handsoff
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Posts posted by handsoff
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I have just heard an unsubstantiated rumour that the fotopic problem may be nothing more than a technical issue blown out of all proportion by a few people.
Fingers crossed for you, Dave...
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Allegro lists these...
http://www.allegro.co.uk/organ-sheet-music...61&sort=20a
...if that's any help and assuming, of course, that this is the "right" R.Hall!
P
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I'll stand to be corrected, but hasn't the digital 32' rank at Blackburn a "volume control" which may account for differences from day to day, or performer to performer?
Edit - I see that I was pipped at the post by AJJ!
The bottom octave of the open 32' at St Mary's Warwick is also digital...
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During my frequent visits to Kings College, Cambridge in the 1970s, I always relished the sound of the Double Open Wood especially when used to accompany a penitential psalm. The sheer presence of the stop was truly moving. It can be well heard on one the LPs of psalms recorded in the chapel; I'll dig it out later for a touch of nostalgia.
The other 32' stop on the organ also brings back happy memories. The gentleman of the choir from St Mary's, Warwick were always treated to lunch on Christmas Eve in his home by Andrew Fletcher, with the eating, but not necessarily the drinking, timed to finish just before the start of the 3pm broadcast from Kings. One of the basses was the then Coroner for South Warwickshire and a former eminent surgeon, Dr. Stephen Tibbits, universally known as "The Doctor", and one the of the kindest and most charming men ever to have sung in a choir. A Fellow of Emmanuel College Cambridge, he had a great love of the H & H ("dear old Harrisons of Durham", as he referred to them) in Kings and an encyclopaedic knowledge of the instrument from the time he was up at Cambridge. The Doctor always carried a silver-topped walking cane (the history of which was a mystery to most, except the few to whom he related the story in the greatest confidence; it was extraordinary...) and I can picture him even now in the most comfortable chair with a large glass of Bells in one hand and his cane in the other, waiting for the magical moment when the Double Ophicleide was first used. "There it is!" he would announce, waving the cane around in the air above his head with a look of deep joy on his face.
At the Christmas lunch following his death there was a brief solemn moment when the DO was first used, followed by a unison "There it is!" and, it must be said, many wet eyes. I do it to this day...
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Pah! Of course CDs are so much superior to live Musicians doncha know?!
R
Depends on the live musician fait-il pas ?
:angry:
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If travelling to Worcester, I normally drive to Droitwich Spa railway station where there is a large car park costing about £3.00 per day. Trains to Worcester Foregate Street are frequent and cheap (it's only about a 10 minute journey). It is then a walk of about another 10 minutes to the Cathedral.
That's what I shall do next month...
HTH somebody.
P
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CheersChurchmouse (exhausted after a day dispatching 230 books all over the globe! Look out for yours in your letterbox soon)
Mine arrived today; thank you Churchmouse. I hope that the exhaustion has cleared now...
The book was immediately snaffled by Mrs H., has now been wrapped in pretty paper and placed under the tree. Umm, buy myself a book with my PayPal account and it turns into an item proscribed until Christmas.
There's a logic somewhere I suppose.... -
While searching for CDs of Guilmant's 1st Symphony, (what a Final - one of the noblest of its type IMHO) I found this on the MDT Classics site...
http://www.mdt.co.uk/MDTSite/pages/search/searchresults.asp
...and if you scroll down towards the bottom of the page you'll see the available Motette discs.
I have a recording on a "These You Have Loved" style CD from Rouen of the Final from No 1 and would dearly like a recording of the whole thing from there or St. Sulpice.
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I add my Christmas greetings.
In the year or so that I have been a member of this board I have learned a huge amount about the organ and its repertoire; have started playing again after too long a break, and have extended my CD collection to include some wonderful music, largely on the recommendations of fellow members. I look forward to meeting some of you at Worcester next month.
P
[PS My signature photograph is a temporary change; the Clicquot case of St Sulpice will return. Mrs Handsoff insisted I took a picture of our tree...]
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You share your birthday with God?
J
I would change the syntax in my sentence but it might spoil the joke! -
According to Wikipedia [yes, I know.....] César Franck was born on this day in 1822. I shall play some of his music later....
I, in February, share a birthday with Widor, Segovia and Delibes, not to mention W.H. Auden, Douglas Bader (to whom a sort of semi-uncle of mine was batman during WWII), Nina Simone and Wish Bone, an American rapper. Mmmmm
Oh God, and Robert Mugabe.
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A few years ago I attended a recital at Glasgow Cathedral given by Sophie-Véronique Cauchefer-Choplin. The final programmed item was an improvisation which I found thoroughly captivating. I really wished she'd left it at that, because my excitement at what I'd just heard was quickly extinguished by the (perhaps inevitable) Widor which followed as an encore. (Not that it wasn't splendidly played.)I found just the opposite to be the case at Olivier Latry's recent recital at St Paul's Cathedral. I found his improvisation rather inaccessible even though constructed (apparently) on well known themes. His encore, Boellman's Toccata was quite a relief...
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I always thought that variations on "Help me make it through the night" was singularly appropriate for most weddings.............Ah, the innocence of youth. I wish that I had thought of that at the time. [i will Oscar, I will...].
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Thank you for posting this; the State Trumpets are stunning. I'm slightly surprised at the tolerance shown towards the cameraman in a service although there did appear to be a little mild hassle towards the beginning.
This...
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=0L1VscJ8QzQ&...feature=related
...by David Briggs is well worth listening to, there are 2 other movements in the same improvisation, to be found in the same YouTube section.
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I was saddened to read of Richard Hickox's death. I trust that this off-topic post will be tolerated in view of his contribution to our musical life.
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When school organist, I used to accept bribes to improvise the post-assembly voluntary using themes from The Magic Roundabout. I'm sure the Head and other staff recognised them but nothing was ever said.
My take on "I only wanna be with you" (Dusty Springfield) went down well at a wedding of a couple of friends when I played it during the signing of the register. I very much doubt that the Rector would have recognised the tune...
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Thank you for that Paul.
I'm fairly surprised that such a comprehensively good organ is being installed given that the chapel is relatively little used for public services or recitals. A local mixed choir leads an occasional choral evensong and one or two funerals of civic worthies take place there each year but that is about it, apart from the school's use. I vaguely remember that special permission has to be granted by the Church authorities for weddings there - I was told that Wayne Marshall was married there - not sure if that is correct though!
Maybe the situation will change once the new instrument is up and running - I would certainly go along if it sounds as good as it looks on paper.
P
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My old grammar school, King Edward Sixth in Stratford-upon-Avon, is physically connected to the Guild Chapel of the Holy Cross and uses it for assembly. The school offers an organ scholarship these days so I suppose the organ could be considered as partially belonging to it.
The organ is allegedly under reconstruction, although on the occasions I have dropped in for a look there has been no sign of anything happening.
Here is the NPOR entry for the proposed scheme...
http://npor.emma.cam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch...ec_index=E01386
...when I played it in the late 1960s, the 1955 specification was in use although for about 12 months in 1971 only the Swell organ was available because the roof leaked and made all the wood in the Great swell, if you see what I mean! It was lucky that another organist had left the swell box closed before the leak occurred or the whole lot would have been damaged.
The new specification looks quite ambitious for a small chapel - I hope it is voiced on the quiet side or it may be overpowering.
P
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Having only ordered the Aeolus CDs at the beginning of the week, I was amazed when it was delivered to me today, Friday, from Germany. Excellent service from your firm, Ulrich, and I now look forward to an interesting weekend listening to them all (and the de Maleingreau which I mentioned in my last post).My copy arrived this morning - my thanks too, to Aeolus for the quick turnaround.
P
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Thank you all for the replies, which have clarified the situation perfectly. Special thanks to Tiratutti for taking the time to post the photograph of his reeds, it's very much appreciated. Are any full ranks of labial pipes still extant? I know that in the past there used to be one or two labial oboes and clarinets around, but I wonder if have these succumbed to modernisation.
When in my teens, I remember having a book from my local library (on permanent renewal for months) which covered all this sort information in great detail. Now that the library is virtually all photocopiers, coffee bar and computers I don't imagine it's still there but I shall go to see...
Peter
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Thank you, Headcase; it's comforting to know that my memory hasn't faded too much!
When next I go to practice I'll play some scales and spot the change point.
Peter
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I hope members won't mind a simple question the answer to which I should know, and probably once did...
Taking the example of a 4' manual reed stop, I recall learning during my days of taking organ lessons that at some point towards the top end of the register it becomes impractical for very short reed pipes to be constructed. At that point, what happens? Does my memory serve me correctly if I say that flue pipes are used, these being voiced to produce similar harmonics to reeds?
I'd be grateful for a memory jogger.
P
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"super-duper surround sound home cinema system"(Quote)
I never heard as bad a system as those for the music. Just good
for "Jurassic Park" effects! I stick to my old system with just two
excellent Bowers & Wilkins loudspeakers, electrostatic earphones
and NAD amplifier.
Pierre
Ah, thank you Pierre. That's cheered me up - I too have a NAD amplifier for my main system, but coupled to large Wharfedales which are older than the TV!
Peter
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I have ordered the Tharp CDs directly from Aeolus (who incidentally accept PayPal) - these will fill my available shelf space....**
I do wish companies wouldn't issue high quality organ DVDs. Our TV is about 20 years old and I really don't want to buy a new one given its almost total lack of use, nor do I want to buy a super-duper surround sound home cinema system with a huge sub-woofer to do benefit to these DVDs (and presumably my few SACDs too).
Actually that's not quite true - but Mrs Handsoff can be so stubborn
(**)Thanks to Pierre for pointing this out to us and for the specification.
I would change the syntax in my sentence but it might spoil the joke! 
(**)
Organ Music On The Bbc
in General discussion
Posted · Report reply
A thread on the BBC message board devoted to "The Choir" has recently appeared bemoaning the lack of organ music on R3. It's probably a lost cause but if enough listeners made their points in a coherent and non-ranting mode then someone with influence in the corporation may take notice. It's a simple and quick business to set up an alias.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/mbradio3/F7497568