Repertoire and notes for online streamed recitals
Adrian Richards Pièce heroïque – César Franck Pièce héroïque (the last of a series of three pieces written in 1883) was at one time the most popular wedding piece in France, a strange choice when one considers its brooding beginning and sinister theme. The quiet central major section is interrupted by a louder iteration of the same theme which gradually changes to the minor and brings again the opening theme, which in a rush of toccata-like accompaniment brings about a triumphal end in the major.
Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV547 – JS Bach
Fantasia sopra Freu dich sehr, o meine Seele – Johann Ludwig Krebs Rejoice greatly, o my soul,
Toccata, Op. 1 – Fjellestad
Adrian Richards Johann Sebastian Bach Simon Stubley (d. 1754) This very attractive piece is in two parts, as is fashionable for the time. A slow introduction on a Snetzler Diapason followed by a faster, longer, jolly section, which makes use of a small Cornet and our new and unusual early English Trumpet. The Trumpet made its first appearance last year, but now it’s had a chance to settle down and bed-in, this piece gives the ideal opportunity to demonstrate it playing the sort of music it was designed for. César Franck The last and probably most famous of the three Chorales, the A minor, was written at the very end of his life, he is said to have corrected the proofs on his death-bed. After a hesitant toccata-like introduction interspersed with built-up chords surrounded by large expanses of silence, the chorale is finally introduced on a swell reed. The toccata returns in the dominant minor and takes us to an exquisitely accompanied variation in the major. From this an ostinato figure is developed which builds to a climax. At which point a change of key on the sustained pedal rushes towards the end with the chorale and the toccata as one.
April 13th - Jonathan Chaddock - King's Lynn JS Bach Fugue in Eb (St Anne), BWV552 R. Vaughan Williams William Boyce Peter Hurford Robin Milford Sigfrid Karg-Elert
Fugue in Eb – JS Bach. This is a triple fugue – three fugues linked together. It is nicknamed ‘The St Anne Fugue’ because the subject of the first fugue is very similar to the first line of the hymn tune used for ‘O God our help in ages past’ – tune St Anne by William Croft written in 1710. This subject is then heard as a linking motif in the other two fugues albeit in different rhythms reflecting the different style of each fugue. In some editions of Bach’s organ music, this fugue is published with a Prelude in Eb. They were not written as a ‘ Prelude and Fugue’ as such but as the beginning and end of Bach’s ‘Little Organ Mass’.
Prelude on Rhosymedre – R. Vaughan Williams. As a young man, RVW was from 1895 to 1899, organist and choirmaster at St Barnabas Church South Lambeth. It was the only post he ever held that paid him an annual salary. He disliked the job but claimed that it gave him an insight into what ‘constitutes good and bad Church music’. These experiences may well have been helpful to RVW when he came to write ‘Three Preludes founded on Welsh Hymn Tunes’ published in 1920. Rhosymedre is the second and gentler one of the three. They were dedicated to Alan Gray, RVW’s organ teacher whilst he was studying at Trinity College Cambridge.
Voluntary no 1 in D – William Boyce. William Boyce is considered to be one of the foremost English composers of the mid-eighteenth century. A student of Maurice Green, Boyce went on to hold organist posts in several important London churches including St Michaels Cornhill and became one of three organists at The Chapel Royal. In 1755 he became Master of the Kings Music. Voluntary in D is taken from Ten Voluntaries for Organ or Harpsichord. It begins with a short slow section and moves onto a quicker and longer second section which uses the Trumpet stop on the Minster organ. This stop is a replica of that installed by Snetzler in the 1754 organ.
French Carol and Meditation – Peter Hurford. These two short pieces are taken from the Suite ‘Laudate Dominum’ by Peter Hurford. This is a collection of six pieces reminiscent of Jehan Alain’s Litanies; each reflecting verses from different Psalms and each having a unique and individual character of its own. Peter Hurford (1930 – 2019) was a well known organist and composer who founded the St Alban’s International Organ festival which started the careers of many famous organists including Gillian Weir. Peter Hurford recorded the complete organ works of JS Bach, the organ concerti of Handel and much Romantic Organ music. He was well known as a performer for his attention to stylistic detail, clean articulation and beauty of expression.
Choral Prelude on ‘St Columba’ – Robin Milford. A gentle, flowing piece of music during which the tune ‘St Columba’, often sung to ‘The King of Love my Shepherd is’, is played on the pedals of the organ but using a higher pitched stop. Robin Milford (1903 – 1959) was a prolific composer of works including songs, orchestral music, piano music and chamber music for various instruments. A close friend of Gerald Finzi and taught composition by Ralph Vaughan Williams and Gustav Holst; he died at a relatively young age after suffering from depression having experienced some quite tragic life circumstances. This particular Chorale Prelude written in 1928 was later arranged for orchestra and used in an episode of Star Trek.
Chorale Improvisation: ‘Nun Danket alle Gott’. – Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877 – 1933). Written as part of a collection of 66 Chorale Improvisations op65, the hymn tune of ‘Now thank we all our God’ is not easily discernible to the listener. When looking at the music the actual notes of the hymn occur intermittently and are shown by asterisks over the top of the relevant notes. As well as being an important German composer of organ music chamber music and piano music, Karg-Elert was a prolific composer of music for the Harmonium and also wrote 30 Caprices for the Flute which have become a standard set of lyrical, dynamic and phrasing exercises for students of that instrument.
King’s Lynn Minster 23 March 2021 - online Camille Saint-Saens The Fantasie in E flat is in two parts; the first is a playful scherzo-like piece in which the melody is given on the top of chords which are passed from hand to hand and manual to manual – a minimum of three keyboards are needed for this piece. The second section is in complete contrast with the first, being bold, contrapuntally fluid, contains a short fugue, and builds to an impressive climax. The two could not be any more dissimilar. Johann Sebastian Bach ‘Deck thy self my soul with Gladness’, Johann Franck’s words set to Cruger’s tune, the one commonly used and called Cruger. It is an intensely moving expression of rapturous joy at union with Christ in the sacrament of Communion. The piece has been praised by many composers. Schumann wrote that the polyphony was as ‘garlands of golden leaves draped about the cantus firmus’. Herbert Howells Howells was one of the truly remarkable and prolific English church composers, and much of his music remains firmly in the repertoire for choirs and organists. He spent some time Articled to Herbert Brewer at Gloucester Cathedral and as sub-organist at Salisbury Cathedral, and for me, his sound-world is imbued with lush English organs and generous acoustics. This Psalm Prelude is similar in form to No.1 although far less grand in its architecture. It is typically quiet-crescendo-diminuendo in form and is as rhapsodic as much of his organ music. Hendrick Andriessen Thema met varieties was written in 1949 and is probably his best-known organ piece, having been on the Royal College of Organists’ syllabus for many years. The theme is introduced on quiet stops after a bold and striking opening and varied in a number of ways, some more subtle than others. A reiteration of the opening introduction takes the work to its conclusion.
16th March 2021 at 12.30 on line Charles Piroye (c 1670 – c1730) Harold Edwin Darke (1888 – 1976) Thomas Arne (1710 – 1778) George Edwin Lyle (1842 – 1900) All the recitals are free. Please contribute generously. |
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