voiced like that) Worrying.
I have been playing the Hauptwerk Salisbury organ trial today for the first time. Not the same as the real thing, of course, but still quite satisfying. Like listening to a recording of a concert that you might have played there. Certainly more satisfying than any electronic substitute toaster contraption I've ever played. For those of us who rarely get more than 3 hours a week to themselves (the wonders of being a house parent), this is fantastic. Stick the headphones on, play away and actually enjoy the sound you're making.
Some organists I know are content to practice on anything they can get their hands on. I'm not one of those; I have to enjoy the sound the instrument is making; that is the only reason to play, and one of the (and oh, there are so many others) reasons why I'm always on the hunt for a new church in the Southampton/Lymington/Bournemouth area. This is true whether organ/piano or harpsichord. I've had poor pianos, digital pianos, a fairly dire harpsichord, and a dreadful home toaster. All have gone in the bin - I just don't play them, because it's not satisfying. Hauptwerk has, for me, addressed that. The mechanics of stop changes and stuff might be clunky, but, frankly, I don't care; I can make noises that I enjoy, and not annoy everyone else, for a reasonable cost. Plus I can actually carry the console up to the top floor of the Queen Anne mansion I have a squalid little flat in, albeit in 3 trips.
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I use either an A3 sketchbook, with A4 pages and prittstick, or an IKEA photo frame, which'll take 6 A4 pages. I can get most of the trio sonata movements into one frame. (each mvt = 1 frame).
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No, the Yahama C5 is a grand piano, not a Clavinova. It's a bigger version of the ubiquitous C3. See here http://uk.yamaha.com/en/products/link/562344 and here http://uk.yamaha.com/en/products/link/105017 - or just Google Yamaha C5.
I think I've actually got a C5S but I've never played with the electrical side of it. It's got strings and everything but no speakers.
Back on topic - a further issue with touchscreens on real pipe organ is this: They are ephemeral technology with a planned (short) lifespan (a TFT screen has a lifespan of about 60,000 hours) and the technology would be obsolete within 10 years of the organ being completed.
I believe the C5 is a standard piano, the C5S is the "Silent Series" - has a switch to stop the hammers from making contact with the strings, turns the digital piano on so that you can play on headphones with the same touch.
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3. Could anyone contemplate the use of touchscreens as a means of stop control in pipe organs? I know of one instrument, I think of Matthew Copley, that uses illuminated LEDs as stop controls, and one of the joys of organ building is seeing how new innovations can be incorporated into the design of an instrument with many centuries behind it. A touchscreen stop jamb would be an interesting, innovative and inexpensive (a 23 inch touchscreen monitor costs around £300, open-source software interfaces such as j-organ are freely downloadable from the internet) alternative to physical stops.
Touchscreens for around £300 are still only single touch (as far as I know) - touchscreens are really only a decent method of organ control when you can multi-touch. How often do you reach that left hand out and pull out the swell reeds, for example?
The other issue is one of muscle memory - with a tactile thing like draw stops, you quickly learn where they are without thinking. Not so easy with tabs (but generally they're in front of you so you can see anyway), impossible with a flat, response-less screen.
I think there's a reason drawstops are so prevalent - because they work well.
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(1) That's a piano.
(2) That's an electronic substitute!
Seriously, though, I have a Clavinova that has a midi interface, but I have never understood how to connect it to my computer. Now you've mentioned it, I must try to find time to discover how to do this.
Buy a Midi->USB interface off ebay for approximately £2.50. Plug the connector marked MIDI IN into the hole marked MIDI OUT and vice versa, and the USB into the computer. That's it! What you do with it now, then, is over to you... Lots of software possibilities that can do all sorts of things with your piano.
Ripon Cathedral Choir School
in General discussion
Posted
I'm a latecomer to this thread, but rather despondent to hear that my old prep school has bitten the dust. It was never a large school, but it was a friendly little place (about 100 pupils in the 80s when I was there) and it's such a shame that it's gone. How is the choral foundation managing now? Where are the choristers being educated?