Category: Organ

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A Child Is Born

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I always enjoy programs that have a theme or structure to unite the musical selections. Liturgical seasons like Lent, Easter, Advent or Christmas are easy ways to collect repertoire from diverse musical periods under the same
umbrella. After Out of the Depths: Music for Lent and Holy Week, I chose to turn to the more joyful seasons of Advent and Christmas for this, my second recording project. In addition to the eclectic set of reperoite, I have included several improvisations because that area of music-making continues to be my primary interest. Includes the premier presentation of the Advent Suite.

Program:
Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 645 – Johann Sebastian Bach
Advent Suite – Wm. Glenn Osborne
I. Introit
II. Offertory
III. Elevation
IV. Communion
V. Sortie
Nun komm der heiden Heiland, BWV 659 – J. S. Bach
Nun komm der heiden Heiland, BWV 660 – J. S. Bach
Nun komm der heiden Heiland, BWV 661 – J. S. Bach
Improvisation on “Lo, How a Rose” – Wm. Glenn Osborne
March upon a theme by Handel, Op. 15, No. 2 – Alexandre Guilmant
Prelude on “Divinum Mysterium” – T. Frederick H. Candlyn
Chorale Prelude on “Silent Night”, Op. 37 – Samuel Barber
Improvisation on “Away in a Manger” – Wm. Glenn Osborne
Variations on ‘Ons is gheboren een kindekijn’, SwWV 315 – Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck
Noël Suisse – Louis-Claude Daquin
Improvisation on “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” – Wm. Glenn Osborne
A Festive Voluntary: Variations on “Good King Wenceslas” – Petr Eben

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Advent Suite

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As part of a series of articles on Charles Tournemire at www.organimprovisation.com, I set about to actually compose a suite modeled on L’orgue mystique. Tournemire did not write much music for Advent, so I decided to use familiar melodies from that season as themes for each movement.

The melodies included are as follows: 1) O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (VENI EMMANUEL); 2) Savior of the Nations Come (NUN KOMM DER HEIDEN HEILAND); 3) Creator of the Stars of Night (CONDITOR ALME SIDERUM); 4) The Angel Gabriel from Heaven Came (GABRIEL’S MESSAGE); 5) O Come, Divine Messiah (VENEZ, DIVIN MESSIE), People, Look East (BESANÇON), and a return of O Come,
O Come, Emmanuel.

After starting the work in 2016, I finally completed the suite for the recording released in 2017, A Child Is Born.

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Music is a language

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Music is a language. Through it we express joys and sorrows beyond words. Composers across the centuries have given us pieces crafted in the language of music that we perform repeatedly. We trust in their skills and creativity to create the atmosphere or transmit our feelings to others.

In our spoken language however, we do not rely upon great writers to express ourselves. Imagine trying to have a conversation where you could only quote Shakespeare. While we may not be great writers or even great orators like Abraham Lincoln or Martin Luther King, Jr., we are all capable of putting words together and conveying our thoughts to another person in a coherent manner.

For me, improvisation becomes the ability to converse in the language of music. When we enter the world of music, why do we suddenly lose faith in our own ability to communicate? Everyone learns his or her native language, and perhaps a few others. All musicians should learn not just to recite the music others have provided but to create their own expressions in music. Complex sentences and large structures are not required in our everyday conversations. Why should we consider a good improviser only someone who can make complex music? To improvise well should be as easy as speaking a well-constructed sentence.

For the AGO workshop on October 14, I want to help you learn to express yourself in music. Whether you are an advanced or beginner organist, skilled improviser or scared to death of improvising, I believe looking through the simile of language will offer you ways to increase your improvisation skills. After some introductory remarks, I want to help you convey your thoughts in music. Come with your questions and, if you are willing, prepared to sit on the organ bench. If you can speak English, then you can speak music.

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Pomp and Circumstance

Video

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The Cathedral of Mary Our Queen hosts 10 high school graduations every year in addition to having our own Cathedral School 8th grade ceremony. While not all of the schools use the popular piece by Elgar, enough of them do that I’ve had to find ways to amuse myself while playing these short 32 measures over and over again. The longest procession for 270+ graduates takes 23-25 minutes! After my first rehearsal, I knew I would need to work out some pistons for different registrations, and I also thought about how to create other variations to keep my mind occupied.

The piece basically has a melody, chords, and a bass line. I have a right hand, left hand, and feet. Through the rehearsals and graduations, I have managed to become skilled enough to play any of the parts of the piece with any of my appendages. Thus you get the following video presenting the options:
Not a perfect rendition, but an exploration of the variety of ways I keep myself entertained when I have 10 graduations to play for each spring. First six presentations in order are:
1)RH tune; LH chords; Ped bass
2)LH tune; RH chords; Ped bass
3) Ped tune; LH Bass; RH chords
4) Ped tune; RH bass; LH chords
5) LH tune; RH bass; Ped chords
6) RH tune; LH bass; Ped chords

It’s not perfect and the solo trumpet is at the other end of the building, but I thought it might be entertaining for you to see how I entertain myself during this season of graduations.

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Wedding Chorale Video

Video

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After a few years of sitting figuratively “in the closet collecting dust,” I finally had an opportunity to brush up and record this composition for organ and brass quintet which I composed in 2014 for the wedding of my brother-in-law. This was written as the entrance procession for the attendants and bride to enter. There is a second movement for the recessional that I hope to get recorded as well.

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Passion Chorale

Video

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Written for a colleague who was searching for a Dupré-style setting of the Passion Chorale for use as a postlude on Palm Sunday, this piece was written in 2015 and will likely grow into either a larger set of variations on the tune or a collection of short pieces for Lent and/or Holy Week. Here’s the video from when I played it as the postlude for Mass this weekend.

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Out of the Depths CD

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OutDepthsCDCoverWhen I began my duties as Director of Music at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in January 2015, there was an opening on the concert series in March. This CD is the program that I played to fill that slot. The program reflects the season of the church year from different musical styles and eras. I also wanted a program that would demonstrate the variety of colors available on the instrument. This was not just to please the audience, but also a way for me to become acquainted with the instrument. As the program came together, I thought of recording the program to share this instrument with a wider audience. I hope the music here reaches the deep longings of your soul, and inspires you to come visit the Cathedral and hear the instrument live.

The recording is also available through iTunes.

Program:
Aus tiefer Not, BWV 686
Johann Sebastian Bach
Herzlich tut mich verlangen
Johannes Brahms
Psalm Prelude, Set 2, no. 1 – De profundis
Herbert Howells
IV. Longing for Death from Job
Peter Eben
Dominica in Palmis
Jean Langlais
Suite in French Classical Style on ‘Vexilla Regis’
Wm. Glenn Osborne
Da Jesus an dem Creutze stundt
Samuel Scheidt
III. Crucifixion from Symphonie-Passion
Marcel Dupré
Improvisation
Wm. Glenn Osborne

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Here This Christmas Night

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A solo piece for soprano, organ, and trumpet written for and premiered at the Holiday Brass concert at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in Baltimore, MD on 29 November 2016. Video of the premier performance is below:

Downloadable score packet includes part for Trumpet in Bb and in C.

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Vierne for Improvistion

Video

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My last lesson for www.organimprovisation.com featured instructions on transposition and suggested using a piece by Louis Vierne as the transposition exercise and a model for improvising. The piece is a relatively simple piece from the 24 Pièces en style libre: 1. Préambule.

As transposition practice, I played it in C# major, D Major, Eb Major, and started it in several other keys.

After that, I followed the score as a model and improvised some imitation Vierne in F Major and in G minor. There are some hesitations as I searched for similar interesting tonal gestures without following exactly what Vierne did, but that’s why we practice. I decided to make this exercise my prelude this weekend, so there are two more that follow the score less slavishly in A minor and D minor as well.