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The Organ and Organists of St. Sulpice...

wljmrbill

Member
Thanks for the tip. I have watched a few and will watch the rest. Very interesting and educational..nice to archeive too I believe: but guess i might not be around that long anyway..come to think of it..LOL oh well..that's Life.
 

dll927

New member
What took You Tube so long to get ahold of this? In the first segment, it says the series was made in 1998. Surely a few million vibrations have gone through those famous pipes since then. But it's certainly interesting, and over time I'll try to plow through the whole set.

Does anyone know how/when/where Roth learned English? He seems to do reasonably well, even if with a rather strong Gallic accent.

It might be interesting to have Roth discuss what playing that organ is like compared to more modern instruments. Without all the pistons, bells, and whistles, it must seem just a bit out-of-date, but he has been doing it since around 1984, so I'm sure he is used to it. Of course, France still has a few others about the same ilk (St. Ouen, St. Sernin, and apparently a few others around Paris itself). The typical (??) American organist would probably need some time to accommodate to those instruments. But Europe seems to be full of organs that have never been really brought up to present-day ideas. They seem to have a different attitude from our idea of 'rebuilding' an organ every so often.

With time, I'll get through the series.
 

Corno Dolce

Admiral Honkenwheezenpooferspieler
What took You Tube so long to get ahold of this? In the first segment, it says the series was made in 1998. Surely a few million vibrations have gone through those famous pipes since then. But it's certainly interesting, and over time I'll try to plow through the whole set.

Does anyone know how/when/where Roth learned English? He seems to do reasonably well, even if with a rather strong Gallic accent.

It might be interesting to have Roth discuss what playing that organ is like compared to more modern instruments. Without all the pistons, bells, and whistles, it must seem just a bit out-of-date, but he has been doing it since around 1984, so I'm sure he is used to it. Of course, France still has a few others about the same ilk (St. Ouen, St. Sernin, and apparently a few others around Paris itself). The typical (??) American organist would probably need some time to accommodate to those instruments. But Europe seems to be full of organs that have never been really brought up to present-day ideas. They seem to have a different attitude from our idea of 'rebuilding' an organ every so often.

With time, I'll get through the series.


Well, methinks Maestro Roth having an excellent educational experience, has surely studied English from a very early age. If my memory serves me, I believe he is from Alsace, where many speak both German and French. Oh yes, I almost forgot, he was "Titulaire" of the big C-C at Sacre-Coeur(check out that console - Quite similar to St. Sulpice). And let us remember that most European Countries have some sort of Preservation Societies that help to identify and "save" historically significant instruments. So, there is not so much "monkeying around" with the organs internals...Yes, there are exceptions. I believe the French Government is very keen on preventing the "bastardisation" of the surviving gems of C-C.
 

dll927

New member
Yes, I'm aware of those preservation societies. They seem to be something the U.S. lacks, at last as far as organs are concerned. One wonders how much those (government, usually) societies or ministries can hold sway over churches, parishes, and other seemingly 'private' entities.

I've heard that the justly famous St. Bavo (Mueller) organ in Holland is owned by the city, which seems like a pretty strange arrangement. But given that that case is one of the most impressive in existence, somebody has to be willing to save it from the modernists. But I also understand that organ can be rather difficult to play because of the heavy touch if much is registered at once.

Now, take the Mormon Tabernacle organ. It's on about its 5th or 6th incarnation since the original, which dated originally right about the same time as St.-Sulpice. The (mostly) current Aeolian-Skinner pretty much involved a complete rebuild. Only a few of the pipes are still from the beginning.

As for Roth's training and education, that is mentioned in his biographical information. But there has to be some kind of God-given talent or ability present to begin with. Watching him play that hallowed instrument , and knowing of his famous talent for improvisation, one can well see that he is one of a very few.
 

Corno Dolce

Admiral Honkenwheezenpooferspieler
Oh absolutely he (Maestro Roth) has a God-given talent - And absolutely yes he is one of the very few...Of course then we have Olivier Latry and Stephen Tharp and that "wild child" Cameron Carpenter........But, now that I diverged from topic...Well, there has to be sometimes "draconian measures" in place...but, in one case I know personally of...the organ of St. Nikolai in Halmstad, Sweden is a recently built gem of an organ which is being threatened to be torn apart by the County Commission in order to put in a facade that is non-existent but which was on the old organ that ceased to function properly and was also a qualified piece of junk according to experts from all over the organbuilding world...Thankfully, no organbuilder wants to destroy a perfectly designed and constructed work of art. That County Commission is "draconian" in its interpretation of whats historical and what is not...And that Commission bases its interpretation on an organist who is not qualified to speak about organological or organographical matters. Strange, huh???
 
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