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Digital Organ Choice

FelixLowe

New member
Recently, I spotted a pretty elucidating organ method textbook from a piano shop, written by a British organist named Anne Marsden Thomas. After reading through a quarter of it, I've discovered many of the issues raised by some bloggers in this thread earlier are answered, particularly about registering music from various national schools. And after comparing the book with the others available from our Central library, I found that Thomas' work is the only practice guide that has taken the care to instruct at great length on registration matters in succint style while giving short musical extracts on each point she's making. The other books so far I've come across explain copiously on fingering and pedalling, but not registration matters to the same length. And her explication on the English music section makes me wonder if the old English organ pre-1850 still exists. Yes, it does. But it is now championed by Rodgers. In 2007, I visited the Rodgers website, where they featured one or two new models, that had fanciful voices, that resembled nothing like a Classical organ, either German or English. I can't say they sounded like theatre organs, but they were so fanciful sounding, that they were rather undefined. However, there is a series of Youtube music videos from a place called FCP Congregation in the US, that features what I believe is a better and better-installed Rodgers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57-_FW5NFas. It is better because it is the traditional English Baroque style of pre-1850 -- more precisely the style championed by organists between Queen Anne and the latter days of the Industrial Revolution. After 1850, the style experienced a period of shift to Romanticism, during which many Waldflote 4', Waldhorn 8' and Cornopean 8', etc, were added. While many high-pitched stops were removed from 1890 to WWII, they were placed back in the English organ during the Organ Reform Movement post-WWII. But the English organ has continued to stick with those three stops I mentioned. The resultant style is now called English Cathedral. The old style, which I earlier termed British Chapel supposedly lived through the reign of the King Georges.

Regarding the hymn and tune on Youtube I've just affixed, there is a Memoir concerning that song used in 1953 during QE II's visit to Tonga, as featured in this website: http://www.kellner.eclipse.co.uk/genuki/NTH/Clipston/ The text there is as follows:

It was St Swithin's Day, the 15th of July 1880, a beautiful summer morning. As they busied themselves about their daily tasks, the villagers of Clipston had no idea of the calamity that was about to befall them. Halfway through the morning, the weather began to change. The wind increased from a breeze to a gale, the sky darkened and distant thunder rolled ever nearer. Then down came the rain in torrents. Hour after hour it rained, and the mown hay which lay in the fields was swept into the dykes and drains, completely blocking them. The brook could not contain the sudden increase in the flow of the water and before long, a swiftly rising tide was rushing along the village street.

A row of mud-walled dwellings were swept away by the swelling tide. The occupants had already fled their homes and no lives were lost. From the comparative safety of brick-built cottages, neighbours watched in terror from their bedroom windows, as doors were burst open and belongings were swept away by the surging water. Late in the day there was an abatement, and eventually the flood began to recede. The devastation revealed was heart-breaking, and the drying-out and mopping-up was a long and laborious process. Small wonder that this story was handed down from parent to child over many years.

In thinking of famous 'sons' of the village, mention must be made of Thomas Jarman (1776-1861), a composer of sacred music. His hymn tune, Lyngham, sometimes known as Nativity, has literally gone round the world. After her coronation in 1953, Queen Elizabeth II toured the Commonwealth. Turning on the radio to listen to a service she attended in Tonga, what a thrill it was to hear, O for a thousand tongues to sing, sung to Lyngham, Thomas Jarman's tune, composed in the village.

(The above extract from 'The Northamptonshire Village Book', compiled by the Northamptonshire Federation of Women's Institutes, is reproduced by kind permission of the publishers, Countryside Books, Newbury, Berkshire)
 
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FelixLowe

New member
Content's new Cantate 346

Recently, I spotted a new release of organ model of Content called R346. There is an introductory video placed on Youtube about it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOoZQfiYZ_g, although the video is fully dubbed in Dutch albeit with English subtitling. There is no way to appreciate how the instrument sounds like at the moment as no sample files have been affixed by the manufacturer. I have placed a request for the demo disc, but so far no response is received. I don't know whether they are sending me a disc or not. The new instrument boasts comprising four organs in it, much like what Phoenix does, I guess. The specifications of the new Content instrument is already featured on their websites: http://www.contentorgans.com/orgels?productID=109: basically four long stoplists of various national traditions, including the English Cathedral style. There are some minor discrepancies of how I view the North German Baroque stoplist. Some of the more renowned Baroque German features are conspicuously missing, like the Trichterregal 8', the Barpfeife 8' etc. These features emerge from High Reformation times, but were gradually phased out after Bach's time. But they attest to some of the multifarious regals copiously employed in the North German-style instruments. And if they boast making four distinct national styles without incorporating them, that may be regrettable. But I don't have the slightest doubts that the voicings should be superb, as I have always commented positively on their former models -- from D4000 onwards, their voicings are quite superb, based on the available online materials and demo discs they have presented. I guess we should have faith that the new device should stay at top of the chart. But hopefully, Content would soon place on Youtube some representative pieces played on their new instrument for assessment. Even long ago, their D2000 series was quite finely executed as a Canadian organist is heard playing their D2330, playing BWV 577: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gV_sSNzQ0pQ&feature=related. D2000 is South German (more precisely the common style found in South of Germany), but it is finely executed. The fine points regard the chiff. There are other South German-styles, such as Ahlborn, which basically emulates the Egedacher or the modern-day Rieger. Here is a British remix on the theme We Wish You a Merry Christmas played on the Austrian-styled Ahlborn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZukFBU89B3Q&feature=related. Some Viscounts on the other hand sound like Silbermanns.

I would definitely say Content's pipe-like and overall ensemble quality exceeds that of Allen -- again based on what Youtube have presented. However, there is a Canadian Allen website that at least presented materials I have previewed, that have presented Allen in less unfavourable light with better quality music excerpts. I myself have used Allen before, and found it totally satisfactory for home use. At churches, at least one church in this place installed Allen in the most lousy manner you could imagine. On the other hand, the 38th province of the Anglican Church in Hong Kong has a cathedral here that has an Allen in it. I would say it was not bad, but not excellently installed.

For Phoenix, because they compiled a demo disc with recordings done quite far away from the organ, it is not always possible to say what quality it has. But overall, my assessment after hearing some Youtube files is that Phoenix: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fH38Ho27vnA&feature=results_main&playnext=1&list=PL59FCC0B74F641158: is better than Allen, but Copemanhart is better still. This assessment may be biased. But you can assess a Copemanhart yourself using this recording of Trumpet Tune in D by John Stanley: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZAnJRLA2ns. This remark is based on a single listening experience on Copemanhart's website. What I guess is that in fact both Copemanhart and Phoenix could be just on par. What Phoenix should definitely do is to compile a new demo disc, pushing up the volumes of the recording tracks in general and using the correct registrations for some of recorded pieces, especially for well-known pieces which are consistently heard with some fixed or prescribed registrations, which are as well-known as the songs themselves. Otherwise, it is not always easy to fairly and accurately assess the quality.

For pipe organs, I have discovered a brand -- an American brand -- called Temple Organ. It is done in the Kleuker style, that is German style with a tinge of French twist to it. It is precisely what the Kleuker is about. They have about two pieces of music on their website for assessment. So if you have difficulty finding Kleuker, then Temple Organ is a substitute as close as you can find, I guess.
 
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FelixLowe

New member
Major correction about Content D4330 model

D4330 is without doubts made in the style of Central German school, but it is not the kind built by Joachim Wagner as I wrote earlier, but rather by a builder named Johann Moritz Weisse who lived between 1632-1704. One of his organs is still in a place called Die Stiftskirche Romhild: www.kirche-roemhild.de. It has been sitting there since 1682. Very old instrument, but supposedly being mostly intact:

Orgel.jpg

Baroque Organ in Stiftskirche,
Romhild

On the other hand, Joachim Wagner's instruments are in fact built to the Austrian-Italian style, which was emulated also by a builder named Freundt, it being the palatial style instrument mainly adopted by the Hapsburgs. The portrait of palatial glory exceeds the Egedacher instruments by one third perhaps. I guess the Dutch digital organ maker Van Der Poel is trying to emulate that Hapsburg style.
 
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FelixLowe

New member
Content Cantata 346(R) demo disc ready for pickup

Just a few days ago, I received a parcel from Content organ on its newly recorded demo disc and a leaflet on its Cantata 346(R). This time the leaflet graphics has the fireplace and crystal lamp as its theme -- cozy living room, that is.

The disc was recorded only last month. The new model, for whose four stop lists I already affixed a link in my previous post, is a varied compilation of four dispositions of a single, varied organ tradition. I don't think tonally the organ gives out sounds of four different national traditions. They only put in certain stops on this list and certain others on others. Still, all are largely about the Marcussen and Sons-influenced, post-Organ Reform Movement Dutch organ. These four lists contain quite popularly used stops, although some rare ones, like None 8/9, Carillon III, etc. These are frequently mentioned in organ stop dictionaries. As for the music on the disc, in my opinion they are similar sounds and music quality to the previously recorded demo discs by Content. So the leaflet is carefully written so as not to name the four lists in terms of country traditions, but merely says Baroque, Symphonic, Chorale, and Romantic. That makes sure that there is no crime of misrepresentation committed.

To me this demo disc is quite a surprise, and the four stop lists are quite extraordinary if you look carefully. Content is able to demonstrate its Sesquialtera, the high Mixture and the very high Mixture such as Cymbel III this time, giving a clearer picture of what its organ sounds like for four different stop lists. But then again Content allows for adjustment to pipe scaling, wind pressure and chiff loudness. So I guess you can drastically change the organ character, say, from a Marcussen and Sons to perhaps a Metzler, if you so desire. I guess that might be possible, but I am not so sure. But you need to know all the facts and figures for parameter inputs. If this is what you desire, you should really talk to the manufacturer to ask them to change the parameters at factory. I guess Content is able to meddle with the parameters to create some other different organs.
 
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FelixLowe

New member
Queen's We are the Champion played on a North German-style pipe organ

Most preachers and churchgoers, the traditional type, that is, would easily dismiss rock and roll music used in churches. And on the church organ in particular, it is not always easy to emulate the true effect of pop songs and someone doing that for the introit or postlude could be asking for complaints. But not if you can play like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btzUKqAqC4s. This is a Dutch organist attempting the British Queen's We are the Champions on a real pipe organ. He has done an admirable job and the performance is truely stunning, to say the least. He has got all the chords right, they being seemingly the same as the original in the song. The organ in the music video link is clearly a North German style organ, similar to Marcussen and Sons-inspired North German organ.

Now the music has not been used in this part of the world for a long time. The last time it was used for a quite memorable occasion is that **** shoes overlaid it on their products in 1988 in their TV commercials during the Seoul Games. The latter half of 1988 was the beginning of the New World Order of the American Millennium. And obviously, this music was highly coveted.
 
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GoneBaroque

New member
I am not familiar with the song but thought it sounded very good. Played at the conclusion of a service it might even get the congregation to remain in their seats.
 

FelixLowe

New member
About We are the Champions and sports events

I am not familiar with the song but thought it sounded very good. Played at the conclusion of a service it might even get the congregation to remain in their seats.

Factually, neither was I familiar with it until 1988 when a classmate of mine sitting not far from me borrowed Queen's tape from the North Point public library. And he handed the tape to me to be used for a week. And afterwards, I found the songs on the tape by and large quite melodious that finally I obtained a private copy during an shopping trip to Causeway Bay many months later. Shamefully the tape contained no lyrics at all and I had difficulties understanding those songs because my English language skills in 1988 was equivalent to four-year old native British, so it took me many years, and especially after the advent of the internet to ferret out the lyrics. And even more shamefully, when I was in Australia to upgrade my English, I asked a girl I met at Melbourne University to translate lyrics of a song in the tape for me. She was born in Australia, but she got most of the lyrics right as I found out later. So you need super-native language skills to exactly get all the lyrics right. You have to have a copy of the lyrics placed in front of you, and to listen over and over and over again to fine-trim any mistaken words or word-endings.

I remember the song is the final song on Side A after the song We'll rock you. Factually the tape was lost for many years, and I may go down to HMV next month to purchase a CD copy to commemorate my more than 20 years of being familiar with all the songs.

If you live in America, I don't know the frequency of this being played by the radio stations because America itself is a centre of rock and roll, so you must have a lot of local music there. But in this part of the world, the song is quite well-known, particularly when large-scale world sports events are being staged. You get to hear that somehow played either in the TVCs or used as sports programme jingles, more or less so. Yeah, that tends to be the usage nowadays, not in the churches, rather on the sports fields, particularly the track and field events.

Factually, you're right. And this song stands a good chance of making a good organ postlude provided that, say, a hundred years later the public has generally dissociated it from rock and roll. Many hymn tunes in Germany for example, or Holland, were from some secular sources, anyway.
 
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FelixLowe

New member
An interesting creative presentation on Veni, veni, Emanuel

Today being Advent, I was doing a search on Youtube on Veni Veni, Emanuel, which netted an interesting result. This three-verse presentation on the well-known hymn gives an interesting performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGBuZJ1uuPU. First of all, the organist was trying to imitate the bagpipe in his demo and first verse, which is played similarly. It is interesting that although bagpipes are a commonly heard instrument in Britain, never do we (or seldom) do we hear British organists imitate the bagpipe in this way. So this is quite an extraordinary bit of creativity. Secondly at "Rejoice, Rejoice" for the second verse refrain, the organist pulled out the 4' and 2' pitch stops, which is expected because I have heard organists play similarly before, albeit with less prominent crescendo effects than this Dutch example. Thirdly, the last verse is played quite joyfully on a kind of organo plenum, but the Mixture is only the Sesuqialtera II at the beginning, with the high Mixture gilding the refrain.

The presentation differs from Anglo-speaking countries' in one major way: that the accompaniment to congregational singing is always a minimum of 8' and 4' in them, rather than a 8' only tone, which is the case in the most of the first two verses in the music video.

The organ sounds like a predominantly lead-pipe instrument made in the traditional North German way.
 
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FelixLowe

New member
Today being Advent, I was doing a search on Youtube on Veni Veni, Emanuel, which netted an interesting result. This three-verse presentation on the well-known hymn gives an interesting performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGBuZJ1uuPU. First of all, the organist was trying to imitate the bagpipe in his demo and first verse, which is played similarly. It is interesting that although bagpipes are a commonly heard instrument in Britain, never do we (or seldom) do we hear British organists imitate the bagpipe in this way. So this is quite an extraordinary bit of creativity. Secondly at "Rejoice, Rejoice" for the second verse refrain, the organist pulled out the 4' and 2' pitch stops, which is expected because I have heard organists play similarly before, albeit with less prominent crescendo effects than this Dutch example. Thirdly, the last verse is played quite joyfully on a kind of organo plenum, but the Mixture is only the Sesuqialtera II at the beginning, with the high Mixture gilding the refrain.

The presentation differs from Anglo-speaking countries' in one major way: that the accompaniment to congregational singing is always a minimum of 8' and 4' in them, rather than a 8' only tone, which is the case in the most of the first two verses in the music video.

The organ sounds like a predominantly lead-pipe instrument made in the traditional North German way.

Of course, the singular use of 8' stops on the manual for accompaniment to congregational singing, though very rare and not recommended in Anglophone organ textbooks, is in fact practised. I've heard it once in Hong Kong. During my years of attending that congregational church in Causeway Bay, it happened during the singing of an introit, which itself is a solemn prayer. It is used as a fixed piece in liturgy. I don't know if you have heard Quam Dilecta by George F. Root. It is alternatively titled The Lord is in His Holy Temple. At that time, the organist employed several 8' stops at one time, causing some rumbling to the church pews. She must have employed two to three 8' pitch stops together, and what's more, she kept the swell box tightly closed, so the 8' stop(s) was roaring inside. But being shut up, the stops caused excess low harmonics which were like the "pressure cooker" as if the swell shutters had been about to burst open -- kind of like the swell box was about to explode. This caused a deep rumbling to ears and some shaking of the pews, but at the same time the effect is rather solemn according to memory -- so I would say it was a creative attempt. And that's all -- we never heard any more such usage of accompaniment of 8' only pitches.
 
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