C.S. Lang - Organ Music

[timothyguntrip]

Most of us are probably familiar with his famous Tuba Tune and the Epiphany carol 'Eastern Sages, Monarchs Three', which have enjoyed enduring popularity.

Amongst my organ music collection, I have the following:

• Prelude, Pastorale and Fugue
• Sonata in D minor (very lengthy - 50 pages!)
• Prelude and Fugue in G minor
• Introduction and Passacaglia in A minor
• Fugue Trilogy on E.G.B.
• Procession (in one of the Oxford Albums)

As far as I can tell, only one of the above has ever been recorded (the Fugue Trilogy, at St Mary Redcliffe by a previous member of this board). It is a shame, as there is certainly more than enough music to fill a couple of discs.

Have any other board members experience of playing any of the above, or others of Lang's works? They seem nicely written, and on the whole technically approachable. 

Kind regards

Tim

[S_L]

I'm sure that quite a few colleagues have used C.S. Lang's Harmony at the Keyboard & Exercises in Score Reading. I have a copies somewhere! The 200 Tunes for sight-singing were also excellent and, in the 'good old days' when A level students needed to be able to do this I used it extensively.

I have it in my mind somewhere that I have heard the Evening Service in B flat - but I can't think where that would have been and, whilst I have a huge collection of 'Mag & Nuncs' it doesn't seem to be amongst them.

Some of Lang's music is published by Novello - an interesting list: http://www.musicsalesclassical.com/composer/works/881/0

[David Drinkell]

I, too, used Lang's keyboard exercises when toiling for the RCO exams.  I later passed the copies on to a pupil in similar circumstances and I guess they have, in turn, been passed on again.

I was a pupil of Garth Benson's when I was a student at Bristol University - he was the "EGB" of the fugal trilogy and often spoke of Lang.  I've never had a copy of it and often wondered what it was like.

[Marc Murray]

Introduction and Fugue on Redhead, is a fine piece too. I've played it a couple times over the past year. 

[timothyguntrip]

21 hours ago, Marc Murray said:

Introduction and Fugue on Redhead, is a fine piece too. I've played it a couple times over the past year. 

I will look this one up - it appears to be available as an OUP reprint, along with a Toccata and some sets of Chorale Preludes. 

Having dug out the 'Christ's Hospital Papers' by Nicholas Plumley last night, from a large collection of books I came into possession to from the estate of late organ builder, Brian Bunting - it  would seem that a lot of Lang's organ music was published after his tenure at CHH. 

On another note (and perhaps a seed for a new thread) - have there ever been any recordings made of the chapel organ at Horsham? Many of the registrations in the organ pieces allude to that instrument, particularly in the Sonata. 

Despite living not too far from Horsham, I've never heard the organ in the flesh. I'm pretty sure our hosts did some work on it some time ago in the 1980s. 

 

Tim