The 2009 Summer Institute for French Organ Studies (SIFOS) is accepting
reservations. The institute was created in 1985 by Gene Bedient,
organbuilder, and Jesse Eschbach, professor of organ at the University of
North Texas, Denton. The mission of SIFOS is to give a select number of
participants an accurate perspective on the French organ and French culture
of the 17th–19th centuries. SIFOS provides the participants an in-depth and
realistic perspective on the French organ, its literature and the French
culture.
Rather than visiting a large number of instruments over a two to three-week
period, SIFOS focuses on two instruments, allowing organists to become
thoroughly familiar with each of them. Individual practice time on the
instruments averages 11?2 to 2 hours per day. On Friday evening of each
week, qualified participants play public recitals. Because SIFOS adheres to
very high standards, participants must necessarily be competent performers
and scholars. See complete information and application procedure on the
website www.bedientorgan.com and click on Summer Institute) or contact
Gene Bedient at: [email protected].
2009 Summer Institute for French Organ Studies is accepting reservations
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Summer Institute for French Organ Studies 2009
Gregory Peterson is Assistant Professor of Music and College Organist at Luther College, Decorah, Iowa, where he teaches organ and church music, conducts the Luther Ringers, and serves as cantor to the student congregation for daily and Sunday chapel services in the College’s Center for Faith and Life, playing the 42-stop mechanical-action organ by Robert Sipe. He holds the DMA from the University of Iowa, MM from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, and the BA from Luther College. An active recitalist, he has performed in Europe and throughout the United States. He is represented by Concert Artist Cooperative,
Start with two world experts on French organ building and organ music, add seven qualified, eager American organists, stir them together with extant examples of the finest French organs, and let steep for a couple of weeks in the rich culture of Bordeaux and Epernay, France. This is the recipe for the Summer Institute for French Organ Studies (SIFOS). Since 1986, organ builder Gene Bedient of Lincoln, Nebraska and Jesse Eschbach, Professor of Organ and Chairman of the Keyboard Division at the University of North Texas School of Music, have teamed up to direct this biennial seminar. It is not your grandmother’s recipe for the typical European organ tour, however, where a large group travels from instrument to instrument with minimal opportunity to play. Instead, a select group of performers and scholars is given the chance to delve deeply into the appropriate repertoire for each instrument through masterclasses and individual practice time, culminating in a group recital, open to the public, at the end of each week.
Participants in this year’s course were Michael Chad Leavitt, student, Manhattan School of Music, New York; Gregory Peterson, Assistant Professor of Music and College Organist, Luther College, Decorah, Iowa; Patrick Allen Scott, student, University of Texas, Austin, Texas; Timothy Wissler, organist, children’s choir director, Cathedral of Christ the King, Atlanta, Georgia; Marilyn Witte, Cantor, Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd, Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and Andrew Yeargin, student, Manhattan School of Music, New York. Elaine Mann, director of music, Grace Lutheran Church, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, joined the group for the second week.
First week
Sainte-Croix Church, Bordeaux
The group gathered on Sunday, May 24, in Bordeaux, a cosmopolitan port city on the Garonne River approximately 300 miles southwest of Paris. With a population of one million, Bordeaux is the seventh largest metropolitan area in France and is the capital of the Aquitaine region and a major wine-producing center. This beautiful, historic city was described by Victor Hugo as a combination of Versailles and Antwerp. Lectures, masterclasses, practice sessions, and the public recital took place at the Sainte-Croix Church, on the site of a 7th-century abbey. The current structure with its Romanesque façade was built in the late 11th to early 12th centuries and boasts a magnificent organ from 1741 by Dom Bédos, meticulously restored in 1997 by the French organ builder Pascal Quoirin. Every aspect of the instrument—winding system, key and stop action, pipe restoration and replacement, casework—was restored with the utmost care and concern for historical accuracy. This famous instrument is known throughout the city and is a source of much local pride. It was not uncommon to hear “Oh, the Dom Bédos” exclaimed by a local after being introduced as an organist visiting the city.
Dom Bédos five-manual organ
A unique aspect of the five-manual Dom Bédos instrument at Sainte-Croix is the 32′ plenum of the Grand-Orgue. The 32′ Bourdon lays the foundation for the searing Grand Plein-Jeu of this post-classical organ, building up through the 16′ Montre, 8′ Montre and Second 8′ Montre, Prestant, Doublette, Grosse Fourniture and Grand Plein-Jeu of 13 ranks. In addition to the customary Nazard and Tierce, there is a Gros-Nazard of 51⁄3′ and a Grosse Tierce of 31⁄5′, a late addition to the French Classical organ, after 1690. The Grand Cornet, two 8′ Trompettes and the Clairon complete the division. The Positif de Dos, based on an 8′ Montre, contains the usual plenum, mutations, and Cromorne. In addition, there is an 8′ Trompette, Clairon and Voix Humaine. The third manual contains the Bombarde 16′ and Gros Cromorne 8′. According to Gene Bedient, this could be the first Bombarde division in France, as there was not much use of this division before 1750. The Récit is a short keyboard of 32 notes, with a Cornet V and Trompette 8′. This chest has the expressive Tremblant doux and raucous Tremblant fort. The Echo is also a shorter keyboard of 39 notes containing a Cornet V. The pedalboard is extended down to F, known as the ravalement for exciting, thunderous pedal effects from the Bombarde 16′ and first and second Trompettes. The division also contains a Clairon, 16′ Flûte, 8′ Metal Flûte, 8′ Wooden Flûte, and Flûte 4′. Shove couplers allow the Positif and Bombarde to be coupled to the Grand-Orgue. All of this—plus a generous acoustic of four to five seconds’ reverberation—made for a most satisfying performance of repertoire selected by Jesse Eschbach, including excerpts from François Couperin’s Messe pour les couvents (Kyrie, Elevation–Tierce en taille and Offertoire); the Tierce en taille, Basse de Trompette and Grand jeu from Livre d’Orgue of Pierre DuMage; En taille, Fugue [à cinq], Récit de Cromorne and Dialogue sur les Grands Jeux from Veni Créator by Nicolas de Grigny; and two Noëls by Jean-François Dandrieu, Il n’est rien de plus Tendre and Allons voir ce divin Gage.
Lectures and masterclasses
An anteroom in the gallery, containing an historical exhibit with large posterboard illustrations from L’Art du Facteur d’Orgues by Dom Bédos, provided sufficient space for the daily morning lectures. Gene Bedient covered wind systems and key action in classical French organ building, as well as pipework, tonal issues, and temperament in the 17th and 18th centuries. Under his guidance, participants were able to crawl into the immaculately clean case and hand-pump the organ’s six bellows. It was interesting to note the subtle change in the organ’s sound when hand-pumped as opposed to using the electric blower. And it was quite an aerobic workout to boot!
Jesse Eschbach lectured on French post-Classical style and registration in France pre-1665 and 1665–1710. There was much fascination with the Grosse Tierce 31⁄5′ and its musical application. It was used for the bass or left hand, combined with the 16′ Bourdon and 8′ flute. Professor Eschbach also addressed the use of notes inégales and ornamentation, pointing out that ornamentation is a product of what the organ will invite, depending upon which division is being played, how much air is in the pipe channel, the registration, and acoustics, as well as the performer’s bon goût. The correct use of ornamentation in French music can often bring fear and trepidation to the performer. Professor Eschbach’s helpful explanation encouraged spontaneity and improvisation as a way to bring local surface detail to the performance. Multiple handouts enhanced the lecture material. Dr. Eschbach’s knowledge and passion for this music was also in evidence during each of the late morning masterclasses, where his expert teaching motivated everyone to move ahead in their interpretation and understanding, resulting in a stylistically informed and aesthetically pleasing recital.
Pentecost is celebrated as a national holiday in France, and it was fortuitous that the birthday of the Christian Church fell on the weekend between the first and second weeks of this summer’s institute. Most participants headed to Paris for the weekend, braving the crowded trains to take advantage of festival Masses at major churches in the capital, especially Notre Dame, Sainte-Clotilde and Saint-Sulpice.
Second week
Church of Notre Dame, Epernay
Nestled in the verdant hills of the Champagne region, the “Champagne City” of Epernay (population 25,000) was the site for the second week of lectures, masterclasses, and the recital. Located on the left bank of the Marne River about 17 miles southwest of Reims, Epernay is home to two magnificent organs by the celebrated 19th-century French builder Aristide Cavaillé-Coll. Classes and the recital took place at the Church of Notre-Dame, an imposing structure begun in 1898 and completed in 1915. Bombardment on the night of July 24, 1918 caused considerable damage to the nave. Rebuilding was not completed until April 1925. This building replaced a 16th-century edifice that was demolished due to severe collapsing.
Cavaillé-Coll organs
The 1869 Cavaillé-Coll instrument was moved into the rebuilt church and is housed in the north transept of the cruciform nave with 34 stops distributed over three manuals and pedal.
Grand-Orgue
16′ Bourdon
8′ Montre
8′ Bourdon
8′ Violoncelle
4′ Prestant
2′ Doublette
Plein-jeu harmonique
16′ Basson
8′ Trompette
4′ Clairon
Positif
8′ Quintaton
8′ Salicional
8′ Unda Maris
4′ Flûte douce
2′ Doublette
1′ Piccolo
8′ Clarinette
8′ Trompette
Récit expressif
8′ Flûte traversière
8′ Viole de gambe
8′ Voix céleste
4′ Flûte octaviante
2′ Octavin
8′ Trompette
8′ Basson-Hautbois
8′ Voix Humaine
Pédale
16′ Contrebasse
8′ Basse
4′ Flûte
16′ Bombarde
8′ Trompette
4′ Clairon
The dedication recital was given by Alexis Chauvet and Charles-Marie Widor on December 2, 1869. The organ was restored in 2001 by Bernard Hurvy.
SIFOS participants also had use of an 1897 Cavaillé-Coll instrument at the Church of Saint-Pierre et Saint-Paul. Also three manuals and pedal, this later instrument has a few more mutations and small pipes, perhaps showing the influence of Alexandre Guilmant. Both instruments are typical in the layout of the tirasses, ventils and coupler pedals, and employ a Barker machine, the pneumatic lever to assist the playing action of the coupled Grand-Orgue, developed by Charles Barker and first used to great success by Cavaillé-Coll in his 1841 instrument at Saint-Denis, Paris.
Lectures and masterclasses
Cavaillé-Coll was a disciple of Dom Bédos, evidenced by his well-annotated copy of L’Art du Facteur d’Orgues. The lectures during this week by Gene Bedient brought forward the connections between these two significant builders and covered the innovations and mechanics that are the hallmark of the 19th-century French organ. Jesse Eschbach lectured on “Rousseau, Revolution, and Restoration: An Overview of Cultural and Political Influences in France Affecting Sacred Music in the Nineteenth Century,” “Post Classical French Organ Registration from Dom Bédos to Georges Schmitt,” and the concept of plenum in nineteenth-century France. The masterclasses again centered on selected repertoire including César Franck’s Grande Pièce Symphonique, op. 17 and Prélude, Fugue et Variation, op. 18, Marcel Dupré’s Prélude et Fugue en Sol Mineur, op. 7, the Adagio from Louis Vierne’s Troisième Symphonie pour Grand-Orgue, Pastorale from the Première Sonate en Ré Mineur, op. 42 by Alexandre Guilmant, and “Tu es petra” from the Esquisses Byzantines by Henri Mulet. The resulting recital was a thrilling conclusion to the week and a testament to the enduring legacy of this music as an outgrowth of the partnership between artisan and artist.
French culture
Of course, no time spent in France would be complete without a total immersion into the food and wine that is the sine qua non of French culture. After working hard each day, participants enjoyed festive repasts at gourmet restaurants carefully selected by Gwen and Gene Bedient. As with organ registration, there is great variety in French cuisine, adventurously sampled by all participants, adding to the collegial camaraderie permeating the institute.
Is it possible to say that an organist has not lived without hearing the thrilling Grand Plein-Jeu of Dom Bédos or a beguiling Cavaillé-Coll harmonic flute? The Summer Institute for French Organ Studies is a rich, cultural and musical immersion. Try it. It will transform your playing and teaching—perhaps even your life. To learn more about the Summer Institute for French Organ Studies and plans for the 2011 Institute, visit the Bedient Organ Company website at www.bedientorgan.com.
Summer Institute for French Organ Studies 2007
Annie Laver is pursuing her DMA in organ at the Eastman School of Music. She developed an interest in historical organs while studying for a year in Amsterdam and has continued to nurture the interest at Eastman by giving performances and initiating concert series on the school’s 18th-century Italian Baroque organ and by serving as the graduate assistant for the Eastman Rochester Organ Initiative (EROI). Laver completed her bachelor’s degree at Brown University and MM in organ at Eastman; she presently resides in Wisconsin, where she is organist at the First English Lutheran Church in Appleton.
For two weeks this past summer, a handful of American organists participated in the Summer Institute for French Organ Studies, a biennial educational seminar run by Gene Bedient, president of Bedient Pipe Organ Company, and Jesse Eschbach, professor at the University of North Texas. The small group of participants, including Daryl Robinson, Elaine Mann, Laura Edman, Katherine Meloan, and Annie Laver, sought out the institute in order to gain hands-on experience on historical organs and further their understanding of French organ music from the baroque and romantic periods.
The institute commenced in Poitiers, France on May 28, where participants were allowed exclusive access to the 1789 organ built by François Henri Clicquot in the Cathedral of St. Pierre. During the week, Gene Bedient gave lectures on aspects of Classical French organbuilding, including the development of wind systems, key action, temperament, and pipework. He frequently guided the group through the inside of the case, in order to reinforce the concepts discussed in lectures. Professor Eschbach complemented the lectures on organbuilding with presentations on the historical context for French baroque music as well as performance practice issues such as inegalité and registration in the music of 17th- and 18th-century France. François Guichard and Jean-Baptiste Robin also offered demonstrations and masterclasses. The focus of the week was François Couperin’s Mass for the Parishes of 1690. Each participant presented a portion of the work for the daily performance seminars and public concert on Friday, June 1.
After a weekend free for individual excursions, the group reconvened in the heart of champagne country on June 4 for the second half of the institute, a seminar devised around an instrument completed in 1869 by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll for the Church of Notre-Dame in Epernay. In addition to this well-preserved three-manual instrument, the group was allowed access to a second three-manual Cavaillé-Coll organ of 1889 vintage in the neighboring Church of St. Pierre and St. Paul. The use of these two exceptional instruments concurrently allowed the group to discuss the development of Cavaillé-Coll’s building style and the surrounding musical context in the 19th century. During the week, the group examined Cavaillé-Coll’s Barker levers, discussed the evolution of the absolute legato style in France, and learned how to maneuver ventils and couplers, among other things. The final concert included Louis Vierne’s Symphonie III and César Franck’s Choral in B Minor.
The group was enthusiastic in its praise for the institute, citing the organized and informative presentations, and the rare opportunity to prepare for performances on the historical instruments daily. The next Summer Institute for French Organ Studies will take place in the summer of 2009. For more information, visit <www.bedientorgan.com>.
2001 Summer Institute for French Organ Studies
Arthur Lawrence is Librarian and Archivist of the Union League Club, Organist and Choirmaster of the Church of the Good Shepherd (Episcopal), and a member of the organ faculty at the Manhattan School of Music, all in New York City. He was Editor of The Diapason from 1976 to 1982.
Since 1985, the Summer Institute for French Organ Studies (SIFOS) has given American organists a unique opportunity to play and study historic French organs in depth. Unlike the more usual organ tours, which enroll many people and visit a large number of instruments briefly, this institute is restricted to five or six participants and spends a week each at an eighteenth-century organ in Souvigny and at a nineteenth-century one in Lyon. In addition to attending daily classes on the instrument and the literature appropriate for it, each person has at least one daily practice session at the organ. It is, I believe, the only such institute that affords this kind of opportunity to learn from the extensive playing of the instrument itself, an experience not otherwise possible. It illustrates well the adage that the organ has a great deal to teach the player.
Founded by organbuilder Gene Bedient of Lincoln, Nebraska, and organist Jesse Eschbach of the University of North Texas at Denton, SIFOS now operates in alternate summers. The most recent sessions took place July 16-27, 2001, and were very well organized; every effort had been made to ensure that all went as it should. The participants ranged from advanced graduate students to professionals long in the field; they were Parker Kitterman (Lewisburg, Georgia), Arthur Lawrence (New York, New York), James Livengood (Dallas, Texas), Margaret Mulvey (Dallas, Texas), Jane Smith (Portland, Oregon), and Stephen Warner (Ann Arbor, Michigan). In this congenial group, all demonstrated good keyboard facility, interest in learning, and enthusiasm for playing the instruments.
Souvigny
Souvigny-sur-Alliers is a beautiful small town ten kilometers west of Moulins, in the predominantly agricultural area of the Auvergne, at the north edge of the Massif Central. It is a peaceful refuge from commercialism; in addition to the Priory Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul and the attached museum occupying a former monastery building, there are a few stores and restaurants, a school, the town hall, a police station, and a post office. Of course, there are also private residences, some of which housed the participants, all of whom had local hosts. A place well off the tourist track, this village is ideal for a week of quiet study.
In 916, Aymard, a magistrate of the Duke William the Pious of Aquitaine and forebear of the Bourbon kings, ceded land to the Abbot of Cluny to establish several Benedictine monasteries in the surrounding area of Bourbonnais. The construction of the Priory Church, now at the center of Souvigny, began in 994, and papal legate Pierre Damien consecrated the original Romanesque building on August 10, 1063. The importance of this church at the time of the First Crusade under Pope Urban II necessitated its enlargement in 1095. Two bell towers were added at the beginning of the thirteenth century, other changes and additions took place during the seventeenth century, and a new west façade was constructed in the eighteenth century.
Inasmuch as the church at Cluny was destroyed early in the nineteenth century, the Souvigny church is now the finest remaining example of a priory church from the Cluny epoch. The central nave, flanked by double columns and side aisles, is a little more than 260 feet in length; with double transepts near the crossing, the total width is just under 90 feet.
After functioning as a typical twentieth-century parish for many years, this church since 1991 has been administered by brothers of the Congregation of Saint Jean, a Dominican order founded in 1978. Today, in addition to the celebration of the Mass, daily offices (although not the complete historical spectrum) are observed, to which the faithful are summoned by the joyful ringing of the tower bells.
The Clicquot Organ
The organ, located in the gallery, was built by François-Henri Clicquot in 1782-83 and has interior inscriptions of 25 May 1782 and 1783. Despite an 1887 repitching by organbuilder Goydadin in which pipes were moved down a half-step and equal temperament was effected, the instrument is in remarkably original condition. (On August 26, 1880, Joseph Merklin had submitted a proposal to do restoration work, noting that the instrument was one of Clicquot's best and the only one remaining without having been subjected to modification. His proposal to leave the organ without substantial change was not accepted.) In 1962, Philippe Hartmann placed it in a mildly unequal temperament, although the original would have been meantone. From a cosmetic standpoint, the only change seems to have been that the original parchment tags giving the stop name under each drawknob were at some point removed in favor of drawknobs with inset porcelain faces bearing the stop names. The organ was classified as a national monument historique in 1947, the same designation for the case following in 1975.
The main case, containing speaking pipes of the Montre and the Pédale Flûte 4', has towers on each side, with a lower one in the middle, outlining the rose window above and behind the organ. Carved angel musicians crown the towers, which are separated by two flats of pipes. In this case are the pipes of the Grand-Orgue, with those of the short-compass Récit above in the center, and those of the Pédale in the side towers. The case of the Positif-de-dos follows the same pattern on a smaller scale, but with only one flat between towers and urns surmounting them. There is barely room between the two cases for the recessed console and bench over the classic-style pedalboard.
The winding system was replaced by a single horizontal bellows in 1887, the first item on Goydadin's proposal. In 1977, Mr. Hartmann reconstructed the original system of three cuneiform bellows, using Clicquot components which had been preserved. The bellows are raised in alternation by an electric motor controlled by a sophisticated computer application installed in 1995 by Philippe Klinge. The wind pressure is approximately 80 mm.
Because of the location of Souvigny, the organ has probably not received the same attention it would have had in a more metropolitan setting, but it is by no means unknown. Alexander Dumas visited in October 1834 and praised the sound of the organ. Félix Danjou admired it in 1840 and Hamel in 1845. In more recent times, the Association Saint-Marc commissioned a new composition by Guy Bovet, who performed and recorded here. The organ has also been recorded by Henri DeLorme.
Positif (I) (C1, D1-D5)
8' Bourdon
8' Dessus de Flûte (C2)
4' Prestant
22⁄3' Nazard
2' Doublette
13⁄5' Tierce
Plein-jeu V
8' Trompette
8' Cromorne
Grand-Orgue (II) (C1, D1-D5)
8' Montre
8' Bourdon
4' Prestant
22⁄3' Nazard
2' Doublette
2' Quarte de Nazard
13⁄5' Tierce
Cornet V (C3)
Plein-jeu VI
8 Trompette
8' Voix Humaine
4' Clairon
Récit (III) (C3-D5)
8' Bourdon
Cornet IV
8' Hautbois
Pédale (C1-A2, flues)
Pédale (F0, G0-A2, reeds)
8' Flûte
4' Flûte
12' Trompette
6' Clairon
Tremblant fort (not presently operating)
Tremblant doux
Accouplement à tiroir ( Pos/G.O. shove coupler)
Except for the oak bottom octave of the Grand-Orgue Bourdon and the Pédale Flûte 8', all pipes are metal, either a high percentage of tin or common metal (thirty percent tin, seventy percent lead). The bourdons are chimneyed. The scales of the cornets and the jeux de tierces are very similar and rather wide. Because of the extended range of the pedals, what would have been 8' and 4' reed stops are actually 12' and 6', providing substantial bass. After more than two hundred years, the pipes have oxidized but that does not affect the quality of the sound they produce.
The design of the action--typical of this type of French organ--places the pallet box at the front of the windchest, allowing the suspended key action of the Grand-Orgue and Pédale to work efficiently. The keys are not bushed but have guide pins on either side, beyond the playing surface. It takes a bit of doing to become accustomed to this, so as to avoid excess lateral motion and unwanted noise, but once mastered, the keyboards are friendly. The manual shove coupler is similar to a dogleg coupler on a harpsichord; when the coupler is engaged, a piece of wood atop the Positif key is in physical contact with the Grand-Orgue key above it. The coupler can be activated while one is playing on the Positif. The Positif key action is conveyed by backfalls and passes very compactly under the pedalboard and bench to the windchest, which is immediately behind the organist.
This is an organ from which one learns by playing--what blends with what, what works in ensemble, how to depress the keys to get the best reed sound, as opposed to how to depress the keys for the flues. One of my colleagues wrote in the inscription book that he'd learned more in a week here than in four years at college. Playing this organ is also an experience in auditory delight, because every sound is satisfying and beautiful, and the big ensembles are thrilling. Both the mounted cornets and those drawn from separate ranks are exquisite in color and fullness. The grand jeu is exceptional in its grandeur and power. For me, each hour at this organ was one to be savored, albeit one which passed much too quickly.
Even though this is still a French Classic organ, it is a late one and it betrays signs of developments to come: there is no larigot, there are no 4' flutes, the 8' rank of the Récit Cornet draws separately, and there is an open flute on the Positif--a particular harbinger of the nineteenth century. This flute, in fact, is a small principal. In general, the smallest number of stops gives the best effect. For instance, the grand jeu needs only the reeds and the mounted cornet; the jeu de tierce is redundant and only consumes wind unnecessarily.
A typical day for the SIFOS participants began with a lecture by Mr. Bedient on some aspect of the history and design of the instrument, with pipes, action, winding, and tuning and temperament being the main areas of discussion. There were several opportunities to look inside the organ, to view the pipework and the action. We also examined several of the original pipes which had been removed when the organ was repitched.
That first hour was followed by a longer session at the organ, in which titulaire Henri DeLorme listened to several people play, coaching them in the style and making observations about the music. Mr. DeLorme, who studied with Michel Chapuis at the Strasbourg conservatory, is a very intuitive musician with a keen ear. He knows the Souvigny organ and its literature intimately, and is well positioned to instruct others in all aspects of playing the French Classic organ. He is also an excellent improviser in the style of the period, which he demonstrated extensively the first day to acquaint us with the organ. His effusive personality is infectious, instilling joy in organ playing.
A grand three-course luncheon followed at an excellent local restaurant, with the afternoon and early evening being devoted to individual practice sessions or enjoying the local scenery.
At the conclusion of the week, the Association Saint-Marc sponsored a well-attended public recital by the participants, with receptions before and afterward. This association of local organ lovers is active in support and promotion of the Souvigny organ. The recital consisted of Clérambault, five movements from the Suite in the Second Tone (Lawrence); D'Aquin, Noël sur les flûtes (Mulvey); D'Aquin, Noël grand jeu et duo (Livengood); Couperin, two movements from the Convent Mass (Smith); Balbastre, Marche guerrière (Warner); and Couperin, Offertoire from the Parish Mass (Kitterman). Except for the Balbastre, the music predated the organ, but it all sounded most appropriate on this magnificent instrument. The audience was enthusiastic in its applause for the performers, the organ, and Mr. DeLorme's witty verbal program notes.
Lyon
We left Souvigny behind, as a fast and efficient train took us through the bucolic countryside which gradually became mountainous, until we reached Lyon a few hours later. Arriving on Sunday afternoon, we found France's second-largest city fairly warm and a little sleepy, but the city sprang to life with great vitality the next morning.
Our activities took place in the part of the city that developed on the peninsula between the Rhône and Saône Rivers, opposite both the old city dating from Roman times to the west and the sprawling modern suburbs to the east. We were conveniently housed a block from the church at the Hotel Résidence on a pedestrian shopping street which bustled with activity all day and well into the evening. As in Souvigny, we ate well, but this time in various restaurants in the evening.
The nineteenth-century church of Saint-François-de-Sales is nestled in the midst of this area. The edifice is surrounded by other buildings on two sides, with a small park on the third, and the street on the fourth. The main entrance, at the street edge of the park, is surmounted by a bell tower. The interior is cruciform in shape, with pews in the nave and the two transepts, the altar on a platform in the center, and the organ behind the altar, at the far end of the choir. The windows in the dome over the crossing light the whole area below.
The Cavaillé-Coll Organ
The immense organ façade is visually commanding. At the impost level are three large flats; above this are two smaller flats on either side of a central tower, which crowns the case. Flanking the whole are two pedal towers, which, like the smaller central tower, are surmounted by rich wooden carvings. The remaining space beside each pedal tower is filled by another smaller flat. Unlike most large French organs, it is placed on the main floor, where the whole area is protected by an electronic alarm, installed to guard this monument historique. It is said that the first organ in this church was high in the rear gallery and that Aristide Cavaillé-Coll was asked to build a modest-sized instrument at the other end. Although having only three manuals and forty-five stops, this installation of 1879 is monumental both in sound and sight. It is a twin to the one built for the Brussels Conservatory. Like Souvigny, it is in relatively original condition.
François-Charles Widor (1811-99), father of Charles-Marie, was an organist and organbuilder, as was his father. He assisted in the installation of a four-manual, forty-eight-stop Callinet organ at Saint-François-de-Sales in 1838, played the inaugural recital, and became organist of the church. Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937) grew up here and was later sent to Brussels to study with Lemmens, through the influence of Cavaillé-Coll (who had also sent the young Alexandre Guilmant to the same teacher). Charles-Marie returned to Lyon to play the dedication at Saint-François in 1880, probably playing his recently-composed Fifth Symphony which had been premiered the previous year in Paris. The principal organist since 1974 has been Louis Robilliard, who has made a number of recordings here.
The tonal design of this organ pays some homage to the past--the Plein Jeu and Grand Jeu exist on the Grand-Orgue, and there is a Cornet on the Récit. The Grand-Orgue mixtures are classical in design, after Dom Bédos, not the progressive mixtures which Cavaillé-Coll had promoted in previous decades. Improvised versets were still played when this organ was built, but the free works of Bach were also in demand. The enclosed Positif is the most remote from the Classic period; there is no principal chorus and no reed battery. The Carillon, of which this is an early and controversial example, is good chiefly for bell effects; it is 22⁄3' in the bass but 13⁄5' plus 1' in the treble. Each manual has at least one harmonic flute and each enclosed division has a celeste. Every division has reeds, with a 16'-8'-4' ensemble on the Grand-Orgue and the Récit, and 16'-8' on the Pédale. Compared to previous times, the pipes have more nicking and more open toes.
A tour of the interior of the instrument reveals a spacious layout. At floor level directly behind the console are the Grand-Orgue and Positif Barker machines, containing the pneumatic levers which work the key action, permitting the organist to control higher wind pressures and larger, multiple pallets without unduly taxing the fingers. They have glass doors for sound proofing. Above them is the unison coupler mechanism, while the sub-octave coupler mechanism, which works by angled backfalls, is below them. At the back on this level is the winding system, including the original pumping stations where one stood on a large protruding lever to activate the feeders at the bottom of the bellows. The Cummings-style reservoirs are in a double, connected set, each with inverted ribs; the earlier evolution from cuneiform bellows to horizontal ones had increased the wind capacity by one hundred per cent. There are additional anti-concussion reservoirs above this assembly and above the Barker machines. The wind pressures range from approximately 85 mm to 92 mm, with divided pressures between the bass and treble on the Grand-Orgue.
In keeping with the generous spacing of components, one ascends to the upper levels by wooden staircases, not by ladders! At the second level is the Grand-Orgue at the front, with the enclosed Positif behind it, where its sound is less prominent. At the top of the next staircase is the Récit, in a commanding position which crowns the installation. Its Barker machine is in front, clothed in a large muffler to deaden the sound of its operation.
The design of the windchests is particularly interesting, especially from an American perspective. Reading books on the history of organ construction leads one to think that the ventil system--a designation not employed by the French, who instead specified appel--requires separate windchests for the flues (Jeux de Fonds) and for the reeds (Jeux de Combinaison). (See, for instance, Peter Williams, A New History of the Organ, p. 173.) Cavaillé-Coll, from Saint-Dénis onward, did indeed use multiple windchests on each division, but this was in order to provide varying wind pressures in different parts of the scale. The division of flue and reed stops in a given register, however, is made on a single windchest which has an internal barrier running down the middle of the chest, with pallets on each end of the channel. Thus, the organist can draw flues and reeds, activating the reeds and upperwork only when the proper pedal is depressed, which then admits air to the portion of the windchest which houses the reeds and upperwork.
The detached, reversed console is laid out with terraces of drawknobs on either side of the keyboards, going from the Récit at the top, the Positif next, then the Grand-Orgue, and finally the Pédale. In general, the flues are on the right, with the reeds and upperwork on the left. The coupler and ventil controls (Pédales de Combinaison) are placed above the pedalboard, as indicated in the specifications. The use of these combination pedals is an essential part of playing this organ.
Grand-Orgue (I) (C1-G6)
Jeux de Fonds
16' Principal
16' Bourdon
8' Montre
8' Salicional
8' Flûte Harmonique
8' Bourdon
4' Prestant
4' Flûte Douce
Jeux de Combinaison
2' Doublette
Fourniture IV
Cymbale III
16' Bombarde
8' Trompette
4' Clairon
Positif-Expressif (II) (C1-G6)
Jeux de Fonds
8' Nachthorn
8' Flûte Harmonique
8' Dulciane
8' Unda Maris
4' Flûte Octaviante
Jeux de Combinaison
2' Doublette
Carillon I-III
8' Trompette
8' Basson
8' Clarinette
Récit-Expressif (III) (C1-G6)
Jeux de Fonds
16' Quintaton
8' Diapason
8' Bourdon
8' Flûte Harmonique
8' Viole de Gambe
8' Voix Céleste
4' Flûte Octaviante
8' Voix Humaine
8' Basson-Hautbois
Jeux de Combinaison
2' Octavin
Cornet V (C3)
16' Basson
8' Trompette
4' Clairon
Pédale (C0-F2)
Jeux de Fonds
32' Basse Accoustique
16' Contre Basse
16' Soubasse
8' Flûte
8' Violoncelle
Jeux de Combinaison
16' Bombarde
8' Trompette
Pédales de Combinaison
(in order from left to right)
1 Effets d'Orage
2 Tirasse Grand-Orgue
3 Tirasse Positif
4 Tirasse Récit
5 Anches Pédale
6 Octaves Graves Grand-Orgue
7 Octaves Graves Positif
8 Octaves Graves Récit
9 Trémolo Positif (above 7 and 8)
10 Expression Positif (balanced pedal)
11 Expression Récit (balanced pedal)
12 Anches Grand-Orgue
13 Anches Positif
14 Anches Récit
15 Trémolo Récit (above 12 and 13)
16 Copula Grand-Orgue sur Machine
17 Copula Positif sur Grand-Orgue
18 Copula Récit sur Grand-Orgue
19 Copula Récit sur Positif
The daily morning class was structured much as at Souvigny, with Mr. Bedient's information on the organ itself, Dr. Eschbach's material on the music, and the playing of the participants. Individual practice time occupied the afternoons and early evenings. Late night practice was prohibited, since the sound of the organ carries into the neighboring buildings. Being in such a large, historic city provided countless opportunities for sightseeing and shopping in whatever time was left.
Although Jesse Eschbach's masterclasses and coaching were exemplary, it was his lectures that were outstanding. He provided a wealth of information on the organs, organists, and organ music of nineteenth-century France, drawn from many well-researched sources. This provided a valuable background for the performance of the music at hand. His forthcoming publication of much of this material is awaited with great interest.
Playing this organ is a physical challenge. The manual keys are large and go down a fair distance, much more so than on a Classic instrument. But the requisite aspect of performance is in the setting and manipulation of the combination pedals. The Copula Grand-Orgue sur Machine must be down in order to have any sound; the other pedals must be set according to the requirements of the music. However, one need only follow literally the directions written in the score: doing exactly what is written in an authentic edition of a Franck piece yields the desired combinations. All the composers who received Cavaillé-Coll's heritage used this system: Franck, Guilmant, Widor, Vierne, Tournemire, Dupré, Langlais, Litaize, Messiaen, and many others. Interestingly, in our classes and recital, assistants were more likely to be changing the pedals than the drawknobs, but that was at least in part due to our unfamiliarity with the system. Every French organist, on the other hand, knows this system intimately, although it is probably being rendered obsolete today by the use of solid-state controls. The ventil system was, after all, the original combination action which made the great symphonic works of the French masters possible. The gradual crescendos and decrescendos specified in their compositions are beautifully and effectively achieved on this instrument.
Once again the participants played a public recital at the conclusion of the week. The program consisted of Boëly, Fantasy and Fugue in B-Flat (Law-rence); Guilmant, Introduction and Allegro from Sonata I (Warner); Franck, Prelude, Fugue, and Variation (Smith); Widor, Variations from Symphony VIII (Mulvey); Duruflé, Fugue on the Theme of the Soissons Cathedral Carillon (Livengood); and Vierne, Adagio and Final from Symphony III (Kitterman). This music spanned the period from before the building of the organ until much later, but this organ was the perfect vehicle for each of the compositions. At the conclusion, Frank Vaudray, the gifted assistant organist of the church, improvised in perpetual motion, making a seamless crescendo from the softest stops to the full organ.
Our whole world has changed dramatically since this wonderful institute in France last summer--there could hardly be a greater contrast between the acrid, smoldering ruins of lower Manhattan and the serenity and beauty of Souvigny or the power and majesty of Lyon. Although September 11 has now made all our lives very different, it is still possible to remember and revisit the monuments of French organs. I hope I have the opportunity to return to Souvigny and Lyon, and I certainly encourage others to go there. They will be amply rewarded by an institute which fosters the understanding of our rich organbuilding heritage and provides a unique educational experience, as well as a very pleasant summer sojourn.
Call for Proposals -- 2015 International Conference of the Historical Keyboard Society of North America
CALL FOR PAPERS AND PERFORMANCES
The Historical Keyboard Society of North America (HKSNA) and the Schulich School of Music of McGill University (Montreal, Canada) are pleased to invite submissions of proposals for the Fourth Annual Meeting of HKSNA:
“French Connections: Networks of Influence and Modes of Transmission of French Baroque Keyboard Music”
The conference will be held at the Schulich School of Music, McGill University, from May 21 to 24, 2015.
21st Annual Organ Conference , University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Fifty-two registrants from 21 states gathered in sun-soaked Lincoln, Nebraska for the 21st annual University of Nebraska-Lincoln Organ Conference held September 17-19, 1998. The title of the conference was "Perspectives on Recent and Future American Organbuilding," with five organbuilders invited to give lectures: Gene Bedient, John Brombaugh, Steven Dieck of C.B. Fisk, Manuel Rosales, and George Taylor. Gene Bedient immediately answered a question which had been on my mind by saying that all organbuilding is historically informed to some degree, suggesting that a better term would be "historically inspired." In the case of the five builders represented at the UNL conference, being historically inspired indicates producing instruments which emulate specific features of European organbuilding of past centuries. The list of historic attributes these builders employ includes mechanical action, low wind pressure, wedge bellows, stop nomenclature, flat pedal boards, mechanisms such as ventils, shove couplers, split keys and short octaves, 56 or 58 note keyboards, elements of case design, and of course, scaling and voicing appropriate to replicating historic sounds. These builders have comprehensive knowledge about historical styles developed through extensive study of instruments built by Schnitger, Silbermann, Clicquot, and Cavaillé Coll, among others, and working under the tutelage of builders such as von Beckerath, Flentrop, Noack and Fisk.
Each builder was given a two-hour time slot to reflect on his work and to address the following questions:
How have your organs been influenced by historic organs? By today's practices?
What is the future of historically informed organbuilding?
Can you envision your firm being influenced by the American Classic style of organbuilding?
How have your perspectives on organbuilding and your instruments changed over the years?
What organbuilding problems or questions currently interest you?
What new directions might your firm take in the future?
What do you consider to be your most important contributions to American organbuilding?
In the mahogany-paneled conference room of the Wick Alumni Center, armed with slides and specifications, each builder spoke about his background, how he got established in organbuilding, and shared information about his most important projects.
Builders' Lectures
Gene Bedient took the audience on a tour of his opus list, narrating his slide presentation with descriptions of the historic influences and techniques used in building each instrument. Bedient's early work is concentrated on the 18th-century French and North German styles, perhaps culminating in the organ built for St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, an approximation of the French classic style, complete with marche pied pedal board. Opus 22, a two-manual organ for the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Charleston, South Carolina completed in 1987, brought a transition to the 19th-century French style. Organs for St. Rita Catholic Church, Dallas, Texas (1992), and Idlewild Presbyterian Church, Memphis, Tennessee (1989), were also built along French 19th-century lines, including ventils, orage, and octaves graves couplers. Opus 52 and Opus 53, completed in 1996 and 1997 respectively, incorporated American Classic ideas, combining North German elements in the Great and Pedal with French ideas in the Swell, in one case retaining a contrebasse in the pedal on 5≤ of wind and providing a concave-radiating pedal board. At that time, work was in progress on a Spanish-style instrument for the Cathedral of St. Vincent de Paul in Omaha.
Bedient concluded his lecture by outlining his contributions to the field of organbuilding: educating American organists about French instruments by building historically-inspired instruments, interesting children in the pipe organ, promoting the viability of small instruments, educating people about the cost of a pipe organ, and efficiency and production control. He summarized his view of the American Classic organ as including standard 61-note keyboards, a concave-radiating pedal board, combination action, and equal temperament, with a main goal of the style being accessibility.
John Brombaugh took a conversational approach in his lecture, relating his early fascination with Hammond organs and love for the sound of old organs which developed from listening to recordings made by E. Power Biggs. He has been strongly influenced by North German organs, having spent time working in Hamburg, and receiving training from Noack, Fisk, and von Beckerath. Brombaugh is particularly fascinated with old Dutch instruments, most notably those in Gronigen, which he toured with Harald Vogel.
Reminding the audience that the organ is primarily a musical instrument, one of the oldest types of instruments in existence, Brombaugh asserted that ancient organs were very musical, and music was written for them because of their sounds, rather than the present practice of building organs to accommodate repertoire. He sees great value in studying organs older than those of the North German and French Classic styles. He also added that he believes all major cultural centers need mean-tone organs in order to hear early music in the temperament for which it was written. Brombaugh sees historic instruments as the basis and foundation for his work, and uses them as a guide to help him develop his own style. He believes organs built today according to historical styles will not be exact copies, but will bear the mark of the individual builder, in his case a strong North German accent. This belief influenced his choice of the Italian style for the organ he built for Duke University chapel since he felt he could build an Italian-style instrument most authentically, providing a good contrast to the Flentrop and Skinner organs already in the chapel.
Brombaugh entertained questions from the audience, one of which spurred a discussion about acoustics in American churches and whether or not they provide a hospitable environment for European/historic organ sounds. He responded by saying American organbuilding has developed and evolved despite acoustical limitations, and organbuilders having developed ways of dealing with those conditions, adding that one has to be realistic about what he's building. He suggested the best way to approach bad acoustics is to keep in mind the functions the organ needs to fulfill, especially in relation to congregational singing.
Anticipation was in the air as Steve Dieck approached the podium, tacitly acknowledging the Fisk company's lofty stature in the organ-building world and expectation that the lecture would be first-rate. We were not disappointed. Dieck laid the groundwork for his remarks by suggesting that Fisk's work has always been influenced by historic instruments. He construes such instruments as tools to help us become informed about a particular style. He believes the American approach is to take elements from the past and combine them into something new, aspiring to create instruments that can "do it all." Citing the work of G. Donald Harrison, Holtkamp, and Schlicker, Dieck proposed that his firm and others are continuing the American Classic style, a remark which elicited a noticeable shuffling among the other builders present. Dieck said that working with clients guides eclecticism through discussions about their needs and wants, adding that organbuilders are always learning. Following his studies at DePauw University, Dieck apprenticed with Charles Fisk. He had originally investigated studying in Germany with von Beckerath, but von Beckerath advised him to work with Fisk.
Pointing out the noteworthy features of each project, Dieck focussed his remarks on the innovations and eclectic qualities of the following Fisk instruments, in addition to citing historic influences: Wellesley College, Mount Holyoke College, the University of Michigan, Memorial Church at Stanford University, Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University, House of Hope Presbyterian Church, Meyerson Symphony Center, and Rice University. Interspersed among his slides of facades and keyboards were many photos of the internal details of the instruments. A highlight of the slide presentation was pictures taken during the assembly of the Meyerson organ, including the 32' pipes being hoisted into place. As we viewed those slides, Dieck mentioned that one of the Fisk company's most important contributions has been success in the concert hall market.
Manuel Rosales began his organbuilding career by working at the Schlicker company, later establishing his own company at the prompting of Charles Fisk. He prefers not to focus on just one style, and has yet to build an organ than can "play it all." He believes it's important to build different types of organs, keeping in mind the needs of the client, especially when the client is a church. Although his earlier projects had been more eclectic, Rosales' Opus 14 for Mission San José in Fremont, California was inspired by the organs of Mexico and Spain, tuned in quarter-comma mean tone, which makes early music come alive. The organ for First Presbyterian Church, Oakland is the largest instrument Rosales has built and was inspired by Fisk's House of Hope organ, with an emphasis on early French and French romantic sounds. Here again, the topic of acoustics surfaced. Given a sanctuary with a dry acoustic, as in the case of First Presbyterian Oakland, Rosales said that to give the impression of a better acoustical environment, he gave the organ more strength to surround the listener with sound. Rosales also shared his thoughts about the organ at Rice University, a collaboration with Fisk, noting that it was his dream organ to build since it is very gratifying to build an instrument for a client whose wishes closely match his own ideas.
Of particular interest were Rosales' plans for an organ for the new Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, a performing arts center for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. Rosales has proposed an instrument which he describes as French/German/eclectic/ traditional/modern, designed to functional well with an orchestra, respect the music of the past, and stir up controversial ideas for the future. The Llamarada division will feature a battery of southern Californian/Spanish reeds, including a horizontal "Trompeta de Los Angeles." Following the architect's concept for the structure, which is based on curves and a scrupulous avoidance of straight lines, Rosales has explored the possibility of building curved wood pipes which will still be tonally functional.
George Taylor, a native of Virginia, has had a life-long friendship with John Boody, and in his early organ-building days worked with John Brombaugh as well. He spent three and a half years working under von Beckerath in Hamburg, an experience he says taught him the discipline he needed to be a successful organbuilder. Taylor has always been interested in all types of music and has a special fondness for hymn singing. He was initially interested in more eclectic instruments and studied many American Classic stoplists, but soon became disillusioned with the style. The organs tended to "look great on paper," but he generally found the sounds disappointing and began to search for something musically more rewarding.
His early organbuilding days were characterized by experimentation. Recalling his exploration of the use of short keyboards and bone keys, Taylor recounted a memorable episode in which he ventured to the slaughterhouse to acquire the needed bone. Early projects reflected his experimental bent, and he cited organs built for a church in Vincennes, Indiana, for which he developed what he affectionately calls a "Hoosier flute," and a church in Charlottesville, Virginia which has shutters on the back of the Brustwerk.
Taylor spoke about his landmark instruments for St. Thomas Church in New York City and Holy Cross Chapel in Worcester, Massachusetts, both of whose cases were modeled on those of early Dutch instruments. He was much more animated, however, when he began to talk about a recent project--the restoration of a two-manual Tannenberg organ located at the Museum of Southern Decorative Arts in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Taylor treated the audience to a slide-show, giving us a glimpse into the painstaking work required to decipher the disparate components of the fragile treasure and bring its beautiful sounds to life again.
When the topic of acoustics surfaced once more, Taylor strongly recommended that builders always urge churches to improve their acoustics, even if they are already fairly good. He believes acoustics are 80 percent of the success of any organ. He feels the biggest challenge for contemporary organbuilding in the United States is the wide variety of settings builders must work in. European builders in the past had much more consistency of venue.
Lunchtime Tours
On Friday, the conference schedule included an extended break in the middle of the day for lunch and visits to organs in Lincoln churches, provided one wasn't bothered by extensive walking in the sun and 90-degree heat. For a community of its size, the list of significant instruments in Lincoln is impressive. Participants could choose from the following array: 1969 4-manual Aeolian-Skinner at First Presbyterian, 1998 4-manual Schoenstein (then under construction) at First-Plymouth Congregational, 1991 3-manual Van Daalen at First Lutheran, an 1875 2-manual Kilgen at First Christian Science, 1984 3-manual Rieger, a 1976 3-manual Casavant at Westminster Presbyterian, and four 2-manual Bedient instruments, among others.
Christie Recital
On Friday evening conference participants were joined by a local audience for a recital played by James David Christie on the Hoesch Memorial Organ at Cornerstone Chapel. The instrument is Gene Bedient's Opus 8, a 20-stop, 2-manual tracker organ of 17th-century design. Not surprisingly, Christie's program featured 16th, 17th, and 18th-century music, including works by Buxtehude, Sweelinck, Scheidemann, Scheidt, Johann Bernard Bach, and Christie's own transcription of a Vivaldi concerto. His playing was rhythmically vibrant: spirited and buoyant in the quick tempos, sensitively nuanced on the slow pieces. The most striking element of his playing was the ornamentation. All too often, ornamentation is appended to early literature and the effect is like that of a stylish but ill-fitting suit which merely draws attention to itself. Christie's ornaments were a natural outgrowth of the music, fully integrated into the texture and rhythm. Located in the gallery of the intimate chapel, the Bedient organ has a commanding presence in the room, but is not piercing or overpowering. The sound has warmth and depth as well as an elegant clarity, enhanced by the organ's elevated position and the high ceiling and peaked roof of the chapel, whose acoustics hinted at ambience.
Panel Discussion
Each year, the conference closes with a panel discussion, allowing participants to interact with the lecturers and performers and formulate conclusions about conference topics. George Ritchie opened this year's discussion by suggesting that 20th-century organbuilding has swung back and forth between the eclecticism of the American Classic style and the purity of historic styles. He asked each of the builders to identify where along that continuum they are most comfortable; they offered a spectrum of responses.
Dieck said that historic builders continually developed their styles, and he feels that American builders should do likewise, continuing to grow as they interact with clients. Rosales said an organ such as the one at House of Hope goes too far, trying to do too many things. Instruments can be built to do one thing really well and other things reasonably well, though every organ should be suitable for playing Bach. Bedient believes the eclectic organ is a product of the need for organs to do many things since the role of the organ is different now than at any other time in history. He strives to build instruments which will be as useful as possible, serving the needs of his clients, although he admitted that hearing literature on the "right" instruments is preferable. Taylor wants to build instruments designed to accompany hymn singing and have a thrilling sound. He questioned whether certain historical sounds are right for American churches, adding that organs for our time need to be built the way we think they should sound. In small instruments, he noted that consistency is very important, but in larger instruments, eclectic questions surface. Small historical instruments have far more flexibility than one might imagine, however, he was quick to add. As he had stated in his lecture, Brombaugh believes that above all the organ must be a musical instrument and expressed dismay at recent developments which have gotten away from that. He sees the need for many different types of instruments, each of which can handle a specific literature.
When the floor was opened for questions from the audience, a participant commented that bringing the best of the past forward is good, but the use of short keyboards and flat pedal boards is a tragedy. Several others chimed in, expressing frustration with flat pedal boards, short-compass keyboards, and non-adjustable benches, viewing them as impediments. The builders were asked why they build short compass keyboards and flat pedal boards. Steve Dieck responded by saying that whatever we build, we're imitating European models, creating instruments like those for which the music was created. He noted that the concave pedal board is actually English. He prefers a flat pedal board because it's more sensitive with tracker action, adding that he sees a new American standard of building flat pedal boards developing. John Brombaugh gave the example of a project for which he provided two pedal boards--one flat, one concave--reporting that the flat pedal board is the one which is used regularly. His rationale for short compass keyboards is putting your energy where the notes are played most since the uppermost notes of the keyboard are used only one percent of the time. All of the builders acknowledged the need for the organist to be comfortable, however.
Another participant raised the subject of digital sounds and the use of MIDI. In response, Rosales queried, "Why have samples when you can have the real thing? Electronic sounds, even for 32' stops, are ghastly." Brombaugh agreed, adding his assertion that if an instrument incorporates electronic sounds then it's not truly a pipe organ. His colleagues nodded their assent.
Wanting to delve further into the American Classic issue, I asked the builders if they agreed with a statement Steve Dieck had made in his lecture proposing that their work is continuing the American Classic style. Bedient answered by saying the American Classic style has come to represent thin, uninteresting sounds, a departure from its early, much more colorful manifestations. Dieck reaffirmed the point he had made in his lecture, but also suggested that perhaps historic influences are handled differently now than they have been in the past. Taylor said it depends what you mean by the American Classic style: Does it refer to a console style? What are the style's characteristics in the minds of organists? Rosales thinks G. Donald Harrison was a great innovator and believes that had he lived longer, Harrison might have been building tracker organs. Tracker action is not tied to a particular sound in Rosales' mind.
One particularly astute participant commented that perhaps organbuilding at the end of the 20th century will ultimately define the American Classic style, rather than what has come before. I was left with the impression that there is much more to be explored on the subject, and made work of speaking with each of the builders one-on-one, in order to illuminate the intertwined paths of the so-called "historically inspired" and "American Classic" styles of organbuilding further. My findings will be presented in a future article.
The conference was excellent throughout. The subject matter was thoughtfully conceived and clearly outlined in the brochure promoting the event, and in fact, is what initially piqued my interest in attending. In just 48 hours, I received a fascinating glimpse into the world of organbuilding and a valuable opportunity to get a personal impression of the builders who are fundamentally shaping the pipe organ scene in this country. The program was ambitious, but the events were sensibly scheduled, allowing adequate time for breaks, meals, a stroll around town, and a peak into the UNL bookstore filled with Cornhusker regalia. The registration fee was an inexpensive $40 ($20 for students) and lodging prices were reasonable. I hadn't previously visited Nebraska and confess to having had stereotypes in my mind, but I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived. The vast flatness of the plains, congestion-free airport, and unpretentious affability of the citizens were refreshing. George Ritchie and his colleagues are providing a great service by offering this high quality educational opportunity each year.
Göteborg International Organ Academy 2000
An important project is happening in Göteborg, Sweden. In August, 1998, along with about 100 organists from all over the world, I attended the International Organ Academy of GoArt: Göteborg Organ Art Center, at Göteborg University, Sweden. This has become a major center of research, organ-building, teaching and performing. A recent visit there last year was the occasion to observe progress on the building of a four-manual, 54-stop, mean-tone organ after the style of the late-17th century in North Germany. The organ will be unveiled at the biennial International Organ Academy in Göteborg, August 5-18, 2000. For the background and purposes of GoArt, see the article by Pamela Ruiter-Feenstra (The American Organist, July, 1996) and their Web-page (URL: www.hum.gu.se/goart/organac.htm); here I will summarize briefly.
The Göteborg Organ Art Center is the brainchild of Hans Davidsson, a GU music faculty member and brilliant young organist and musicologist, working under the inspiration of Jacques Van Oortmersson and Harald Vogel. It was begun in January 1995 as an inter-disciplinary center for organ research and performance bringing together the strengths of the Göteborg University Musicology Department and the School of Music. It is now an independent center in the GU administrative structure. An international panel of musicians advises GoArt, including Jean Boyer, Pieter Dirksen, Frederick K. Gable, Ludger Lohmann, André Marçon, Kimberly Marshall, Hans van Nieuwkoop, Jacques Van Oortmersson, William Porter, Pamela Ruiter-Feenstra, Kerala Snyder, Axel Unnerbäck, Joris Verdin, and Harald Vogel.
GoArt's stated objective is to cover the entire spectrum of the art of the organ by linking the efforts of musicologists, performers, and organ builders, in order to study historic instruments, documents, music and performance practice issues. This blurring of traditional lines has led to a center that is bursting with energy and creativity and whose impact on the organ world is already keenly felt.
This multi-disciplinary approach has produced a number of tangible outcomes:
* the establishment of archives containing musical sources on micro-film, photographs and other media;
* education and research, with the emphasis on historically informed and discerning music-making;
* a wide-ranging collection of instruments, drawing inspiration from the many golden ages of organ playing;
* in-depth studies of the relationships between organ art and history, aesthetics, ideology and liturgy;
* dedicated well-rounded artistic training aimed at producing musicians who are able to balance intuition with intellect;
* the reconstruction of instruments on scientific principles which will serve as primary sources of information about performance practice.
The current six-year long project is entitled "Changing Processes in North European Organ Art: 1600-1970 - Integrated Studies on Performance Practice and Instrument Construction." This integration of performance, literature, and musicological research is linked together by the instruments--the hallmark of GoArt--valued as an indispensable research tool in the organ performance. This collection of organs in various styles includes a mean-tone organ by John Brombaugh in the Haga Church (2 manuals and pedal; 21 stops); a 19th-century French style organ built by the Dutch builder Verschueren (3 manuals and pedal; 43 stops, featured in the 1998 GoArt Organ Academy) housed in the recital hall of the School of Music; a "Father" Henry Willis organ built in 1871 housed and in the Örgryte Church (3 manuals and pedal, 31 stops); an instrument inspired by the Swedish Baroque style built by Gustavsson (2 manuals and pedal; 16 stops); and a pedal clavichord reconstructed by Joel Speerstra after the Gerstenberg instrument in Leipzig. (This is used to explore the connections between clavichord and organ techniques.)
Housed in the Örgryte Church, the organ currently in production is the aforementioned North German style mean-tone organ, using the work of Arp Schnitger as a primary model but also incoporating aspects by earlier builders such as Scherer and Fritzsche. Visually, it uses as a model the now defunct Schnitger organ of the Lübeck Dom. Tonally, the new organ is inspired by the organ of St. Jakobi, Hamburg, but also incorporates aspects of the organs of the Aa-Kerk, Groningen and St. Cosmae, Stade.
Some of the most sophisticated research into historic organ-building methods is being carried out and put into practice jointly by scientists of the Chalmers Institute of Technology in Göteborg and Master Organbuilders at GoArt (Hans Van Eeken, head draftsman; Mats Arvidsson, responsible for construction of the organ, excluding organ pipes; and Munetaka Yakoto, research and organ pipe production). The collaboration among these scientists and artisans has yielded new thoughts and discoveries in air-flow, acoustics of the room and the organ chamber, and materials and pipe construction.
One of the most interesting achievements of this project has been the retrieval of pipe making methods that were used until the time of the Industrial Revolution. The scientists at the Chalmers Institute were able to ascertain the formula for many metal alloys used by Schnitger and others. Organologists explored church records and the annals of builders of the time in order to re-construct the method of casting pipe metal on sand. This affects the cooling process of the pipe metal, thereby affecting the molecular structure, and ultimately the quality of the metal and the sound. Quite possibly this is the first time these techniques have been used since the early 18th century, and the people at GoArt are convinced that this old technique is, in part, responsible for the special sound quality of historic organs. More information on the North German organ, including the stop-list and a description of the church in which it is housed can be found on the GoArt web site: http://www.hum.gu.se/goart/w3b.htm#ngorp.
But all of this research could be mere mental gymnastics were it not brought to life by a vital and informed faculty in performance best displayed at the biennial GoArt conferences. In order to promote the next International Organ Academy, allow me to recall a few events from 1998.
This two-week course had several themes: one week devoted to "Aristide Cavaillé-Coll and the French Symphonic Organ," another to "The North German Organ" with special emphasis on the chorale fantasia, and an extended weekend symposium on "The Organ and Liturgy." The schedule was grueling yet rewarding, especially if you were willing to participate fully. Sessions began usually at 9 am and carried through until the late evening. It was not possible to attend everything, but a mere perusal of the program tells one of the richness of our legacy. Four primary kinds of meetings call the academy together (98% of which are done in English): master-classes, lectures, workshops, and recitals. Among some of the more engaging pedagogical experiences of the last academy were a session on Froberger by Ludger Lohmann of Stuttgart, a class on Alain by Jacques Van Oortmerssen (Amsterdam), an exploration of Franck's chorales by Jean Boyer (Lyon), and a class on Italian Baroque music by André Marçon (Bern).
The workshops were a cross between master-class and lecture and allowed listeners to focus on specific aspects of research as it relates to performance practice. Kimberly Marshall devoted two of her sessions to the genesis of early liturgical music for the organ and the music of Jeanne Demessieux. Pamela Ruiter-Feenstra unveiled some of her latest discoveries in the pedagogy of improvisation in the late 18th century. André Marçon led a detailed analysis of Frescobaldi's "Fiori Musicali" and alternatim practice in Baroque Italy. William Porter gave an insightful workshop on "Generating Principles of the Late 17th-century North German 'Praeludium'."
The lectures are too numerous to list but were nonetheless provocative and memorable. Jesse Eschbach, on the verge of the publication of his new book on Cavaillé-Coll, discussed the organ builder's thoughts on modernizing Classical and Post-Classical organs. Jean Ferrard discussed Cavaillé-Coll's relationships with Lemmens, Loret and Franck. Pieter Dirksen (a brilliant young musicologist who has recently published a book on the keyboard works of Sweelinck) spoke about Lübeck and Bruhns and the final stages of the North German chorale fantasia. Kerala Snyder explored Bach and the Lutheran liturgy and the unlikely topic of the connections between the French tradition and Buxtehude. Fenner Douglas gave a withering and yet very accurate appraisal of the neo-classic renovations that happened to historic French organs in the 1950s-70s.
And now to the heart of the matter--performance. Were it not for this aspect, GoArt may be little more than a meeting for musicologists. But in these two weeks, I heard fine organ playing on beautiful instruments.
In the Haga Church (Brombaugh mean-tone organ) André Marçon opened the academy with a moving performance featuring music of the Italian baroque. While the instrument is built in the North German style, the transparent colors of the principals admirably revealed the subtle singing quality of this repertoire. Marçon is steeped in this period, and displays his acumen beautifully through intelligent, colorful and expressive articulation and phrasing.
One of the great moments of the entire Academy was to hear William Porter on the same instrument, this time playing music of 17th-century North Germany. Two variation sets of Scheidt ("Vater Unser" and "Io son ferito lasso") were among the highlights of this program. Porter's playing of this music is rivaled by few others. Gauging each tempo correctly, using old fingering practices to expressive ends, discovering the beauty of the simplest of registrations, and knowing the architecture of this music are among the reasons why his playing is so remarkable. The program closed with a riveting performance of the Bruhns "Praeludium in G," but not before he improvised a chorale fantasy on "Gelobet sei Gott" that made one think it was Buxtehude at the organ!
The French symphonic organ was a featured instrument at this year's academy. Generous in scaling and voicing, even though the Verschueren organ is housed in a recital hall of limited acoustic, the organ is nonetheless colorful and brilliant without being overwhelming to the listener. The sounds of the montres and strings were particularly convincing. Jean Boyer's performance of Messiaen's La Nativité was one of the memorable moments of these two weeks. Boyer is an extremely intelligent man (as he displayed to us in his teaching and lecturing), and this intelligence is wedded to a musical soul. Ludger Lohman gave a stellar performance of the Vierne Fifth Symphony and Kimberly Marshall gave a wonderful overview of some of the great works of Demessieux. I regret missing a performance by Hans-Ola Ericsson of Livre du Saint Sacrament of Messiaen (the recital BEGAN at 11pm!!) but reports from reliable sources the next day glowed with unanimous approval. Apparently the audience was spellbound for the 21/2 hours of this event.
Director of GoArt, Hans Davidsson, apparently possesses all of the important gifts of the complete artist/teacher: intellect, creativity, vision and musicality. These were demonstrated throughout the conference but particularly as he was featured in a recital of the Third Part of Bach's Clavierübung, in the Bethlehem Church. This performance revealed a deep understanding not only of this great music, but also of the theology that lay behind it. It was a profoundly moving event.
Curiously, the recitals that seemed to encourage the most discussion afterwards were not organ recitals at all. Joris Verdin, harmonium player and organist from Belgium, completely amazed everyone by his subtle and expressive playing on the GoArt French harmonium. While this instrument was well-known and used by French organists in the 19th century it has since fallen out of use, especially in the United States where the harmonium uses a different wind system than the European version. The subtle nuances that he was able to achieve with this instrument were nothing short of miraculous and brought to life music which sounds little more than hum-drum on the organ. Equally noteworthy was an evening spent in the Gunnebo Castle in nearby Molndal. It was a marriage of sensations: there the audience sat in an 18th-century home listening to a music of the period played on a replica of an 18th-century double clavichord. The featured performers, Joel Speerstra and Ulrika Davidsson, played music of late 18th-century Germany while Pamela Ruiter-Feenstra improvised a charming sonata in late 18th-century style using the principles she had discussed only days before in her lecture. Here was a real unity of architecture, sound, music and knowledge that exemplified what GoArt is able to achieve.
GoArt is currently engaged in a number of publications, perhaps the most significant being a massive tome called The Organ as a Mirror of Its Time, edited by Kerala Snyder. This book, which will be available in the Fall 2000, traces the significance of the organ in western culture, particularly as building styles were affected by and helped shape liturgical practice, improvisation, and the secular music aesthetic. The specific foci include the organs of the North German Masters, Swedish organ-building practices and the French and German organs in the 19th century. Chapters on the organ reform movement and the latter-day performance practice movement are also included. Among the contributors are the current GoArt planning board and faculty.
Information on the upcoming GoArt International Organ Academy (August 5-18, 2000) may be found at http://www.hum.gu.se/goart/w-100b.htm. The focus will, of course, be the North German Baroque Organ and the conference will unveil the new instrument currently being finished. Performers and clinicians will include Harald Vogel, Daniel Roth, Ludger Lohmann, David Yearsley, Rudolf Kelber, Yuko Hayashi, Lynn Edwards, Pieter Dirksen, Paul Peeters, William Porter and many others. Contact information: Organ Academy, School of Music, Box 210, SE-405 30 Göteborg, Sweden; ph +46-31-773 52 11 or -773 52 06; fax +46-31-773 52 00; e-mail [email protected]
http://www.hum.gu.se/goart/w-109.htm#fee
In a time when the organ seems to be on the periphery of musical performance, and as awareness of the instrument even among the musically informed is at an all-time low, the Göteborg Organ Art Center has positioned itself to be a catalyst in the midst of this crisis. Their solution does not provide a single-style agenda, nor a bag-full of tricks meant simply to "thrill" audiences. Rather, its broad base reminds us of the richness of the legacy that has been given us and calls our attention again to the depth and breadth of the largest of all instrumental repertoires.
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