Pachelbel: Organ Works - CD Booklet

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Johann Pachelbel organ works

Matthew Owens the Ahrend Organ of the Reid Concert Hall the University of Edinburgh

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Johann Pachelbel 1. Toccata

und Fuga B-dur

[2:40]

Matthew Owens

organ works

Das Magnificat Mariae: 13. Meine

Seele erhebt den Herren (Tonus peregrinus)

Ten Magnificatfugen 2. Magnificat

sexti toni I

[3:40]

3. Magnificat

sexti toni II

[1:28]

4. Magnificat

sexti toni III

[1:50]

5. Magnificat

sexti toni IV

[1:23]

6. Magnificat

sexti toni V

[1:38]

7. Magnificat

sexti toni VI

[1:51]

8. Magnificat

sexti toni VII

[1:57]

9. Magnificat

sexti toni VIII

[1:12]

10. Magnificat

sexti toni IX

[1:19]

11. Magnificat

sexti toni X

[1:38]

12. Fantasie

C-dur

14. Meine

15. Toccata 16. Fuga

e-moll

23. Toccata

[1:22] [1:55]

e-moll

C-dur

24. Fuga

F-dur

17. Gelobet

[2:40]

F-dur

25. Fantasia

[2:01]

d-moll

[3:02]

[3:02] 26. Choral

mit 12 Partiten: Christus, der ist mein Leben

seist du, Jesu Christ

[1:33]

Tag, der ist so freundenreich

[3:28]

27. Toccata

19. Vom

[4:09]

28. Fuga

20. Vom

[1:39]

18. Der

[4:26]

[1:18]

Four Chorale Preludes for Christmas:

Himmel hoch, da komm ich her (C) Himmel hoch, da komm ich her (12/8)

g-moll

g-moll

29. Ciacona

d-moll

[6:53]

[1:45] [2:26] [6:43]

[3:33] 21. Fuga

Recorded in the Reid Concert Hall, The University of Edinburgh on 16 and 17 November 2004

Seele erhebt den Herren

22. Ricercare

the Ahrend Organ of the Reid Concert Hall the University of Edinburgh

Recorded with 24-bit stereo technology Producer: Paul Baxter Executive Producer: John Willmett

G-dur

Engineer: David Strudwick 24-Bit digital editing: Adam Binks Design: Margareta Jönsson Photography: Dr Raymond Parks

[1:39]

Organ by Jürgen Ahrend Orgelbau 1977-78 maintained by James A. MacKenzie, Glasgow © 2007 Delphian Records Ltd 2007 Delphian Records Ltd

30. Fuga

D-dur

Made and printed in the EU

by Delphian Records, Edinburgh, UK www.delphianrecords.co.uk DCD34021

[2:29]

Thanks to Dr John Kitchen and Graeme Strudwick

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Johann Pachelbel Revered teacher, organ virtuoso, master of counterpoint, devotee of the chorale – one of which he sang as he lay on his death bed – enthusiast for the Italian forms, pathfinder and worthy predecessor of Bach; such was Pachelbel.

Fit to rank alongside his north German contemporary Dietrich Buxtehude, Johann Pachelbel was considered in his day to be one of the great organ masters of southern Germany. Buxtehude’s music is perhaps better known today than Pachelbel’s partly because Buxtehude wrote with one eye on his concert series – the famed Abendmusik – producing flamboyant and spectacular works, whereas Pachelbel was a single-minded devotee of the church’s liturgy; everything he wrote for the organ stemmed from his improvisatory practices honed while playing for church services. The resultant oeuvre for organ – far larger than Buxtehude’s or that of any other Baroque composer with the exception of J.S. Bach – has nothing of the theatre about it. To experience its full impact it must be appreciated within its liturgical context, which Nolte characterises by ‘equanimity, serenity and restraint’.1 There is something of the north-south divide in this comparison between Pachelbel and Buxtehude. Pachelbel’s musical ancestor was 1 Ewald V. Nolte, The Instrumental Works of Johann Pachelbel; Northwestern University, 1954.

Samuel Scheidt, himself a pupil of the ‘maker of German organists’ Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, whose influence in north Germany led to Baroque extravagance; the chorale there was often presented with an operatic degree of embellishment. In the south, however, Scheidt’s legacy was characterised by sobriety.

Steeped in the music of the German church, above all the chorale, it was Scheidt’s intention that the chorale, when it featured in his organ music, should be presented as audibly and clearly as possible. Pachelbel inherited Scheidt’s approach in presenting the chorale absolutely. Where he did write embellished variations of melodies – chorale melodies included, in the chorale partitas for example – the music had not been primarily intended for the liturgy, or even perhaps for the organ.

Despite not having travelled to Italy, Pachelbel’s training brought him into contact with the Italian tradition. He trained in Catholic Regensburg and Vienna, though himself a Protestant, and was taught by musicians who were heavily influenced by the Italian-style Catholic music of south Germany. His adherence to the Protestant tradition, his love of the chorale, and his eventual return to central Germany, enabled him to bridge the gap between the Italian Catholic and German Protestant worlds.

Prelude, toccata and fantasia – those organ forms, the names of which had by Pachelbel’s time become interchangeable (even if they still

encompassed a number of differing styles), had come originally from Italy. In Pachelbel’s works such pieces incorporate an Italian feel, which marks a strong contrast with the German style of chorale-based compositions. Pachelbel deserves the credit for bringing together these two streams that were eventually to coalesce so seamlessly in the works of J. S. Bach.

Contemporaries Froberger, Kerll and Speth wrote no chorale-based works, Buxtehude no ricercari or fantasias. Pachelbel also excelled in another Italian form, the ciacona; his two finest compositions in this form are amongst the best pieces that he wrote.

It was in 1695, when Pachelbel returned to his native Nürnberg upon his appointment as organist at the Sebalduskirche, that he began to earn his reputation as a worthy predecessor to Bach. Necessitated by the local custom of singing the Magnificat at Vespers throughout Advent, Pachelbel wrote a compendious collection of fugues for the canticle. Despite having written many fugues before, these later pieces are the summation of his art. Though rarely of any great length they are of consummate beauty, impeccable craftsmanship and lofty inspiration; they further the process of evolution that was developing the short-breathed Italian fugal forms – the sectional ricercare particularly – into the large-scale architectural creations of Bach. Their voice leading is immaculate, their

counterpoint always imaginative, exhibiting a directedness not heard earlier.

The Toccata and Fugue in B-flat major is one of the few pairings actually sanctioned by Pachelbel. The toccata adopts the role of a prelude in which the tonality is emphasised by long pedal notes underpinning the highly decorated texture and the strong harmonic progressions. The fugue subject is merely a short formula, treated here in Pachelbel’s usual style, with no modulation beyond the dominant and much use of sequences in the episodes that occur between the statements of the subject. The fine pleno of the Ahrend organ is heard to great effect in this piece, the purpose of which would have set the tone – both emotional and musical – at the beginning of a service.

The Fugues on the Magnificat heard here are for the sixth tone, in practice a chant in the key of F major. None of the ten fugues is based on the chant, though their purpose is to prelude a performance of the Magnificat. Despite the fact that they would not have been played one after the other, the wide variety of treatment makes for an effective performing unit. The first fugue is a large sectional canzona-style piece; two contrasting subjects are presented separately, and are combined in the final section. The other fugues contrast amongst them metre, tempi, a solemn learned style

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with cheeky insouciance, and dense counterpoint with harpsichord-like filigree figuration; each fugue has a quite individual subject. The choice of registrations enhances these contrasts – a quiet reed stop (No. 4), the large reed (No.10), the pleno (No.7), the flutes (Nos.2 and 3), and a four-foot only registration with tremulant (No. 9).

The Fantasia in C major with its imperious dotted rhythms, lengthy trills and stately progressions over rolling basses has the solemn grandeur of one of Handel’s occasional pieces.

The two versions of Meine Seele erhebt den Herren, settings of the German prose Magnificat, are free-standing chorale preludes rather than part of the cycle of Magnificat fugues. In each setting we hear the canticle’s complete melody presented in longer note values as a cantus firmus against a more mobile accompanying texture, heard as the highest voice in the first, and in the pedals in the second.

The Toccata in E minor, one of Pachelbel’s most splendid examples of the form, adheres to the stereotype of the toccata as flamboyant show-piece with energetic finger work. The hocket-like opening, a favourite device of Pachelbel’s, is a dramatic call to attention. The piece is nevertheless very much a prelude; the long pedal notes and

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simple chord progressions which underlie the decorative passage work establish the tonality. The Fugue in E minor is built on a Bach-like subject of great character, the sequential tail of which is used to build a lengthy and satisfying structure.

The four chorale preludes for Christmas capture admirably the spirit of the season in their different ways. Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ (Now blessed be thou, Christ Jesu) is a fugue the opening subject of which presents the chorale tune in very short notes. The tune is soon heard in the upper part as a cantus firmus in this sprightly little piece that conveys perfectly the joy of Christmas. Der Tag, der ist so freudenreich (O hail this brightest day of days) is a far grander affair; an opening fugue on the first line of the chorale heralds the complete tune played in the upper part, beneath which the counterpoint continues its ingenious activity.

The tune Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her (From Heaven above to earth I come) is one of Luther’s masterpieces; of the two settings here the first is one of Pachelbel’s finest, built along the same lines as Der Tag, except that the tune appears in the pedals underneath energetic figuration. We hear the majesty of Christ’s incarnation. The second setting, although on a slighter scale, is no less a masterpiece. The cantus firmus is in the pedals, around which two imitative parts are entwined. The interest lies in the fact that, unlike in most of Pachelbel’s

settings, the points of imitation do not all derive from the chorale. Nolte is of the opinion that the composer, in imitation of the many ‘birdsong’ pieces for the harpsichord written at the time, is attempting to imitate the calls of the cuckoo and the nightingale, presumed to have been present at the Nativity; we hear too the shepherds as they pipe their way to Bethlehem.

With its flattened sevenths throughout, the Fugue in G major is actually in the mixolydian mode until the final cadence where the appearance of F sharp comes as something of a surprise. This short composition is concerned with constant reiteration of the formulaic subject; the bass part – in discrete sections, all of which begin with an entry of the subject – is eminently suitable for the pedals, as heard in this performance.

The Ricercare was a form often employed when writing contrapuntal exercises. The basic theme was usually some simple formula, in the case of Ricercare in C major the first five notes of a rising scale, usually referred to as Ut re mi fa sol. Pachelbel treats the theme fugally, inverting it, and adding recurring countersubjects. In particular he includes a sequential countersubject in thirds, which eventually dominates the piece.

The Toccata in F major starts with a demisemiquaver arpeggio flourish, but then

settles down to a treatment typical of Pachelbel. We hear long sinuous lines of semiquavers, often in thirds or sixths, over long pedal notes; the dominant pedal for the final cadence lasts for more than half the piece.

The figuration becomes denser before issuing into harpsichord-style Alberti-like accompaniment beneath a slower-moving tune. The Fugue in F major is unusual in having a subdominant answer, which gives the whole piece a subdominant feel; there is only one very passing cadence in the dominant. The use of stretto intensifies the fugue towards a final resolution with a cumulative effect.

Starting as though it were a set of variations, the Fantasia in D minor continues the illusion by being sectional in construction. Each section explores a different texture, though these sections are not variations of the opening phrase. The gentle, soothing nature of the music is reinforced by the frequent falling sequences. This combined with a single striking chain of falling fifths demonstrates how the ‘equanimity, serenity and restraint’, which characterises much of Pachelbel’s music, can be so effective.

The original collection of chorale partitas, published in Pachelbel’s lifetime, was called Sterbesgedanken, ‘Thoughts of Death’. It was written after the deaths of the composer’s wife and son from the plague. The texts of

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Matthew Owens the chorales chosen were relatively new in Pachelbel’s time. They are not to be found in contemporary hymnbooks so were perhaps not much sung in church. They reflect that obsession with death, the idea of its being a longed-for and ecstatic event preceding the sinner’s joyful entry into Heaven, that characterises the Lutheran view of the time.

In Christus, der ist mein Leben the tune is varied with devices more usually found in harpsichord pieces. Gone is the precept of making the chorale melody distinctly audible.

Instead the tune is submerged in a riot of figuration. Particularly striking is the seventh variation, where a pathos-laden chromatic figure weaves its way around the tune. It is here that the thought of death is expressed most vividly. The last two variations incorporate tirades of demisemiquavers in a display of conspicuous virtuosity.

The Toccata in G minor, though similar in nature to that in F major, is more sombre in mood owing to the minor key and the lack of an opening flourish. The Fugue in G minor displays many pleasing felicities: the end of the subject is worked out imitatively; the rising figure in the bass is answered by the other parts in thirds; and the penultimate entry of the subject is syncopated in a delightfully unexpected manner.

In the Ciacona in D minor a series of variations unfolds majestically over the minor version of the scale formula heard in the C major Ricercare. In this performance the variety and plasticity of the treatment is enhanced by the unchanging registration.

The Fugue in D major bears a considerable resemblance to a Prelude by Bach (Prelude and Fugue in D Major BWV 532). Surely Bach knew this piece. The nature of the subject, with its rocking figure, demands to be played on the pedals. When the bass part disappears, as it does from time to time, it always returns with an entry of the subject. The organ used for this recording is one of a number of instruments situated in Britain, some old, some new, which have been chosen for their suitability for the music of Pachelbel. As can be heard in this performance, and particularly in the final item, the combination of the instrument and the repertoire makes for a completely satisfying union.

© 2007 John Willmett John Wilmett is currently a PhD student at the University of Edinburgh, where his research topic is the chorale-based organ works of Johann Pachelbel.

Matthew Owens is Organist and Master of the Choristers of Wells Cathedral, a post which he took up at the age of 33 in January 2005.

He was previously Organist and Master of the Music at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral, Edinburgh and Sub-Organist of Manchester Cathedral. He is also Conductor of The Exon Singers, one of the UK’s leading chamber choirs.

Born in Manchester, he studied at Chetham’s School of Music and was subsequently Organ Scholar at The Queen’s College, Oxford. As a postgraduate he received the highest award for performance, the Professional Performance Diploma, with distinction, and the college Bach prize at the Royal Northern College of Music; gained a Master’s Degree from the University of Manchester; won thirteen prizes in the diplomas of the Royal College of Organists and was awarded the Silver Medal of the Worshipful Company of Musicians. He then studied at the Sweelinck Conservatorium in Amsterdam. His major organ studies were with Gordon Stewart, David Sanger, Margaret Phillips and Jacques van Oortmerssen. From 1994-99, he was Tutor in Organ Studies at the RNCM and Chetham’s.

He was Assistant Conductor of the National Youth Choir of Great Britain from 1993-1999; he has also conducted the BT Scottish Ensemble, the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Hungary, Ludus Baroque Chamber Orchestra and the Orchestra of St Mary’s Music School. With the Choir of St Mary’s Cathedral he has made ten recordings, which met with critical acclaim.

Matthew has given recitals in France, Ireland, Switzerland and throughout the UK, including festival appearances at Lichfield, Newbury, Oxford and Peterborough and at venues such as St Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Cathedral and St John’s Smith Square. As a conductor and solo organist he has premiered many works by leading composers including Richard Allain, Gavin Bryars, Dave Heath, Francis Jackson, Gabriel Jackson, Naji Hakim, George Lloyd, James MacMillan, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Arvo Pärt, Howard Skempton and Giles Swayne. He is increasingly active as a composer and some of his works have been recorded for commercial release and broadcast on BBC Radio 3.

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Reid Concert Hall, The University of Edinburgh Organ by Jürgen Ahrend Orgelbau The firm of Ahrend, renowned for the sensitive restoration of historic instruments, built the organ in the University’s Reid Concert Hall in 1977-78, in consultation with Professor Peter Williams. It remains, at the time of writing, the only organ by this firm in the UK. The instrument derives inspiration from early

Specification eighteenth-century German models; the two manual divisions are separately encased, but the pedal pipes are included in the Hauptwerk case. The pedal board is straight and flat, the Rückpositiv stop-handles project from the case behind the player, and there are no aids to registration. The unbushed mechanical action is of exceptional refinement; the voicing is direct and clear, yet full of subtlety.

Hauptwerk

Rückpositiv

Praestant

8

Gedackt

8

Hohlflöte

8

Praestant

4

Oktave

4

Rohrflöte

4

Spitzflöte

4

Waldflöte

2

Nasat

2 2/3

Oktave

2

Mixtur

IV-V

Quinte Sesquialtera

1 1/3 II (from tenor G)

Photography: Dr Raymond Parks

Trompet

8

Scharf

IV

Dulzian

8

Pedal Subbass

16

Compass: manual C–f’’’; pedal CC–F

Oktave

8

Tremulant to whole organ

Oktave

4

Pedal coupler to Hauptwerk

Posaune

16

Trompete

8

Manual shove-coupler Temperament Werkmeister III

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More organ music on Delphian The Kelvingrove Organ Timothy Byram-Wigfield (DCD34004)

The Usher Hall Organ John Kitchen (DCD34022)

Byram-Wigfield, master of music at St George’s, Windsor, plays a variety of Edwardian transcriptions on one of the world’s finest concert organs: the Lewis organ in Glasgow's Kelvingrove Gallery.

John Kitchen, Edinburgh's City Organist, presents a wide-ranging eclectic programme of music brilliantly brought to life on the Usher Hall's newly-refurbished monumental Norman and Beard concert organ: never before heard on disc.

‘Byram-Wigfield's performances are superb; there's none of the shallow, showy musicianship one hears from a few international recitalists, but instead, carefully crafted interpretations played with consummate skill.’ – Gramophone, March 2004

Olivier Messiaen: Les Corps Glorieux The Organ of St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle Timothy Byram-Wigfield (DCD34024) Byram-Wigfield presents Messiaen’s ground-breaking Les Corps Glorieux on the organ of Windsor’s St George’s Chapel, with its protean personality. Byram-Wigfield is an ideal exponent of this work and its extremities; from his sensitive approach to its spiritual narrative, to his thrilling handling of its gargantuan climaxes, the listener cannot fail to be drawn into Messiaen’s colouristic world. ‘the interpretation is intelligent and rigorous ... thoroughly exemplary recording’ – Choir and Organ, September 2006

‘a source of endless delight.’

– Gramophone, September 2004

Organs in Glasgow John Kitchen and John Butt (DCD34032) Two of the UK's foremost keyboard interpreters come together in a selection of Glasgow's finest organs. Instruments by Hill, Lewis and Willis are heard alongside other contemporary examples showcasing the golden era in Glasgow's organ building history. ‘in such expert and enthusiastic hands this delightful collection of different tonal palettes and acoustics does not disappoint.’

– Choir and Organ, June 2005

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Matthew Owens on Delphian Alfred Hollins Organ Works Timothy Byram-Wigfield (DCD34044) Designed by the blind organist Alfred Hollins, the Caird Hall instrument is one of the finest recital organs in the UK – as ideal a vehicle for Hollins’ music as Byram-Wigfield is an exponent of it.

Hollins effortlessly combines keyboard pyrotechnics with a quasiorchestral approach to sonority. These works bristle with vigour, their swaggering confidence complemented by their ingenuity and wit. ‘it’s glorious stuff and, coupled with such a splendid recording from Delphian, a disc as entertaining as anybody could wish for’ – Gramophone, April 2007

2000 Nails Michael Bonaventure (DCD34013) Bonaventure, virtuosic proponent of new music for the organ, presents here a luminous recital of première recordings, a rare invitation into this phantasmagorical sound world.

‘Yes, one man is playing all these notes, and whipping up that particular storm of expressionist tone. I find myself listening in awestruck fascination as the programme of contemporary music unfolded on this unusual CD on Delphian.’ – BBC Radio 3 CD Review, November 2005

Gabriel Jackson: Sacred Choral Works Choir of St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh, Matthew Owens, Conductor, Susan Hamilton, Soprano, Michael Bonaventure, Organ, Simon Nieminski, Organ (DCD34027) The culmination of a four-year association between the choir of St Mary’s Cathedral and British Composer Award winner Gabriel Jackson, this disc presents eight world premiere recordings. Whether gentle and meditative, brilliantly exuberant, or soaring in ecstatic contemplation, Jackson’s vividly communicative music is brought thrillingly to life by a choir at the peak of its powers.

‘If you’re at all interested in contemporary choral music, you shouldn’t miss this – and once heard, it certainly will whet your interest in future projects by this unique and genuinely talented composer.’

– Classics Today, February 2006 Francis Jackson: Sacred Choral Works The Exon Singers, Matthew Owens conductor, David Bednall organ (DCD34035) As he approaches his 90th birthday Francis Jackson remains one of the finest, bestloved and most versatile church musicians of his age. The eleven works on this disc, none of them previously recorded, have all the colour, emotional depth and attention to structural detail that are consistent hallmarks of his style. Working closely with the composer, the Exon Singers bring their customary blend of virtuosity, intense commitment and subtle responsiveness to this special birthday tribute. ‘one is just swept along by the unabashed exuberance of the singing’ – International Record Review, November 2004

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