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Goths and other distractions ...

Contratrombone64

Admiral of Fugues
There is a wonderful company called Gothic. American (where else), and they specalise in organ CDs ... and have a huge range. I find their service fantastic and their delivery tracking system easier to use than Amazon's (go figure). Anyone else used them?

http://www.gothic-catalog.com/

No, I don't work for them, but it's nice to have an organ specific retailer a mouse click away.
 

Contratrombone64

Admiral of Fugues
Thomas

Funny you mention Widor ... I've got the van Oosten cycle, which is superb. But it seems there is little else available in the complete range. Any ideas? And, not wishing to criticise Widor in the slightest, but I prefer the Vierne symphonies slightly, as I find them more visceral and moody somehow. Widor's symphonies are not all equally good, IMHO, No. 5 stands on a rather high pedestal, but not sure if 6 is up there with it, really.
 

Thomas Dressler

New member
I believe I might agree with you. I've always been enthusiastic about Widor, but I, too, find his music uneven. I have never studied Vierne much, as I spent my graduate years specializing in Bach and earlier, but I have recently begun to like Vierne--A LOT! (I do like the first and last movements of Widor's 6th a lot, too, though!)
 

Caddis

New member
Hi CT
I have a Widor set by Herman van Vliet(Widoriade,Festivo).I have got the Ben van Oosten set of Vierne symponies but don't have a Ben van Oosten set of Widor symphonies(with the Rand at 9+ to the Euro those MDG Cd's are not cheap),therefore I can't make a comparison.If memory serves me correct George Baker also recorded a Widor set.
 

Contratrombone64

Admiral of Fugues
van Oosten's playing is great ... for sure. And thanks, Thomas, I'd be interested to hear what you think of play the Vierne symphonies ... he also wrote a huge amount of free style pieces, more suited to sight-reading than his monsterous and hideously difficult syphonies ...
 

Thomas Dressler

New member
CT, it's been within the last year that I've started to really like Vierne. I'll be honest, I used to really dislike his music except for a few pieces, but I don't know, it must be middle age doing something to my brain (LOL) but I'm beginning to really like it! I don't know the symphonies all that well except for some of the more famous movements. But all along I've liked the finale to the first symphony, for example. I've recently started to read through the free pieces, and I think they are just wonderful! So impressionistic in many ways. . . (There's the issue with me, you see. I used to absolutely hate Debussy and other Impressionism, and my friends thought I had gone completely mad last summer because I was sitting around playing Clair de Lune and getting ecstatic! LOL So that might give a clue about suddenly liking Vierne!) I have to get to know the symphonies better, but yes, they are really difficult!
 

Contratrombone64

Admiral of Fugues
Thomas, yes, well even Debussy was complimentary about Vierne and his skills as a composer with special reference to his organ music. His harmonic language, IMHO, teeters on the brink of atonality, deliciously without ever quite falling over.
 
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