Yet another recommendation ...

Pentatone issued on hybrid SACD the 4-volume Philips Quad recordings of Handel organ concertos by
Daniel Chorzempa with the Concerto Amsterdam ensemble conducted by Jaap Schroder. These recordings
were made in September, 1975 in Haarlem, Netherlands

The organ is small and the setting is intimate. These pieces were a new direction in organ
repertoire when they were written. The ensemble includes strings and a harpsichord. I don't think a
large organ in a large space could pull off this music because it's quick and detailed and the organ
lines are akin to a complex piano concerto. The response time has to be very quick for the organ to
do the job, and I would guess that the action has to be gentle or the player would need fingers of
steel.

Philips' approach to Quad is that the rear channels are just that -- rear-perspective, mostly
reverberation. So, the CD layer does just fine in communicating the music, but surround sound makes
one feel as if they are sitting in the Haarlem church.

The Pentatone hybrid discs can be found at reasonable prices from Amazon "new and used" affiliated
sellers.

-- Tom Fine

----- Original Message -----
From: "John Schroth" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, April 19, 2015 6:10 PM
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Quality pipe organ recordings


> Thanks to everyone for their input on recommendations for quality pipe organ recordings. At some
> point this week I will re-read all the posts, make some notes and order some of the
> recommendations that the ARCS community has made!!!
>
> Kind Regards,
>
> John Schroth
> MTS
>
> On 4/19/2015 4:45 PM, Tom Fine wrote:
>> Getting a bit into the organ weeds here ...
>>
>> The St. Thomas Church organ that Richard recorded was somewhat modified from what Mercury
>> recorded in 1957 (and, in fact, in 1956, the organ had been extensively modified from its
>> original construction). There was a roof leak in 1966 that damaged the organ, requiring repairs.
>> And then there was a renovation that somewhat changed the sound. Richard's recording of Ms.
>> Hancock is very detailed, some of the best hearing of what that organ's higher-pitched pipes
>> sound like. It also fits very nicely with the Dupre pieces, because they are thickly arranged (ie
>> many notes sounding in quick succession), and a closer-in perspective prevents the notes from
>> being buried in a muddy echo haze.
>>
>> The St. Thomas organ is being replaced. In fact, in this video the church produced featuring
>> former Newsweek editor Jon Meecham:
>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uf2uUzABZQ
>> a dismissive tone is taken toward those who loved the old organ. Note that when Meecham gets
>> talking about the organ, the Mercury Widor recording by Dupre is in the background.
>>
>> I was just in the church on Friday. There is construction going on all over the place. Despite
>> the hustle and bustle on 5th Ave, and the construction, it was surprisingly quiet and peaceful in
>> the chapel. I was happy to see the old organ before it gets ripped out.
>>
>> -- Tom Fine
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Richard L. Hess" <[log in to unmask]>
>> To: <[log in to unmask]>
>> Sent: Sunday, April 19, 2015 4:09 PM
>> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Quality pipe organ recordings
>>
>>
>>> I can recommend "Organs of New York, Vol I" Judith Hancock at St. Thomas Church on the HESSOUND
>>> label.
>>>
>>> <smile>
>>>
>>> Actually, the two Dupré pieces on it were re-released on the Priory Label out of the UK, but it
>>> appears to have gone out of print.
>>>
>>> I have not heard this one:
>>> http://prioryrecords.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=1832&search=st+thomas
>>>
>>> While this is a Christmas album, recorded by moi at St. Thomas in 1982 --the hiss is organ
>>> windchest noise, not tape hiss--the mastering engineer still tried to remove a bit of it.
>>> http://prioryrecords.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=2029&search=saint+thomas
>>>
>>> It has some nice snapshots of the organ and the noted choir is in good form.
>>>
>>> Both the ProOrgano and the JAV recordings I've heard were good. I don't know if ProOrgano is
>>> still carrying the Dorothy Papadokos recordings at The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, but she
>>> did a great job in that wonderful space. She left since there was no organ to play after the
>>> fire maybe fifteen years ago.
>>>
>>> For Theatre organs, the late Tom Hazleton Pipes of the Mighty Wurlitzer at the San Sylmar organ
>>> in California.
>>>
>>> Cheers,
>>>
>>> Richard
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On 2015-04-19 1:21 PM, John Schroth wrote:
>>>> Good question - I should have been more specific. Classical mostly
>>>> although I might have an interest in picking up some theatre as well.
>>>>
>>>> Kind Regards,
>>>>
>>>> John Schroth
>>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Richard L. Hess email: [log in to unmask]
>>> Aurora, Ontario, Canada 647 479 2800
>>> http://www.richardhess.com/tape/contact.htm
>>> Quality tape transfers -- even from hard-to-play tapes.
>>>
>>>
>>
>
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