Organ Recital by Peter King, Bath Abbey, 31 October 2009
Last night I was in Bath for the last in this years series of Saturday evening organ recitals at Bath Abbey. This final recital was given by none other than the Abbey Organist and Director of Music Peter King. The combination of the Klais organ and the mastery of Peter King is an attraction that no lover of organ music should miss! The abbey was not surprisingly full for this occasion and with free admission (albeit with a £5 per head donation on exit) this recital series is excellent value!
The recital programme was as follows:
Excelsior! – Franz Liszt
Excelsior! is an organ arrangement of the prelude from “The bells of strasbourg minster” one of Liszts impressive choral works written in 1874. The theme from this short prelude was later used by Wagner in his opera Parsifal.
Prelude and Fugue in A Minor, BWV 543 – Johann Sebastian Bach
This “Great” prelude and fugue of Bach’s cannot be dated with any certainty but most likely falls somewhere between the early improvisatory works and the later mature masterpieces. The prelude has a largely improvisatory flavour and forms a very grand introduction to the melodic fugue. Unlike some later works the fugue does not end with a final grand entry on the pedals but returns to the free style of the prelude.
Concerto in D minor, BWV 596, Antonio Vivaldi / JS Bach
This work was long believed to be an original composition of Bach’s son Friedemann but is infact an arrangement by JS Bach of the Concerto for 2 violins op.3, no.11 by Vivaldi. It begins with a lively canonic duet above insistent pedal notes, and then a few full chords lead into an energetic fugue. The slow movement is a lilting siciliano and the concerto ends in a vigorous finale with a pungent chromatic ritornello.
Two legends – Franz Liszt
St Francis of Assis preaching to the birds (arr. Saint-Saens)
St Francis of Paola walking on the water (arr. Reger/King)
Liszt’s two Franciscan Legends for piano date from 1863 which is when Liszt was increasingly preoccupied by religious subjects. The first of these two pieces predates Messiaen’s musical aviaries by nearly a century and is an amazingly original piece of musical picture painting.
A Song of Sunshine – Alfred Hollins
This is one of Hollins’ most popular pieces which follows his usual ABA form. His compositions appeal to a wide audience due to the inexhaustible melodies and effortless mastery of modulation.
Homage to Handel – Sigfrid Karg-Elert
This fantastic piece is based around a short four bar motif from the theme of Handel’s Seventh Harpsichord Suite and was written following Karg-Elert’s election as Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Organists in 1914. In total there are 54 variations on this simple theme and monotony is avoided by the huge range of textures and colours which Karg Elert employs. This piece was an excellent way of showcasing not only the mighty Klais organ but also the phenomenal skill of Peter King. In the words of David Gammie “the final page is very, very grand: Karg-Elert’s tempo marking is trionfante e gigantica.”
