21 May 2008
The King of instruments and the Queen of heaven
Mozart described the organ as the King of Instruments. Douglas Lawrence proves him correct with a magnificent recital on this his second recording on the organ he designed, the impressive 4 manual Rieger organ in The Scots' Church Melbourne. The works centre around the magnificat or song of Mary.
The Song of Mary "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour" (Gospel of Luke 1:46-55) has inspired composers through the ages. This disc begins with the Fuga sopra il Magnificat by JS Bach and also holds movements from two Magnificat Suites by Michel Corette. The title also reflects the magnificence of the Rieger organ in the Scots' Church, Melbourne. The disc explores
some of the wonderful, intensely musical sounds of this great instrument. Installed in Scots' in the year 2000, it has drawn outspoken praise from many of the world's most eminent organists. The listener will hear the distinct registrations used for German and French music. This is most clearly demonstrated in the earlier works where the German repertoire is based on the Organo Pleno - a sound based on the mixtures of the organ, whilst the French repertoire is founded on the sound of the reeds (trumpet, clairon, cromorne, voix humaine). It is, I trust, a fascinating juxtaposition of the sounds of the two schools of organ composition and most certainly is a tribute to the voicer of this organ, Oswald Wagner. The music covers a period of 300 years from Dietrich Buxtehude who was born in 1637 to Jehan Alain who died in 1940.
Track Listing:
Johann Sebastian Bach
1 Meine Seele erhebt den Herren
2 Fuga fuga sopra il Magnificat BWV 733
3 Chorale - Liebster Jesu, wir sind hier BWV 373
4 Chorale Prelude - Liebster Jesu, wir sind hier BWV 731
Trio Sonata 4 in E minor BWV 528
5 Adagio/Vivace
6 Andante
7 Un poco Allegro
8 Chorale - Erbarm dich mein, O Herre Gott BWV 305
9 Chorale Prelude on Erbarm dich mein, O Herre Gott BWV 721
Dietrich Buxtehude
10 Prelude and Fugue in G minor
11 Chorale - Jesu, meine Freude
Johann Gottfried Walther
12 Partita with 10 variations on Jesu, meine Freude
Michel Corrette
(from the first and second Magnificat Suites)
13 Plein Jeu
14 Tierce en Taille
15 Duo a deux Basses
16 Concert de flutes
17 Fuga doppia
Felix Mendelssohn
Prelude and Fugue in C minor
18 Prelude
19 Fugue
Gabriel Pierné
20 Prelude in E flat major
Jehan Aristide Alain
21 Choral Dorien
Alexandre Pierre Francois Boëly
22 Fantasie et Fugue in B flat major
More information on the Reiger Organ in the Scots' Church is available from the Organ Historical Trust of Australia website here
