heva

Hmmm, I could live with such a setup

Didn't know you also worked on this here in Holland Where was it again? an imported 19th century romantic english organ re-tuned to mean-tone (mean as in 'evil/sadistic'?), somewhere up north here ....

Flapping brustwerk doors on romantic repertoire is quite 'normal' here (yuk ...)

Besides the casework and a tremulant drawknob (tremulant is not yet connected), the organ is 100% original. The LG8 is quite big in tone, coupled to the SD8 it gives a nice BIG soloflute. Though not so big as the OD8, which has Pierre's 'churchy roll' on it Small, but the best English organ in Holland and nice acoustics we have too (sample)

Gr. open diapason 8 lieblich gedeckt 8 principal 4 Sw. stopped diapason 8 dulciana 8 voix celeste 8 gemshorn 4 oboe 8 Ped. Bourdon 16 couplers +tremulant In fact, this is 'our' Hill organ + dulciana & celeste. Sounds incredible in our church ...

That's a bourdon 8', right? the bourdon16 is used in the basse the tierce or the fonds d'orgue. btw. basse de tierce is on 16' (not the silly 8+4+1.3/5 things they try here ...)

With Wagner's view on Mendelssohn in mind, somehow I don't think I would use "Wagnerian" registrations for MB's music....

BTW. the OHS has it in the listings also, here

This one? It's a reprint, didn't even cost much ...

Since any organ is made up of 'actionwork', 'wind(ing)work and 'speaking/pipework', shouldn't we agree the organ is modular in it's very basic concept?

Speaking of chamades, neo-baroque et.al, how to 'understand' this one: a 1969 Rieger with chamades of 1732.....

Imagine a wealthy organlover would buy the allypally leftovers .... Those people DO exist here

The 5-manual looks nice, and a bit like a HopeJones console, doesn't it?

For me it's simple: either the concert is on an instrument of interest that I haven't heard yet and because it's interesting to hear 'the instrument', the 'repertoire' may be of minor interest, or the instrument is known and I want to hear a master/talent displaying it. I'm not going to listen to 'Ad nos' at an 1960-ish neo-baroque pile of nails (say III/30/p), but I do like to hear a Bach/Vivaldi concerto at the RAH when Reubke is on the main dish by a worldclass performer (or Volodos perform Rach.3; listened to the cd a thousand time probably, but you just got to hear that one live, n'est-ce pas?). So maybe going to make acquaintance with a HopeJones may be more insteresting (even if the repertoire may be rubbish) than a middle-of-the-road-thirteen-in-a-dosen-o-so-predictable recital whith 'standard' repertoire on a standard organ (which here in Holland go by the hundreds, because there are too much organists here playing in fact one and a half program on any organ they can get there hands on). For cd's the same goes for me; either encyclopedic discs (period instruments etc. for all styles), or transcendent performers. This remembers me I once attended a concert with organ an alphorns in the Bach church in Arnstadt; no Bach on the program, totally something different, but nice

Playing classical music kept junkies out of a railwaystation here (I believe it was at Heerlen)

Agreed, but the things one doesn't like are best left alone, and/or to people who do. If we're not able (anymore) to understand/appreciate a specific instrument, without looking at it in its proper context, than WE are being wrong. Many mistakes have been made in this fashion to 19th century organs here in Holland when viewed through neo-baroque spectacles, I can only hope the UK will learn from 'our' mistakes and not repeat them. Personally I disagree on the 'repertoire' argument; one must find music that fit's the instrument, not the other way around. The presence of stopnames that enable an historically correct selections, don't ensure an 'authentic' musical performance; the authenticity of a permornance lies in other elements. Surely organbuilding evolves, but just as we keep compositions in use (which to my knowledge wasn't custom in baroque times - 'nearly always looking forward'), we should treat the instruments the same, and add to the collection new, maybe different styled instruments.

Of course, I can't speak for organs in the UK, but for Holland Ican only say this (and I'm 6 foot 5 too) - live with it, sorry. No adjustable benches/pedals around here (sure is dirty language here), not to mention the 'fine' sit at old instruments. Take the 'great' organ in our church - very uncomfortable at my length, but take the Hill in the choir (nearly same age): fits like a glove. Worse still: new organs built here (if any) mostly follow 'old' principles, so unless you're hobbit-sized with small feet, you will leave with strain in muscles anyhow ... You might wonder what would happen here if playing the organ was considered a 'serious' job here with regard to regulations on the circumstances under which to work (sorry, don't know the proper term in English). How long would I be allowed to play at a console which doesn't fit me (or to which I don't fit) and causes musclestrain at any serious piece ??

AFAIK, That's Principaal 24', sounding a quint UNDER the 16 foot (resultant 64' - the first ever?)

I Agree, but it's an opinion not allowed being expressed here in Holland; craftsmanshift for it's own sake has almost become a religion (and pricing transcendant).

Mentioning W.rc..t.r will send one to prison?

The price of which is also nice

Did anyone already here the Buxtehude organ recordings by Ton Koopman? Not sure to buy them, the samples stun me; is TK having a joke on Buxtehude or what???

How about Grauhof, Waltershausen, Muehlberg (Thueringen), and Naumburg? They are imho. WAY closer to Bach than Alkmaar and Groningen; btw. how much of Groningen is original?

I don't agree. In my view fingering/footing is also defined by "how you want to play what", the brain (which makes the music) must command the fingers from the music, not the other way around. Good technique encompasses the entire musicmaking, not just the "gymnastics" (may I suggest reading 'The art of piano playing' by Heinrich Neuhaus?).

A nice combination on my organ 'upstairs' is for Messiaen's Les Bergers; I don't have an hautbois nor a clarinette on the swell (Maarschalkerweerd's voicing is ok, design is crap), but using the viola8'+piccolo2' does work, as does viola8'+fluteharm.4'+nasard3'. Also I agree whith cynic about combining flutes (Cochereau effect?), on my Hill it works nice - play a Buxtehude choral with the cf on the coupled flutes sound very 'wealthy'. Oh, and the Hill hasn't been tuned for more than a year and is always in tune between 10 and 26 degrees Celsius - I love it ...