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Jeremy Jones

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About Jeremy Jones

  • Birthday 31/08/1969

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  • Location
    London, UK
  • Interests
    Listening to the organ live and on CD, travelling by train, attending orchestral and choral concerts, reading good books, selling CDs I simply never listen to on eBay, and, of course, using the Mander forum.

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  1. Alas, I have never made the pilgrimage to Coventry to hear moosic made on this highly regarded organ. If it sounds 'in the flesh' anything remotely close to Wayne Marshall's stunning HMV Classics recording then it is definitely worth a hear, even if it doesn't have a nice brassy Tuba.
  2. I note no one has mentioned the Marcussen in Tonbridge School Chapel. I have not heard this instrument in the flesh but it seems to be a very highly thought of organ and on CD sounds impressive. Equally, the Klais at Bath Abbey would seem to merit inclusion, even if it is a bit of a Marmite organ, with people either loving or hating it. It is a pity that the names of Harrisons, Manders and Nicholson seem to be noticeable absent. I think from the starting point of 1980 until relatively recent, domestically our organ builders were going through a bit of a purple patch, not exactly producing top notch distinctive organs (St John's College, Cambridge, anyone?) but also because the most prestigious contracts were going to oversees builders. However, I think we could be at the beginning of a golden age for domestic organ building - Worcester Cathedral (Tickell and Nicholson organs), Llandaff Cathedral (Nicholson), Glenalmond College (Harrisons) to name just a few.
  3. Ralph Downes - a lovely man but somewhat misguided at times. Of his magnus opus at the RFH, I read in the new edition of GRAMOPHONE that the remainder of the organ is unlikely to be installed until 2011. Can this really be true?
  4. An interesting and unexpected appointment - not one of the usual suspects. Strange that there's still no news about the vacancy at St Paul's, though maybe not surprising. In a recent interview, John Scott said what a pleasure it was to be working in New York in an environment free from politics - that could have been a contributing factor in his successor bailing out after such a short time.
  5. Fittest? I'd say she's not fit fur purpose. Pity her the scary Mum though. Bring back the Piper, I say!
  6. Oooh yes!!! This was my first organ LP and what really got me hooked on the instrument BIG TIME! Oh for some enterprising soul to reissue it on CD on licence from EMI. One can but dream.
  7. I think I have most if not all of the series so far. A small handful have for me been disappointing, due to repertoire that I did not like (Worcester, Birmingham, Coventry) or an organ that just did not seem very special (Newcastle). Otherwise, they have all been uniformly good with a handful of exceptional quality (Winchester, Truro, Ely). Curiously, I found Andrew Lumsden at Lichfield somewhat pedestrian sounding but the subsequent Regent CD made there with Philip Scriven (Piping Hot) is a huge favourite of mine that is often to be found spinning in my CD player. The series seems to have run out of steam of late, but I hope this is only temporary, and that it will be full speed ahead at Cole Towers in due course.
  8. Want a haircut? Or a moostache? Check out Wolfs Barber Shop Mine's a handlebar!
  9. The Father Willis in St Dominic's Priory, Belsize Park is indeed a wonderful instrument. If you are intending to attend any of the recitals Alan has listed, I would recommend you go along in the Spring/Summer months rather than in the Autumn or Winter. The last time I attended a recital there when Martin Stacey was playing, it was actually colder inside the church than outside and by the end of the recital for most members of the audience the onset of hypothermia had begun!
  10. I agree that the Choral from the Deuxieme Symphonie (my mistake!) does eventually come to a wonderful climax. However, I maintain that it is not an ideal piece for a voluntary since by the time the wonderful climax duly arrives, you will find that the congregation has already left the building and the organist is simply playing for his/her own aggrandisement. There is nothing inherently wrong with that - I am sure organists are all guilty of doing this sometimes - but surely it is not what a voluntary is intended for? Or am I being naive?
  11. Listening on analogue FM stereo, I didn't notice any clattering by the organ which I thought was recorded quite distantly. I would imagine those who have more high spec listening gear were more distracted. A good CE I thought, though the Vierne at the end (Symphonie III) did not seem to sit very well with what had gone before and was not exactly something to send the congregation out with a spring in their step. Bit ponderous really.
  12. I certainly still remember that evening, if not praps for the right reasons. I came up to London with a group from Bristol and we were late so found seats right at the back of the Cathedral. Anyone who knows WC will know that is probably not the safest place to sit for an hour or so of Messiaen, however well played! Nonetheless, a memorable occasion.
  13. Steaming, eh? Praps it was a bit too hot for you to handle, eh Voh???
  14. I caught the last 25 mins of the first(?) Choral Evensong on Radio 3 to be broadcast in its new Sunday slot, in this case live from Ely Cathedral. As someone who never gets to hear the broadcast on Wednesday afternoons, I actually welcome the new slot, although not if the trebles are as raw and screechy as was the case on Sunday. However, it was worth enduring for what was a stunning voluntary, the opening Allegro from Widor's 6th Symphony. The Beeb made no indication as to whether Paul Trepte or Jonathan Lilley was playing, but it was riveting stuff. What also became clear was that despite Harrisons supposed back to basics rebuild of a few years ago, the organ still very much retains the capacity to breathe fire and sound pretty idiomatic in the French repertoire.
  15. Unfortunately I found this to be equally uninspiring. I note what Barry says and would hope to make the pilgrimage from the 'smoke' to the East Riding in the not too distant future to hear a visitng recitalist.
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