pwhodges

An excellent article - but I suppose not enough people will read it... Paul

Grahame Barber plays Op73 in the Fugue State Films box set of Reger: Discs: https://fuguestatefilms.co.uk/product/maximum-reger/ (full details in link) Online: https://fuguestatefilms.co.uk/product/maximum-reger-digital/ (cheaper) Paul

It pops up briefly on the screen: Rheinberger Mass in C op. 169. I find the wandering tonality a bit unsettling, I'm afraid. Paul

Fascinating to see Cuthbert Harrison as he was not long after he wrote to me (and also my parents) about why he couldn't take me on (to do with closed-shop apprenticeship rules). Unlike the other organ builders I had approached, he wrote himself, in longhand - no secretarial typing for a personal response! Paul

I hadn't seen this, but I agree with your comments completely. And if anyone brings up the argument that we shouldn't encourage the use of computer imitations, I say get them properly hooked so that they progress from being fascinated to wanting to find out about the real thing they've got a mere imitation of. Paul

Another approach to reduce the overlap is to play the left hand on a four-foot stop an octave down. Paul

The Vierne has two separate overlapping organ parts. Paul

Presumably referring to words or a theme taken from the "Old Version" metrical psalms (et al.) of Sternhold and Hopkins from the mid to late 16th century. This was as widely used as the King James Bible or the Book of Common Prayer (with which it was often bound - I have a copy printed in 1641, bound in with a prayer book assembled in 1661). Paul

Théodore Dubois - Les Sept Paroles du Christ - I don't know how much it's done in France, but it's quite commonly performed in Canada, and also parts of the USA. (There are several recordings on YouTube, both with orchestra and just organ.) Poulenc's Sept répons de ténèbre is good, but much harder, of course. Paul

I went to Salzburg last week, for the first time. It has, among over twenty churches in the Old Town alone, a magnificent cathedral. I was impressed to see that there is a daily organ recital at noon for half an hour or so, so I resolved to go (and persuaded my wife, who is not into organs, to come too). What I did not expect was that the recital (on this day at least) would showcase four of the five main instruments in the building. There are four instruments on the four pillars of the crossing, and one on the West end gallery, as expected. Historically, there were the four in the crossing (Mozart played the one on the SE pillar), but they were removed in the nineteenth century, and the nineteenth century gallery organ was deemed sufficient (unlike an earlier West-end instrument). New organs were placed at the crossing in 1991-1995, following replacement of the main organ (in the old case) by Metzler in 1988. The four crossing organs have cases of identical design, though their contents vary... Now what's interesting is how separate these organs are. The SE pillar organ ("Hoforgel", 2P14) is in South German/Austrian baroque style, tuned in sixth-comma meantone. The NE pillar organ ("Heilig-Geist-Orgel", also 2P14) is similar, but with some differences of detail (e.g. 5 1/3 Quintbass vs 8 Trompete on the pedals). Both are by the builder Johann Pirchner. So far so straightforward... The NW pillar organ ("Venezianische Orgel", 2P26) is in Italian style (many stops are divided bass/treble, increasing the number of stop levers yet more). It is tuned in straight meantone, and has double keys (d#/eb, g#/ab) except in the bottom octave. There is an extra 8' register tuned to Valotti temperament, for continuo use. This organ is by Franz Zanin. The SW pillar organ ("Renaissance-Orgel", 1P12) is a smaller Italian-style instrument, also in meantone with extra keys. The same case has a second organ in it with a separate console ("Continuo-Werk", 1P3) tuned to a Tartini/Valotti temperament for continuo work. Both console pedals are pull-downs with no extra pipes. This organ is by Francesco Zanin. The main organ by Metzler is 3P59, tuned to Metzler's own temperament. There is also a movable continuo organ by Pirchner, with four stops, tuned to equal temperament. With 5 (?6) temperaments between them, these organs are clearly not intended to be used together! In the concert, I heard Buxtehude on the Hoforgel, which was bright and clear even in the cavernous acoustic, two arias from Bach cantatas, sung by a soprano in the organ loft of the Heilig Geist orgel, which sounded gentler than the first. Then some Frescobaldi on the Venezianische orgel, in which the extra keys, if used, were not enough to prevent some distinctly sour chords! Finally, a big Bach Prelude on the West-end Metzler (my wife's favourite, though the acoustic did rather overwhelm it in places). Later, doing a round of the Museum of the Archbishop's Residence and the cathedral, part of the route used the West-end gallery to cross the cathedral at a high level, so I was able to have a look at the console (terrace-style, with no playing aids whatever other than three fixed combination pedals). All-in-all a very pleasant day, and a considerable surprise (almost making up for missing the six organs in Mafra - which do get played together - when I went to Portugal recently!). Paul P.S. The nave was full for the organ recital.

I'm sad to note that the excellent RCO Organ Podcast series ( https://theorganpodcast.buzzsprout.com/ ) has come to an end after twenty 1-hour long episodes. For some reason it never got mentioned here, I think. Paul

My grand piano has its hammers pivoted on a long rigid wire they're threaded on to. It's the only piano action like it I've ever seen (Broadwood "Red Beam" action - made from about 1895 to 1905). In this case the wire is held in place by metal clamps between the hammers, so no long drilling is required. Paul

If I'm in doubt how to lubricate a joint, first I clean it thoroughly, which is sometimes (quite often, actually) all it needs, and then as a first attempt at actual lubrication I may use a light touch of dry graphite powder, as sold by locksmiths for instance. I won't put a wet or oily lubricant on anything important until I know it's the correct thing to use. And, as said above, WD40 is not a lubricant - it's for driving out moisture on metal parts, both for storage and to help ease jammed joints. Paul

I particularly like this recording of it: Paul

You've omitted the C_C in the Albert Hall, Sheffield - destroyed by fire in 1937 (the whole hall, that is). Paul