Advice for a Keyboard Player on the Organ

[x_dilly_x]

Hi All,

I'm looking for a little advice. I'm getting married in July next year, and the church in which we are getting married has a nice organ (two keyboards and around 2 octaves of foot pedals). One of my fiance's ushers is very keen to play the hymns for the wedding. He is a pretty decent keyboard player with piano experience too. I totally understand that there is a huge difference between playing the keyboard and playing the organ, but in reality, he would only have to learn three or so hymns.

So I suppose what I am asking is:

1. Any advice on how he could get a hang of the foot pedals? Is practising in a church the only viable option?

2. Having never played the organ before, if he's reasonably musical, is it reasonable to hope he could learn three songs within about 10 months?

I know it's all a bit vague, but I'd appreciate any comments or advice!

Thanks,

dilly

 

[Corno Dolce]

Aloha x_dilly_x

Welcome aboard - Please do make yourself feel right at home and stay for a spell.

Now, onto your questions---

1. There is no *quick and dirty* way to get the hang of footpedals - Blood, Sweat, and Tears Baby!!! Have the usher immediately acquire this book on the clickable link:

http://www.musicroom.com/se/ID_No/057981/details.html

The usher must very diligently practice the lessons in the book. Have him/her get in contact with an organist in a Church in order to get some much needed pedagogy.

2. Since you say that he/she has *decent* keyboard skills, they have just about half the battle won. If they will only play hymns then there should be no reason why they can't learn three or so hymns in 10 months. A standard hymnbook from the Lutheran or Presbyterian Church is a great way to learn polyphonic music in all the different keys.

3. Practise, practise, practise is the operative word here. Unless they have access to an organ w/ full pedalboard[32 notes] in a home or music studio or local College/University with an organ department, a Church is usually the only viable option. He/She needs a pedalboard to practise the exercises for the pedal keys. I hope these suggestions will help the person who will play the hymns.

Cheers,

Corno Dolce

 

[Contratrombone64]

If he's just going to be playing the hymns, he could (and I say could) get away with just using the manuals I guess ...

 

[kierantk]

I agree with CT - On certain organs, i end up playing hymns on manuals alone for various reasons (pedals too loud, too slow, or tuning issues), and the hymns will sound fine just on manuals.

That said, it would still be best to let them practise on the organ that he will be using so that he can get a feel for the organ, as the keys will likely have a different weight to that of a piano. Also, it would be good to let him play around with the organ for a few hours to sort out registrations

 

[ParryHotter]

If he's only learning 3 hymns, I'd argue he'd be able play with pedals and manuals. It would have to be a brute force technique involving a lot of practice, but here's what I do when I play hymns.

1) Learn the pedal (bass line) separate from the other 3 parts.

2) Write in all fingerings/pedal markings, keeping in mind that the alto line (note second from the top) can be played with either the left or right hand.

3) Tie ALL repeated notes that are in the alto/tenor line. Do NOT tie ANY repeated notes in the soprano/bass line (unless of course marked in the music).

Figure out a way to change registrations between each verse for a little variety, and keep the tempo constant and upbeat.

Legato playing is very important. If you have to repeat a note, generally it cuts the value of the first note in half (the 2nd half replaced by a rest).

Most hymns are not written to be played solely on manuals (maybe a duet ? ), and most pedal lines are not too difficult.

 

[x_dilly_x]

Thank you all for the advice. Just a couple of points:

1. When you say "manuals", do you mean only the two keyboards?

2. I hadn't thought about him only playing with the keyboards (if that is what you mean). In fact, the wedding is going to be pretty small (around 25 people) and so maybe a quieter sound would be completely appropriate!

But I shall pass on all of this advice, and again, thank you all for taking the time to help

dilly

 

[ParryHotter]

Manuals = keyboards yes. And playing solely on them can sound okay, just make sure to tell the keyboardist to play all the notes legato except at the end of a phrase.

 

[stoferb]

1. Any advice on how he could get a hang of the foot pedals? Is practising in a church the only viable option?

2. Having never played the organ before, if he's reasonably musical, is it reasonable to hope he could learn three songs within about 10 months?
dilly

1. Yes, unless he has access to a similar organ elsewhere, practicing in the church is the only viable option. You don't get the hang of foot pedals unless you practice on real foot pedals. Perhaps he should take an organ lesson or two aswell.

2. It's more than reasonable. 10 months is alot of time to learn only three hymns. Especially if he's familiar with other keyboard instruments. If he practice a few hours every day he ought to learn them much much faster.

 

[Krummhorn]

ParryHotter brings up a great tag line ... legato playing.

Pianists have the damper pedal for "tying" phrases from one to the other - Organists, on the other hand, have learned through many years of study and practice, how to tie over those same phrases by physically holding the notes down (legato). Using both feet on the pedalboard greatly assists in this endeavor.

So, the same technique used on the piano must be greatly altered when sitting at the organ - they are not the same - and to play the organ the same way one plays the piano will result in a very choppy sound, and it will sound horrible.

Your pianist needs to spend time at the instrument on which he/she is going to play. It will be quite an adjustment if one has never played the organ. Manuals alone will be fine, especially if just hymns are being played, and practice in the actual building is essential because of varying acoustics that also change the attack and release of the organ speech. Play too fast in a very live room produces pure mush in sound - much like playing the piano with the sustain pedal locked down - Conversely, if the church is a very dry acoustic place, then legato ... molto sostenuto will be required.