The Holland Organ Festival takes place June 19–28 in Alkmaar. The program includes Bach and Sweelinck symposia, an international organ competition, an organ academy, and concerts. Presenters include Pieter Van Dijk, Paolo Crivellaro, Reinhard Jaud, Dietrich Wagler, Theo Jellema, and others. For information: www.alkmaarorgelstad.nl.
Martin Goldray teaches at Sarah Lawrence College. As a pianist and conductor he has recorded music by Milton Babbitt, Elliott Carter, Philip Glass, and numerous others. For many years he was a member of the Philip Glass Ensemble.
The late Jacques van Oortmerssen’s four-day Bach Academy in Amsterdam last summer ran from July 6–9. It consisted of morning and afternoon classes on the beautiful 1734 Müller organ at the Waalse Kerk (the Walloon Church), where he had been organist since 1982. It followed the International Organ Academy in Alkmaar, which ran from June 29 to July 4. Oortmerssen had been hoping to expand his Bach Academy in future years to include orchestra concerts, lectures, and trips to museums. His concerns as a teacher and player invariably went beyond the score and into many areas of cultural and intellectual life. This loss, for students and lovers of organ music all over the world, is a great one.
His masterclasses were four days of continual inspiration and challenge. Teachers often evoke other instruments as models for organists but Oortmerssen was the most uncompromising teacher I have encountered, always with the end being greater depth of expression. As a pianist coming recently to the organ the continual question for me is: how can you translate the dynamics, timbres, and colors—in short, everything one can do at the piano or most other instruments—to the organ? Oortmerssen’s answer was unequivocal: you should try to do it all. A student played the Gigue Fugue brilliantly, but in this class it was merely brilliant, without nearly enough attention to how a violinist, for example, would shape the lines and give eloquence to the phrasing. He told the student not to be afraid—this was a ubiquitous piece of advice—to take time, to let expressive articulations come naturally from changes in hand position as early fingerings suggest, and to approach them with a relaxed hand and not try to finger your way out of them.
Oortmerssen continually invoked elements of musical symbolism and rhetoric, and showed how these might relate to tempo, character, articulation, and expression. But it is difficult to convey the spirit of his classes, his humor, tact, and ability to inspire a more meaningful performance from the student while also involving the whole class. You could assemble a dictionary of his wry aphorisms (“don’t challenge gravity;” “a good articulation you cannot hear;” “every move you make is one too much;” “relax in your body and soul—they are married”). These were four invaluable days that brought every aspect of music-making at the organ into focus.
Alkmaar Academy
At the Alkmaar Academy the principal faculty were Pieter van Dijk, organist at the Grote Kerk in Alkmaar, and Frank van Wijk, organist at the Ruïnekerk in Bergen. The academy ran concurrently with the Holland Organ Festival (www.orgelfestivalholland.nl) and the International Schnitger Organ Competition. The jury for the competition also appeared as guest performers, lecturers, and master class teachers; they were Albrecht Koch, Kimberly Marshall, Karin Nelson, Reitze Smits, and Krzstof Urbaniak.
Alkmaar is a beautiful city around 40 minutes by train from Amsterdam with lovely canals (of course) and medieval architecture, and a variety of historic organs. The Grote Kerk (The Great Church, also known as the St. Lawrence church) has two important instruments: the Jan van Covelens of 1511 and the Van Hagerbeer organ of 1645 that was rebuilt in 1723 by Schnitger (the son, Frans Caspar, not Arp the father). Pieter van Dijk and Frank van Wijk were tirelessly informative about the history, pipework, and registration possibilities of the two instruments (This information is available on a DVD/CD set they made in 2013, Alkmaar: The Organs of the Laurenskerk, released by Fugue State Films). Concerts and classes were also held at other churches, including two with Müller organs: the 1762 organ at the Kapelkerk and the 1755 organ (subsequently expanded and rebuilt) at the Lutheran church.
The daily schedule included morning and afternoon master classes, lunchtime lectures and concerts, as well as evening concerts by the faculty and the Schnitger Prize competitors and guests. The first prize winner was Adriaan Hoek from the Netherlands; second prize went to Megumi Hamaya from Japan; third prize went to Manuel Schuen from Austria. There was an excursion at the end of the week for concerts in the nearby towns of Schermerhorn and De Rijp. It was a treat to observe the faculty as performers, lecturers, and master class teachers. Two highlights for me were the lectures of Karin Nelson, who has made beautiful recordings of Scheidemann on Naxos, and Kimberly Marshall, who has recently been focusing on early organ repertory. Nelson pointed out that when examining a manuscript one needs to keep in mind its particular function, as there were different ones (and not necessarily the one we are used to, which is as a fixed text for performance). Was the manuscript intended for teaching (Lehrhandschrift), for use as a model for improvising (Gebrauchshandschrift), or a presentation edition (Sammlungshandschrift)? Kimberly Marshall in her lecture brought her consummate musicianship and scholarship to the earliest organ repetory and to questions of ornaments, temperament, and iconography.
In the second half of July, leading figures from the international organ world gathered again in Haarlem, the Netherlands, for the 49th edition of the Haarlem International Organ Festival
Stephen Taylor was a chorister at Bristol Cathedral and organ scholar of Jesus College, Oxford. In the Netherlands he studied with Ewald Kooiman, Nico van den Hooven, and Jan Welmers, and was awarded the Prix d’Excellence in 1977. He was organist of the Nicolaïkerk in Utrecht for more than twenty years and is active as a soloist and continuo player and as an author and translator. Taylor joined the Haarlem Festival organization in 2007. His translation of Ton de Leeuw’s Music of the Twentieth Century was published by Amsterdam University Press. In 2006 he was awarded the St. Martin Medal of the city of Utrecht for his contribution to its cultural life. His three-volume tutor on practical harmonization, The Lost Chord, has recently been published for the first time in English.
In the second half of July, leading figures from the international organ world gathered again in Haarlem, the Netherlands, for the 49th edition of the Haarlem International Organ Festival. It was here, in this wonderfully picturesque town very near Amsterdam, that the first Haarlem improvisation competition was held in 1951. Four years later, in 1955, the summer academy was launched, and the two events were held annually until 1986, and thereafter biennially.
Improvisation competition
The competition is unique in its focus on contemporary improvisation. In each round, after an hour’s preparation with pencil and paper only, competitors offer a 10-minute concert improvisation. Eight participants from France, Poland, the USA (Jason Roberts, Connecticut), and Holland were selected in the spring of 2012 by means of submitted recorded improvisations on short motifs by Louis Maillié (Lyon and Paris). In the first two rounds, all eight selected competitors showed their skills first on the monumental Müller organ in St. Bavo’s and then on the Cavaillé-Coll instrument in the Philharmonie Concert Hall. The theme in Round 1 was a melody from the 16th-century Antwerp Liedboek. Round 2 was something of a surprise: instead of a musical idea, a semi-abstract, 90-second film served to inspire the competitors! The three finalists were presented with the following theme from the hand of the Viennese organist (and Haarlem veteran!) Peter Planyavsky.
The five-member jury (Lionel Rogg, Wolfgang Seifen, Naji Hakim, Joost Langeveld, and the Dutch composer Klaas de Vries) reflected different schools of thought. Winner of the 2012 competition was the Frenchman Paul Goussot, who competed in the grand finale against French colleague Noël Hazebroucq and the Polish organist Edyta Müller (at last, a female improviser!). The Dutch national daily De Volkskrant wrote:
Although the three finalists were a good match, Goussot achieved the most convincing balance between the virtues of ‘organistic’ freedom and the binding power of the theme. He employed lucid rhythms, well-sounding harmonies, and did not shy away from adventurous harmonic progressions. Just before the end, chords erupted from the pipes like flashes of fire, but then he suddenly slowed, finishing his improvisation in a whispering coda. This winner of the 49th improvisation competition is a man who combines musical instinct and craftsmanship with a sense of theatre.
Another leading national daily added: “With the Haarlem International Organ Improvisation Competition many great organ careers have been launched . . . ”
The International
Summer Academy
The Haarlem Summer Academy 2012 offered an 11-day program of masterclasses plus a two-day symposium. In daily two-hour sessions, capita selecta from more than four centuries of organ repertory were discussed in depth. Center stage in the academy is the Müller organ in St. Bavo’s (where the gallery fortunately accommodates up to 30!) But other important historic and modern instruments in the town are also used, all within walking distance.
Teachers at the 2012 summer academy were Harald Vogel on Sweelinck, Margaret Phillips on early English music, Ton Koopman, Jean-Claude Zehnder, Jacques van Oortmerssen and James David Christie on J. S. Bach, Olivier Latry and Louis Robilliard on French and German Romantics, Martin Sander on Max Reger, Roman Summereder on contemporary ‘keystones’, Zsigmond Szathmáry (working with young composers), Jos van der Kooy and Peter Planyavsky on improvisation, and Leo van Doeselaar on repertory for organ and strings.
This year’s academy was attended by 85 students from 27 countries and five continents. In addition to a group of young Russian players (regular guests for some years), a new group of Chinese students included young teachers from Beijing and Shanghai. Previously officially a postgraduate program, the academy now accepts undergraduate music students, reflecting the festival’s policy to attract the very best young players. Daily lectures and discussions allowed both students and the general public to meet and hear all the academy teachers.
Festival symposium
Midway between the two academy weeks, the festival symposium “From Sweelinck to Bach” took the entire academy to the famous organs at Oosthuizen and Edam and to Amsterdam (Oude and Nieuwe Kerk), where lectures and recitals were given by Harald Vogel, Margaret Phillips, Jean-Claude Zehnder, and Christoph Wolff, among others.
Young talents
For the second time, the Haarlem summer academy included a six-day course for young talents aged 13 to 18. After an international call, six players were selected on the basis of a written recommendation from their teachers and a submitted recording (a fast movement from a Bach trio sonata and a Pièce de Fantaisie by Vierne). In six two-hour sessions, the young players (from Holland, Germany, France, Croatia, Ireland, Portugal, and the USA) were coached by Olivier Latry and Margaret Phillips. These young organists made good use of the opportunity to attend all festival activities and to visit other masterclasses. No fewer than three of the young talents from the 2010 course returned to Haarlem to take part in other masterclasses—the Haarlem disease is highly contagious!
Young composers
The Haarlem young composers’ course took place again under the inspirational direction of the Hungarian-German Ligeti pupil Zsigmond Szathmáry. After an international call, three new organ pieces by young Dutch and German composers were selected for discussion during the six-session masterclass. Important considerations in the selection process were composition technique, originality, and whether a work was idiomatically suited to the organ. The new works were discussed with the composers (two of whom performed their own works) and presented to the public during a festival recital in St. Bavo’s.
For the second time, the Leipzig Summer Academy will include this concert and a preparatory course under Szathmáry in its 2013 program. Thus young composers are assured of repeat performances of their new works at prominent international venues.
New music
The festival concert programs featured many premieres: Zsigmond Szathmáry’s Fukushima Requiem was broadcast live on Dutch national radio; Dutch premieres included EOOS for organ and panpipes by Klaas de Vries, Radulescu’s Madrigali, Kagel’s Phantasie für Orgel mit Obbligati for organ and tape, Der Dom und das Meer for organ and tape by Mesías Maiguashca, and Szathmáry’s Leichte Brise—grosser Orkan. In a spectacular closing recital, Olivier Latry and Shin-Young Lee performed Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring.
50th anniversary
The 50th edition of the Haarlem International Organ Festival will take place July 11–26, 2014. Newcomers to the festival—and Haarlem veterans—will be warmly welcomed!
Note
Many of the items referred to in this article, including competition themes (and film), academy repertoire, and audio and video recordings of recitals and concerts (including Fukushima Requiem and The Rite of Spring), are available through www.organfestival.nl, where news of the 2014 festival will appear in the coming months.
