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JS Bach: Toccata & Fuge help

methodistgirl

New member
I would like to know of an easy way to learn Taccata & fugue. I know if
I can play that piece I have mastered the little vicks organ at my church.
 

Krummhorn

Administrator
Staff member
ADMINISTRATOR
Hi Judy ...

Hmmm, practice, practice, practice ... :grin:. Seriously, for practice, I always pick some soft stops as the articulation is much clearer as opposed to full organ. Later on, after the notes are learned, then engage the plenum.

Take it slow at first, hands first, then feet ... taking special care to learn the correct fingering & pedlaing right from the beginning. On this piece, perhaps start with the Fuge. This is the most complex part of the piece and the most challenging. Once you get the manual parts learned, then do the pedal part - alone - My teacher had me clap on the first & third beat of every measure while learning the pedal notes - that method still works for me today.

I might suggest that your personal practice time start and end with something fairly familiar that you can play well. Ending a rugged practice session on a "good note" (no pun intended) is always great positive reinforcement.

And btw, practice, practice, practice ... there is no "easy" way to learn a difiicult piece like this. Actually, it takes just as much control, if not more, to play a slow piece in absolute perfection than a really fast paced piece. For an example, check out JS Bach's Come Sweetest Death (Virgil Fox arrangement) sometime. S-L-L-L-O-O-W-W-W-W ... one wrong note in that piece and everybody knows it without any doubts ... :D.

How many ranks does the Wicks have at your church?

Ps: I moved your post into this forum as the subject matter applies better here.
 
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Arvin B

New member
If you haven't studied much or any Bach, I would not suggest starting with the d minor (I assume that is the toccata and fugue you are talking about). If you already play a lot of Bach, then disregard the rest of this paragraph and skip to the next. Building your repertoire is like building a building - you start with the foundation first. The d minor is one of Bach's most easy major works, but even so I would suggest you play the eight little preludes and fugues first. They are a great and time honored introduction to Bach's works.

Now couple of tricks about learning fugues: Learn it hands alone, then left hand and pedal, then right hand and pedal, and then all three together. Also, practicing with the manuals at a 4' pitch and the pedals at 8' helps the ear to grasp the sounds and articulations more fully.
 

methodistgirl

New member
play something you know

To Krummhorn:
My idea is to play something simular to toccata & fugue like Moonlight
Sonata by Beethoven the first part or movement. It does almost
sound like toccata with a slower tempo. I also stick with songs that
I know. Right now I would love to hear the pipe organ at my church
play a contemperary praise song called My Life is in you Lord. I've
heard it played on a syntesizer by listening to a cd. A synthesizer can
try to sound like the real pipe organ but they don't even compare to
each other. They have their own sound in my book. A pipe organ is
more of a classical instrument like a violin. To me a synthesizer is more
like a fiddle. So try Moonlight Sonata on the pipe organ. I love it!
judy tooley
 

Krummhorn

Administrator
Staff member
ADMINISTRATOR
I've done Moonlight Sonata in an organ concert once ... it doesn't work in my present church as the acoustics are deader than a door-nail ... it's so bad that the sound stops before the keys are released - we are investigating ways to improve the building, but that takes $$, which the church doesn't have. Fortunately, they do have $ for maintaining the organ, so I play a wonderful organ in a dead acoustic room.

You might try to find Fountain Reverie by Percy Fletcher. It's been out of print for a very long time, but some Universities have it in their music library collections. Even though Fletcher passed on 75 years ago, the music is still copyrighted by his publisher, but hasn't been re-printed for about 40 years or so.

I've not heard the praise song you mention. Who was it composed by? Or who sings it on the recording?
 

methodistgirl

New member
I don't have to worry about the acoustics. At this big old Methodist church
the acoustics are perfect. I dropped an ink pen on a wooden floor and the
sound went all around the sanctuary like the tour guide does at the Morman
church where they have that big pipe organ. I stood behind the pulpit when
the place was empty except myself and it sounded real good. There were no
echos or dead spots there. This part of the Methodist church was built in
the late roaring 20's. I wished you could see it. The place is huge and
very beautiful. I even cried when I first saw it.
judy tooley
 

methodistgirl

New member
I need help!

would you happen to have the sheet music to Taccata & fugue? Once
again I had to learn on the organ what I heard from my computer. The
Bach songbook that one of the main musicians at my church handed me
the wrong taccata. I wonder if you can help me? My home town does
not have a music store except sam goodies and they don't sell sheet
music here! Years ago this town was full of music stores and now
all of them except this one is all that is in business.:cry:
judy tooley
 

Mat

Sr. Regulator
Staff member
Sr. Regulator
Regulator
Hi Methodistgirl. I actually have sheet music of Toccate and Fugue:). So if you're interested...
 

Mat

Sr. Regulator
Staff member
Sr. Regulator
Regulator
Well, I have it in PDF. Seems good to me. If you are still interested I suggest PM. So far I can play toccata, fugue is too much for me:grin:. Besides I don't even have access to real pipe organs:(. I practice on Johhanus electronic organs
 

methodistgirl

New member
Electronic organs

isn't that kinda like a hammond organ? I played one of those before and
I have my opinion about them. I never played a johhanus organ. Could
you put the sheet music on the screen so I can give my printer a workout?
I would love that. :grin:
Judy tooley
 

Mat

Sr. Regulator
Staff member
Sr. Regulator
Regulator
In some way it is. But it's enough to play Bach on it:D. Ehh, I wish I could play Hammond one day... Anyway, here's something for ya
 

methodistgirl

New member
thanks

Thanks a million but I will only be able to print out just one sheet of it until
sheet. I will have to copy the rest later.:cry: I'm broke now! But thanks!
judy tooley
 
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methodistgirl

New member
fugued!

:clap:I did it! I finally learned at least the first page of Taccata & fugue.
I sat there for a minute after I got through and clapped at the organ and
said [We did it!]. I'm still working on the piece though I'm not all of the
way through. I still have four pages of the sheet music to go. I finally
figured it out. You said that Taccata was hard when I find it as easy as
falling off of the organ bench and for sure that's not hard to do! Thank's
a million you guys for helping me find the music.:tiphat:
judy tooley
 

kierantk

New member
Glad to see youve found the score, its a great piece to start learning organ on, its the first real organ piece i performed :D

for further reference, if u need other scores, look at:
www.imslp.org

It has a lot of scores, most of bachs organ works, Mendelssohn's sonatas, etc. not many krebs, but u cant expect everything ;)..

Good luck with the piece, i suggest learning the piece with a few bars at a time, and try to skip the center section (with trills and melody in the pedal part) for last, so that by the time u are ready to learn that part, you know the theme back to front.
 

Sylvie Pacey

New member
methodistgirl. I too have been looking hard ad the D minor Toccata but only have a single manual workstation on which I have synthesisized a magnificent Church Organ sound. Then I arranged the first movement for single manual only written out as a lead sheet. Looking at it this way it is a really interesting study and I have almost memorised it now. If you can read a lead sheet I would be happy to send you a copy. I am off to Australia in ten days and would just love to see the Pipe organ in the town hall at Sydney.Sylvie Pacey P.S Do you live in the U.K?
 

methodistgirl

New member
Do I live in the UK?

Sylvie, I live in Madisonville, Kentucky, in the usa. Unless you are
talking about the University of Kentucky which is also called around
here the UK. That's our UK. I also enjoy other organ pieces like
church hymns from the Methodist Hymnbook. What church do you
go to?
judy tooley:)
 

Sylvie Pacey

New member
hi Judy, thought you might live in the U.S when I saw the picture of your church in the forum. 'Fraid you are far from me now in the U.K and also when I fly to Australia on Sunday where I shall be spending a few weeks visiting Canberra, Queensland's Gold Coast and Sydney where I hope to see the BIG organ in Sydney town hall. Imagine playing the D minor Toccata on that!!!!! I play as a deputy organist at a small church here in Somerset and have a small singing group that I work with, entertaining in Nursing homes and over 60's clubs where I usually turn out to be one of the oldest people there. (Only in years, still young at heart) Enjoy your playing, I expect like us you are dusting off all the Christmas music.Sylvie Pacey.
 

Krummhorn

Administrator
Staff member
ADMINISTRATOR
. . . . .I expect like us you are dusting off all the Christmas music.Sylvie Pacey.

Oh crap ... Christmas is just around the corner, liturgically speaking ... :crazy: yah :crazy: thanks for the rem on that Sylvie - gotta start digging out those great Noels and stuff like that - always one of my most favorite times of the year for church music. :grin:
 

Argoth

New member
hi Judy, thought you might live in the U.S when I saw the picture of your church in the forum. 'Fraid you are far from me now in the U.K and also when I fly to Australia on Sunday where I shall be spending a few weeks visiting Canberra, Queensland's Gold Coast and Sydney where I hope to see the BIG organ in Sydney town hall. Imagine playing the D minor Toccata on that!!!!! I play as a deputy organist at a small church here in Somerset and have a small singing group that I work with, entertaining in Nursing homes and over 60's clubs where I usually turn out to be one of the oldest people there. (Only in years, still young at heart) Enjoy your playing, I expect like us you are dusting off all the Christmas music.Sylvie Pacey.

I was in Australia in June and had a great time visiting a few organs off a link that Contratrombone very kindly provided: http://www.ohta.org.au/

It has a list of all the must sees, I was mainly in Melbourne and was able to hear June Nixon play on the superb one at St. Pauls, and a tour of the Melbourne town hall also includes a tour INSIDE the organ (which I believe is bigger than the Sydney one in terms of pipes), which I think is great to increase interest in this fantastic instrument. In Sydney I was able to see the fine organs at St. Mary's Catholic Cathedral and St . Andrew's cathedral in action. Then I visited the giant at the Sydney Town Hall, and its truly magnificent. Unfortunately there was some renovation going on in the main hall that day so I could not get very close to it but I shall return someday within the next couple of years and hope to see it being played. Enjoy your trip!
 
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