DouglasCorr

Easy one - St Sulpice has 30 notes.

There was a poll on this a year or so ago. I think that with my big feet and old age I would play more correct notes on a straight and concave than radiating and concave. Lots of people will say you can get used to anything - but there are physical limits i.e you can't shrink the width of your feet! Are there any real advantages to R&C? It's certiainly not an authentic pedal board for most of the major organist-composers. I wonder if the rebuilt organ at St Albans has a straight and concave pedal board now - I wasn't sure from the photos I saw at the recent Festival - if so, that would be a turning point for UK Cathedral consoles?

Absolutely - this is a great message board for those that love the organ, its construction, its music, how to play better, the latest scores, CDs, new organs at home and abroad, concerts, Utubes etc..! It's not appropriate to have over heated quarrels, gripes etc especially if there is even the remotest risk of embarrassing the generous hosts - who I am sure have enough to do to run their organ workshop without having to moderate these threads. And yes - Cynic please sleep on it - no one ever got anywhere through falling on their sword.

Yes that's all very exciting - but it underlines the inevitable disappointment when you listen to a video recording through computer speakers!!..

Well - unsurprisingly I heard nothing!! I expect the response to this frequency recorded into a youtube video and played through my even moderately good computer speakers is nil. Maybe there was a shade of the 4th harmonic or so..... Probably something you really have to experience live?

Unless the 128 and 64 stops have their own dedicated speaker - I would find it hard to beleive that the ensemble effect was acoustically true . Do they have an independent speaker? PS Sorry to discuss electronics - but I think this is a fundamentally interesting point. - Good job each organ pipe is in effect an independent "speaker"!

What about hand movements to go with the evening hymns?? There are lots of possibilities:- Sun setting; going to sleep; terrors of the darkness; stars coming out; the moon going across the sky... (only joking !!)

Tournemire L'Orgue Mystique L'Assumption (No 35) Paraphrase - carillon

I think it is also necessary to specify the general conditions necessary for the ideal evensong – the optimum ambience for the desired state to be attained: Unrestored Willis organ Impeccable punctuality Weekday An evening with three psalms for the day (and no single chants) No announcements Late autumn evening – slight chill, dampness Shafts of light through stained glass At least three clergy Minimal congregation NO tourists PS One hymn is enough; which should not be played metronomically or at anything other than a Vaughn Williams tempo. And, even though the congregation is minimal, a gathering note is to be used. The Old Testament lesson should be very long, repetitive and full af strange names of kings and places

Thanks for information. - But it leaves me with more questions - I thought generally that the scaling of pedal stops would make them too loud on the manuals. Also, in recent years manual 32' stops have been seen as irrelevant and removed (Ely)....

What's that? What are its essential characteristics and purpose? Where's the nearest one? Who composed for such an organ division?

Well - this is a strange organ anyway - lots of stops and nothing balances/ blends with anything else IMO (1969) - the only memorable thing about practising there was the cleaner (verger?) who usually brought his dog into the church - and it barked (probably at my playing) and he would go about SHOUTING "don't bark in church!!, don't bark in church!!"....

Maybe I'm an old weakling that doesn't practice often enough? But aren't we talking of some exhausting finger bending key weights here? 3oz is 85 gm and 4 oz is 112 gm. My piano keys have a resistance of about 55 gm (with the sustain pedal down) and it can make my hands ache if I play too much. My house organ is about 75 gm and I don't think I would like it any heavier. I wonder what others think - fast young blades excluded! and don't kick sand in my face... PS Don't loose the kitchen weights under the pedals...

Ah ! you have such simple pleasures

I think I remember that at the Organists' Congress in Cambridge in 1985 there was a lecture on Bach numerology with hand outs, that I have now misplaced. I think this was by John Bertalot who has also written on the matter in Bertalot, John: Spirituality and symbolism in the music of J S Bach. I. OrganistsReview lxxxvi/3: 339; 4(?) (2000), 222-225; 331-335.. While these ideas give an insight into the construction of a piece of music, why things are the way they are, does it make any differnece to the final sound? Several organist composers have schemes linking the spelling of words to the themes, B-A-C-H being the obvious one; and I remember reading something about Langlais -how the themes spelt out messages... It's nice to have reasons for things, but does it really matter if you know the reason or not? Clearly we don't know all of Bach's reasons...

I've just found the details of the recording on the BBC radio 3 site it was Prelude & Fugue in B Minor, BWV. 544 Ton Koopman (organ) at the organ of the Grote Kerk, Maassluis TELDEC 4509 944582 track 4 And the organ specification is here I wonder if any Message Boarders have heard it in the flesh.....?

I’m glad someone has made this posting… To-day I had a calm morning, getting ready for work while listening to Elgar’s Nimrod played on the Broadwood Square piano in the Cobbe collection. Having been to Hatchlands National Trust House last weekend, and purchased the CD. Then I put the radio on and the announcer said something about “and to finish with some organ music, a Prelude and Fugue by Bach….” A dreadful shock followed… I’m sorry to say that it sounded to me like a robot playing… and the dreadful screeching sound of the organ. I don’t know which one it was, as I couldn’t stand it and turned it off. I’m sure it was a famous organ, and Ton Koopman is so knowledgeable about early keyboard music…. But I have to say I went to work somewhat sad and upset… is this really the Bach sound and style? Why have I wasted such a long time trying to play the organ…..?

Well it isn't the home page!! It IS a history page! Try looking at the root of the address here

Thank you for your tweet rogbi200 - I don't have to sit by the computer any longer............

Taking a break from reading the Discussion Board I thought it would be interesting to know who is twittering about Cavaille Coll world wide using a really new site called Twitterfall!! You have fun too - be informed! PS No one's talking about Cavaille Coll yet.. maybe I'll give it ten more minutes....

I wonder when girls first started to appear in Cathedral choirs? At St Davids, Peter Boorman had girls in his choir in the 60s.

If you weren't there then you missed a really great recital - plenty of different registrations to cope with all the movements! Lots of extra ornaments and superb musicianship. And I'm sure certain message boarders will be pleased to note that there appears to be a new hook to keep the Brustwerk doors closed when required. And for the miserable message boarders I can say that the organ worked perfectly and was really in tune, especially the reeds (including the Brustwerk reed!)

The splendid recitals at Farnborough Abbey begin again on Sunday May 3rd! It's now just about warm enough inside, but I would still bring a coat! Close your eyes and it seems as if you are at St Sulpice ......

I was looking at the St Albans Organ Festival site and noticed that there were no competition entrants from the UK. Russia and Hungary are top with 4 entrants each! The breakdown is: Interpretation: Russia 4 USA 2 Hungary 2 Germany 2 France 2 Korea 1 Switzerland 1 Czech Republic 1 Australia 1 Improvisation: Hungary 2 Germany 1 France 1 USA 1 Italy 1 I wonder if message boarders are concerned about this and what they might suggest is the reason/cure?