UPDATED 06/08/2008

FEATURED INSTRUMENT CONCERT   If you enjoy this concert, please donate by clicking on the button to the left! St. Anne's Church, Moseley, Birmingham, England (1874) - Samples by Martin Dyde Bach, Johann Sebastian: Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, BWV 542 Flashes of mad improvisatory genius alternate with patches of calm serenity in the Fantasia, giving an idea of what it might have been like to hear the Master improvise. The fugue has two subjects, a long, cheerful one that modulates through several keys and a more purposeful counter-subject (D-G-F#-G) that establishes a firm hold on whatever key Bach has migrated to at the time. The Phantom has pulled out all the stops and taken some interpretive liberties with this one. [10:28] HW1 Brahms, Johannes: Mein Jesu, der du mich The first of the eleven Organ Chorale Preludes, Opus 122, published posthumously. This is one of the more esoteric of the entire set, but certainly has its lush moments. [4:3] HW1 Bach, Johann Sebastian: Fantasia in G Major, BWV 572 A youthful piece of Bach in three distinct sections: 1) Bright and perky; 2) Massive; 3) Virtuosic huge cadenzas in manuals with bass punctuation. [9:6] HW1 Brahms, Johannes: O Gott, du frommer Gott The chorale is sounded as part of the soprano voice, but the Phantom Organist has doubled it on the 4' Chorale Bass with or without 4' Oboe. The ending consists of short phrases that build to a grand climax for such a short piece. [3:53] HW1 Brahms, Johannes: Herzlich tut mich erfreuen Pianistic arpeggiation throughout, with the chorale sounded in the soprano voice. [1:52] HW1 Bach, Johann Sebastian: Herzlich thut mich verlangen, BWV 727 The beloved chorale heard so often in the St. Matthew Passion here receives a potentially maudlin treatment, though I have hurried it along a bit rather than milk it the way Albert Schweitzer used to do. [1:34] Midi file available. HW1 Buxtehude, Dietrich: Passacaglio in D minor, BuxWV 161 This is the most famous of the three ground bass pieces by Buxtehude, and shows the following innovation: the theme in the pedal changes keys 3 times: d minor, F Major, a minor, and back to d minor, with clear modulations between each. And besides that, it's heartbreakingly lovely. [5:24] HW1 Bach, Johann Sebastian: Allein Gott in der Höh, BWV 715 One in a series of Chorale Harmonizations where the figured bass usually used for congregational singing was written out, and each phrase ends with a cadenza. As disruptive as it would sound to a modern congregation, this way of accompanying hymns was actually a common practice of the time. [1:35] HW1 Bach, Johann Sebastian: Partita on Ach, was soll ich sünder machen, BWV 770 Schweitzer is of the opinion that Bach may have written the first 8 variations, but the last two are very unlike his style, particularly with regard to the treatment of the manual changes. It may be that Bach copied the work of one of his pupils. No matter who wrote it, once the gloomy first verse is acknowledged, it is a sprightly set of variations. [11:54] HW1 Lübeck, Vincent: Prelude & Fugue in F Major Lübeck was a contemporary of Bach although 31 years his senior (1654-1740). Lesser-known these days, he was supposedly one of the most prolific composers for organ but only a handful of his compositions have survived. While not as melodic or harmonically complex as Bach's, Lübeck's works have an energy all their own. [3:13] HW1 Bach, Johann Sebastian: Kommst du nun, Jesu, vom Himmel herunter, BWV 650 The sixth and final Schübler Chorale, this infectiously bubbly transcription that derives from the second verse (alto solo) of Cantata 137, "Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren." Bach chose a different set of words for this chorale, though. [3:7] HW1