Видео

Thanks for commenting Andreas, @einervonweitem. I particularly enjoyed the Cornet stop on this organ. This three movement voluntary is a fine example of music of this period. Yes, do include a short cadenza. I think the Pause or Fermata sign towards the end of a movement of this period would usually indicate adding a short cadenza.

Thanks for watching and commenting @cabbagepatch8947 . It's always enjoyable to play at All Hallows.

Yes, it is the March of the Toreadors from Bizet's opera Carmen

Many thanks- glad you enjoyed it!

Glad you like it!

Thanks for watching and commenting @cabbagepatch Gordon Phillips designed the All Hallows organ, so it seems a fitting tribute to play his music on this instrument. David

Thank you Barbara. I’m glad you enjoyed this fine voluntary. It sounds perfect on this historic organ.

Thanks for listening and commenting. I am delighted you enjoyed this exhilarating piece by Vierne. It is great fun.

Thanks Ruby! I'm pleased you enjoyed it - it is an exciting piece.

Thanks for listening John. Yes it sounds just right on this little organ

Thanks for listening and commenting Charles. I'm glad you liked it.

Thanks for watching and commenting. I agree Wolstenholme deserves more attention. He wrote quite a large amount of music and it is all very attractive and has instant appeal. I know the Allegretto in A flat. It a delightful little piece. I think it has been arranged or was originally composed for viola and piano.

Thanks for watching and commenting John. The cathedral is quite stunning.

Many thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed this performance. It is a fun piece to play and sounds great on this organ.

Thanks for listening and commenting.

Thanks for listening and commenting. The pedal line is definitely there! Have you tried listening with headphones? That usually improves the range frequencies.

@@davidcook8435 yes it is my laptop's speakers that don't have much bass, it works well on my headphones

The organ I am playing on belongs to a friend, but I believe the console came from Romsey Organ Works in the UK.

It is my pleasure Jerry. I'm delighted you enjoyed this charming little piece. Thanks for commenting. D

Many thanks Ralph.

Thanks for listening and commenting from Germany! Yes this is a very short but lively and interesting Toccata. This chamber organ is beautifully voiced with three stops. I was using a Stopped Diapason and Principal 4' for this piece, but it also has a flute 4'. The large organ is a fine instrument - I hope you enjoyed playing it!

Thanks Ralph. Yes it is similar to Sweelinck or perhaps it has some Italian influence. It is very short and was probably used as an intonation for the choir to follow on with a choral piece in the same key.

Many thanks Ralph. Yes, I think this is a fine piece indeed and it sounds perfect on this magnificent Harrison & Harrison instrument.

Thank you Mr. Oboe! I'm delighted you enjoyed this exciting Toccata. Thanks for commenting.

Thank you Ralph. This chorale prelude has always been one of my favourites from the '18'. The All Hallows organ has all the right sounds for Bach's organ music. I'm pleased you enjoyed it.

Thank you Joe for your very kind comment. I'm glad you enjoyed this performance. David

Respectfully, disagree. Any slower and this piece sounds pedantic and lacks spark. (I have a 1937 copy of the music and there actually is no tempo marking on it-the composer has very precise registration markings by contrast-which would indicate the composer leaves it up to the interpreter to decide the correct speed at which to play it.). I think this version by Mr. Cook is outstanding: lively and exciting.

@SimonSimon Thanks for listening and commenting Simon. Jongen does state that the performance of this piece is more about the alternation of the chords between the two hands rather than speed, but also suggests a tempo of crotchet beats between 104 and 112 per minute, depending on the acoustic of the building you are performing in. The tempo at which I performed this piece is about 108-110 bpm, so within Jongen’s suggested tempo markings. When played live in St. Stephen Walbrook, this tempo seemed to work well in the acoustic of the building. I look forward to hearing/seeing you perform this piece at your chosen tempo.

Thanks Joe! Of course I agree with you. I listened very carefully to the effect in the acoustic when I was rehearsing and I was aiming for a lively and exciting performance.

Thanks for listening. Yes, I rather like the manuals at 4' pitch, as the moving part is much clearer to follow.

Thank you for listening and commenting! This is a good Toccata - but not often played.

@@davidcook8435 : No: because it is hard! You perform it like childs’ play. Outstanding!

Thanks for commenting Andreas. This is such a wonderful instrument to play music from this period on and to have the opportunity to experience the sounds composers would have known in their day. Yes, the Great Trumpet is original. In actual fact, all the stops used in this performance are from the original Renatus Harris instrument of 1704.

Thanks for watching and commenting John. The building is certainly worth a visit - a hidden gem!

Thank you Ralph. It was an absolute delight to play this music on an instrument contemporary with the composer and to hear the music as it would have been heard at the time. The music just came to life.

Fantastic. Perfect trinity of music, interpreter and instrument. Chapeau!

Danke! Thanks for listening and commenting.

Thanks for listening and commenting John. I think this piece is a fine example of a sixteenth century prelude with a single florid part accompanied by a succession of chords.

Thanks for watching.

Thanks John. As this is a Neo Baroque organ, this period of music sounds particularly well on it. Thanks for listening.

Thanks Ralph. This is a fine sounding organ for baroque music. The organ was built in 1972 by Grant, Degens and Bradbeer of Northampton.

Many thanks Ralph. This period of English organ music has some fine well-crafted pieces. They are certainly worth studying and playing. Thanks for listening. David

Thanks John! Yes it is great to have live music once again.

Thanks for listening and commenting John. I agree this is indeed a fine piece and the organ at All Hallows by the Tower was designed to do justice to the early English repertoire.

Thanks Andreas. Marsh doesn’t give any indication in the score of the registrations to be used in this Prelude and Fugue. Of course you are correct in that during this period, preludes and fugues were often played on the ‘Full Organ’ throughout, possibly with the addition of a Trumpet or Mixture for the fugue. But introductory movements in English voluntaries were often played on ‘Diapasons alone’ - The 8’ Open Diapason and the Stopped Diapason together. This was our choice for this (and the Fugue No.1) as we felt it contrasts nicely with the fugue, making the fugue more exciting. It is also perhaps less tiring on the ears.

@@davidcook8435 Indeed the registration for the prelude sounds very nice.

Thanks John. Yes it is good to have the opportunity to play together. There aren't many organ duets!

Thank you Andreas - these pieces certainly help to improve manual technique and control! There are two cornets available on the instrument at All Hallows - the one on the Choir Organ used in this performance and another on the Swell Organ. I will have to play another voluntary using the swell cornet to compare them. I think the other slight problem is that the Choir Organ pipes are situated right behind the music desk and are therefore in close proximity to the microphone on the camera. Consequently it doesn't blend very well from this position. Thanks for the link to your sprightly performance of the Samuel Felsted Voluntary. This is certainly a fine cornet stop with a lovely reedy quality. A fine voluntary too!

@@davidcook8435 Comparing the two cornets sounds very interesting, please do. Indeed the microphone placement probably has quite a big influence. Though having just listened to the piece again I like the Choir cornet rather better than I did the first time round. It's different from the Silbermann cornet in the Felsted voluntary but it does its job well enough.

Thank you for your kind comment Andreas. I agree this is English Baroque music at its best. Gordon Phillips, the editor of the 'Tallis to Wesley' series of English organ music (37 books) was organist at this church of All Hallows by the Tower, where he drew up the specification for the newly installed organ in 1957 with a view to performing English organ music of this period as authentically as possible. On the day I recorded this voluntary, I also recorded one of Walond's 'Cornet' Voluntaries which I will upload later today.

@@davidcook8435 Ah, so the organ was actually designed (also) to play this kind of music. It works. (In fact "einer von weitem", "one from afar" is not a real name, it's an old internet alias I fell back on when I started my channel and RUclips insisted I needed to call it something. I have now amended the channel name by adding my real name.) On to that cornet voluntary!

@@einervonweitem Thanks Andreas!

Thanks for listening and commenting. This is quite a substantial voluntary with its long first movement and contrasting sections. It is not often performed.

Many thanks John.

Many thanks for your kind comment Andreas. This is certainly a good fugue and fun to play! Marsh was quite prolific - he composed over 300 organ voluntaries as well as anthems, songs and 39 Symphonies. So I’m sure the quality and depth of his compositions varied. Thanks again. David

Thanks for listening and commenting John. This is certainly a Christmassy piece with its bell-like accompaniment.

Many thanks for listening and commenting with your interesting story. This piece is certainly a good piece to have at a wedding and it is a mystery why such fine pieces disappear from print. I came across it in an album published in 1933 entitled ‘The English Organist’. The Choeur Triomphale in D has recently been re-published and is now available, with some of Hackett's other music, from Bardon Music www.bardon-music.com/music.php?id=h_to_k&lang=en&curr=eur . It is all very tuneful and goes down well in concerts and recitals. Thanks again.

Thanks. Yes, it is ideal for repertoire from this period.