sbarber49
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Posts posted by sbarber49
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The version of that story I heard was that GTB was deliberately parodying Solemn Melody
It IS dedicated to Walford Davies!
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Barry Williams put this one to bed almost exactly 3 years ago:
The link to the original thread is
Yeah, but surely it's only in rather "low" churches that the clergy wear cassock, surplice, scarf and hood for the Mass?
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I have to do the funeral of a close friend next week. I'm thinking of using Toccata in 7 by John Rutter at the end of the service. I have never seen any reference to the work in these pages so does anyone have any views?
JC
As long as the mourners don't try to keep in step.
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It is a great mystery to me as to how on earth I manage to receive the RSCM's Church Music Quarterly magazine (and associated stuff) without having a subscription. Does anyone else on this list receive this freebie? And if so, why/how ? Does the RSCM not have a computer system to advise them who subscribes and who doesn't?? :angry:
I get one as a subscriber and another as the church contact. They're certainly pushing more "modern" hymns/worship songs - I suppose they want us all to buy copies of the new hymn book which is coming out soon: "Sing Praise".
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The only times I've worn one are when I've borrowed my brother's. I have been meaning to buy my own for nearly 40 years, but it's hardly worth it now - especially at that price!
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Archive broadcast of 1989 Choral Evensong today http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00t20vj
I thought David Flood took over in 1988??
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The Duet Suite for orga and piano is effective and good fun.
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I agree with this, but only up to a point. It's the word "wellie" that makes me feel uncomfortable. There is a breed of organist that treats the psalms as an organ recital with choir obbligato and it's a very unedifying experience. Mind you, with such people it's not just the psalms they tend to treat in this way! At the end of the day it's the choir's job to "deliver" the message of the psalms. Certainly the organist should complement and enhance that message, but the choir must always remain the focus of attention and the organist must not usurp that. I remember attending a cathedral evensong last year which was accompanied by an organ scholar. He played really excellently, but used far too much of the (rather beefy) organ in the psalms (e.g. a Gt Open when the choir was singing antiphonally). You could still hear the choir above the organ, but he was frequently drowning their consonants. The consonants are always the first thing to go and since they are essential for comprehension the psalm was ruined.
Lastly, I cannot resist quoting a passage on psalm accompaniment from J. Frederick Bridge's Organ Accompaniment of the Choral Service (London & New York, c.1885):
"While dealing with the expression of the words in the Psalms, a timely warning must be given against exaggeration in the direction of 'word painting'. No doubt many of those who read this little book may have heard organists attempt to portray 'birds singing among the branches' (generally depicted by means of the shrillest flute in the organ), and the author has a vivid recollection of attempts to represent 'the Heavens dropping' and the 'word running very swiftly,' the former by a startling staccato chord on the lowest octave of the great organ, while the right hand sustained the harmony on the swell, and the latter by a run up the keyboard of surprising rapidity. Ideas such as these would not, it is believed, occur to an organist of refined taste."Hear, hear. Organ accompaniment in Psalms needs to be, in general, gentle. I hate all the talk of big tuba chords and the like to "illustrate" the words. I prefer the organ to enhance the mood rather than imitate birds and water pipes etc. (though none of us is immune to temptation). My ideal is probably Willcocks on the 1st Cd from King's (actually Trinity, of course). The organ (i.e.organist) should not be drawing attention to itself but accompanying.
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That said, and whatever the source, it's rather nice psalm-singing, with a lovely speech-rhythm flow to it.
MM
It seems rather mannered to me - far too much unnatural emphasis on certain syllables.
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Completely agree nachthorn. I was intrigued a while back though, (and I now can't remember where, but it might even be in the Parish Psalter's singing directions - don't have copy to hand) to read a stern warning that the singing should be absolutely rhythmical after the reciting note - ie that the minims and ending semibreve in each quarter should be in strict time wrt each other. That's baloney to us, but was somebody's good practice nearly a century ago.
As a RC who also sings most Sunday evenings in the CofE, I love singing and accompanying Anglican Chant, but can't help thinking it a bit of an odd musical form. Would you invent it today, starting with a blank sheet of paper and a requirement to sing the Psalter in church?
Certainly not! I quote from the Parish Psalter "Every word must be pronounced clearly and with natural emphasis, as in deliberate reading" and "The length and accentuation of each note (or chord) in the chant must be governed entirely by the words, and not vice versa".
Personally I think that the Parish Psalter is pretty good, and a good choir can sing from and produce good results. When I do my own pointing I smooth it out a little. (I think I'm halfway between it and the Oxford Psalter, which is good.)
I hate the modern fashion for frequently leaving out chords - ruins chants for me. I can't be doing with the St Paul's Psalter.
As for inventing Anglican chant - it's much more interesting than plainsong - much as I like that
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If you go to this site: http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/index.shtml you can take part in a survey about Radios 3, 4 & 7. (I realise that theis topic was about a radio 2 programme.)
I suggest that if you want to let the BBC know what you think about the coverage of Organ Music on the Radio? you take part in the survey.
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I've just discovered this:-
For once, I am speechless.
MM
Too fast for me.
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Andrea Marcon. (Click on the double down arrow to the right of the title to expand the comments box.)
Oh dear. In that case I think that my 1st 2 choices are the same performance - I must have given preference to the first one because of the picture of the organ!
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1st, in spite of the dreadful sound):
2nd (as posted by Vox Humana - but who's playing?):
3rd: No 6
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Organists who already own the Priory DVD made on the Liverpool organ will have admired Ian Tracey’s playing of the Bach Chaconne and might themselves have a sought a copy of Walter Henry Goss-Custard’s arrangement. W.T.Best (1826 – 97) made an arrangement of the Chaconne (which Menuhin calls “the greatest structure for solo violin that exists” (Unfinished Journey p.38). Then in 1955 John Cook, sometime copyist for R.Vaughan Williams and Britten before emigrating to Canada and taking the post of The Church of the Advent, Boston, produced an edition for organ. Both arrangements are currently listed on the Musicroom website (www.musicroom.com) and are available as part of the print-on-demand service offered by Novello for £13 and £16 respectively. Other than these two there appears to be no published organ transcription of the marvellous Chaconne, which is surprising.
There's the Middelschute one, apparently inspired by Busoni's arrangement. It's in Great Organ Transcriptions edited by Rollin Smith (published by Dover)
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One of the staples of the repertoire, and I've been 75% of the way to being able to play this for some time, but the one thing that has always troubled me is the rapid upwards rushes, which I can never seem to get my fingers round. What am I doing wrong?
I was once told that Karg-Elert used to play a plagal Amen at the end of this piece. I sometimes do - it makes much more sense of the ending of the piece, which can otherwise be a bit of an anticlimax. Can anyone confirm this?
I think the "upward rushes" can be played fairly freely - I get the first 8 notes under my fingers before I start, and then a slight change of position for the last 4.
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I think we have already established there is more for Ascension than Pentecost whch probably reflects Pentecost is somewhat neglected alongside Christmas and Easter depite being one of the great three. However, for those wanting a challange with a choir capable of it there is of course Jonathan Harvey's 'Come, Holy Ghost'.
Jonathan
Has anyone mentioned Listen, sweet dove by Ives?
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I see that "Igor Engraver" is not dead! It was a very good free programme (then became a low-priced programme) that produces very professional results. It was a bit unstable and tended to crash. I used it for years and was sad when it disappeared and I still use it occasionally. From the website (noteheads.com)
Due to rumors about NoteHeads circulating on the Internet, we would like to make the following statement: The company has been inactive for a couple of years, after we saved the software from disappearing due to the canceled development in the previous NoteHeads company.
We have an upgrade coming out in the near future (free upgrade for current users), together with a new release- and pricing strategy. All owners of the current Noteheads company are still onboard and agree on the current strategy.
I previously mentioned Musescore which is a free notation programme - has anyone tried it? I haven't had time, but would be interested in knowing how good it was: http://musescore.org
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Does anyone play any of Stanley Vann's music? I've got a few things that I had from Barry Brunton - (where DID he get to?) - but although I reappraise them when I'm going through my stuff from time to time, I somehow never fancy them.
I play Fêtes (which he dedicated to me), Sarabande for a Wake (from the Kenneth Leighton Memorial Album), a very beautiful Pavane and Versets on Jesu dulcedo cordium
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I have the only key to my piston lock that solves the problem!!!
I would be furious if I arrived to play for a concert and found that the organist had locked the pistons. (Unless, of course, he/she owned the organ personally.)
I tell visiting organists to change pistons as they like and not to bother changing them back, as I can do it more quickly. If we had multi-channels I would ask them to leave a note to say exactly what they had changed and would expect them to use just one channel of divisionals.
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The William McVicker arrangements of Pomp and Circumstance Marches 1 - 5 was published by Boosey & Hawkes in 2004.
RAC
No 1 is available from the new Roger Molyneaux catalogue (www.usedorganmusic.co.uk)
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My understanding is the only pre-requisite for being elected to the PCC is being on the electoral roll. In my last post I was an employee, but it was also my place of worship and I was on the electoral roll, so by precluding me from standing for the PCC, it would have actual gone against any rights I had as a member of the congregation.
My understanding is that it used to be considered unwise for the organist to be on the PCC. It is not illegal, though - I was on the PCC of my last church.
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I am tempted by having all that in one volume, even though it will give me a couple of double copies, in addition to new music . . but I must be doing something wrong: I cannot locate it on the Musicroom site. VA, can you please tell me the exact title?
Looks like this one, which I have just ordered: http://www.musicroom.com/se/ID_No/07613/details.html
Funeral Voluntaries
in The Organ
Posted
Was it Elegy from A Downland Suite, as arranged by Alec Rowley. A very beautiful piece that suits the organ perfectly. Mind you, the arranger has abridged the piece somewhat, without comment. In fact, now I look at it, he doesn't even say where it comes from! I only discovered it a couple of years ago.