Some new finds

[Paul Isom]

Lockdown hasn't all been bad and it's allowed me to do some fairly serious music retail therapy thanks to Amazon and various other outlets.  Two completely new composers for me are Alfred Dickinson and Ernest L. M. Pritchard.  The Dickinson I found through listening to the excellent Youtube videos of Graham Barber.  It is published by Barry Jordan music and available through the Leeds Organists Association.  It's really lovely stuff - really indulgent!  I found an outlet through Amazon called Elphaba Music and discovered a wealth of fascinating music (I cannot tell you how much money have spent with this outfit!).  The real find for me has been the music of Ernest L. M. Pritchard (not A. J.).  There isn't much, but what there is of great substance and is for the most part fairly tricky.  In John Henderson's book he appears slightly dismissive of the really chromatic nature of the music (think Rowley on steroids).  There is a Sonata in  minor, Prelude, Postlude and a Fantasia, all worth trying.  I understand that there was a Chester connection which might explain the dedicatee.  Next on my list is Stephane Delplace, much of whose music is written in the Bachian style.  There are two volumes each of thirty Preludes and Fugues, a series of Fugues on the theme 'FUGUE',  Pieces d'Orgue,  Non-Toccata and Fugue in F, (Edition Delatour) and Aria (unpublished).  I have really enjoyed limbering up with Delpalce's music.  The Aria sounds wonderful but is a real pig to play.  Here is a fine recording from St Clothilde, Paris.  Enjoy!

 

 

[Dafydd y Garreg Wen]

Ah! You tantalise us ... but indeed ‘tis better to be warned (“for the most part fairly tricky ... a real pig to play”) before investing in the scores!

Any Delplace or other discoveries of the non-tricky sort? The Aria does sound very fine and has whetted my appetite.

[Paul Isom]

The Preludes and Fugues are great fun and are at various standards, some more challenging to play than others.  The Fugues on the Theme 'FUGUE' are eminently playable.  I also found some other pieces by A. J. Pritchard (sometime organist of St John's Wood Church) which are rather lovely.  Other finds with Elphaba Music were a pile of Vernon Griffiths, Pierre Cholley and much much more!

[Martin Cooke]

Thanks for all these pointers, Paul. I'm struggling a bit to pursue your links though. I can find reprint services for some Novello-published Prichard pieces, but can't find Elphaba or Barry Jordan nor can I find a link to him on the Leeds Organists' site. Any chance you could possibly produce a weblink at all? Sorry if I'm doing something wrong here! Many thanks; Martin.

 

 

[Paul Isom]

Elphaba Music's Amazon storefront can be found at the following link.  Just type in 'Organ' in the search and a whole new world will open up in front of you!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?me=A2JBLM8OC7TA11&marketplaceID=A1F83G8C2ARO7P

There is wealth of what seem to be Novello reprints, in  fact all sorts of stuff.

Delatour's link is here:

http://www.editions-delatour.com/en/

There is a very good search engine here.  I can also recommend Emile Bourdon's pieces and also those of Ermand Bonnal from this publishers.  Also rather fine are a number of Lionel Rogg books (choral preludes and smaller pieces).

I have an email address for Barry Jordan (publisher of the Dickinson):

theorganists@talktalk.net

 

 

 

[Dafydd y Garreg Wen]

Excellent. Thank you for very much for these pointers and links.

[Martin Cooke]

Yes, indeed... many thanks, Paul.

[timothyguntrip]

By chance, I ordered the pieces by Ernest Pritchard around the same time as Paul. I haven't yet had a play through them properly, but they look to be good pieces. 

The works by Arthur Pritchard are also worth getting hold of - Elegy, Fancy and Four Diversions are also pleasant works which make good voluntaries or lighter items for a recital.

There is such a wealth of English organ music from this period which is so often overlooked and is well worth exploring.