Knowing how to register organ pieces is a very important skill every organist must develop. In applying this skill, we may have to use one approach for live performance, such as concert, recital, or church service. Sometimes a different approach is needed when we make a recording or a video. In this article, I will give you some ideas about organ registration for different occasions.If we play in a live concert, we have to consider how the sound of the organ is perceived by the listneners whereas in making a recording there is an issue with microphone sensibility to pick up certain sounds.To illustrate the difference of these two situations, let's take an example of registering a chorale prelude "Ich ruf zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ", BWV 639 by J.S.Bach from the Orgelbuchlein.Although this piece can be registered in a variety of ways, a good option would be to play the right hand part on Oboe 8' combined with Flute 8' (with or without the tremulant). If you are playing on a swell division, the swell box could be almost closed. Of course, it depends on the actual sound of these two stops and how they balance with the left hand part.The accompanying left hand part could be registered with Flute 8'. If this part sounds somewhat too weak compared with the right hand part, you can strengthen it with another soft stop of 8' such as Salicional 8'.The pedal part sounds best if we use soft 16' and 8' stops, such as Subbas 16' and Flute 8'. These stops are usually sufficient for this kind of texture.While this registration might work for a live concert or church service, we also need to be prepared to adjust it to work for recording. When recording, the balance also depends on the sensibility of the microphone. Some microphones seem to work better for higher pitched sounds.Therefore, sometimes for the recording I strengthen the bass a little with an extra 16' or 8' stop which in live performance might not be needed. The left hand part is also important to be audible though not too prominent.Since every organ is different, there are quite a few registration options with each instrument. The best way for you to go about this is to listen to 10 or more different recordings or videos of the piece, compare different registrations, critically think about them and decide what is your favorite and why.You might find several versions you like really well. Therefore, you can play the same piece with different registration on the same organ quite successfully. Just give it a try. Remember, the more registration options you know, the better.
If you would like to know more about organ registration, I highly recommend The Registration of Baroque Organ Music by Barbara Owen. As Journal of the
American Musical Instrument Society writes, "In this book, Barbara Owen has
created a rich resource of historical information coupled with strategies for
interpreting that information on today's instruments."
Sixteenth Century Journal also adds that "... Barbara Owen has succeeded admirably in distilling three centuries of organ registration practice into a volume less than three hundred pages long.... Anyone with an interest in the history of the organ and its music... will not want to ignore this book." I personally use this book as a guide for most of my organ recitals.
By the way, do you want to learn to play the King of Instruments - the pipe
organ? If so, download my FREE video guide: "How to Master Any Organ
Composition" in which I will show you my EXACT steps, techniques, and methods that I use to practice, learn and master any piece of organ music.
This is the second part of the article How to Achieve Accuracy in Manual Changes When Playing Organ. Make sure you read the first part because will find more useful suggestions.
Practice opposite changes. Because it is likely that you will encounter an organ where the Great is either the first or the second manual, it is also important to practice switching manuals the opposite way. This can be useful also because you will not always know which manual will serve you best in each specific situation. So you have to be prepared to jump upwards or downwards. I personally can testify how tricky it may be, especially if the organ is unfamiliar and you are mentally unprepared to make such adjustments.
I remember playing Bach’s D Minor Toccata and Fugue in one concert where the great was the second manual and the positive was the first. I thought I was mentally prepared for it but did not practice the actual manual changes the opposite way. In this concert, I had to jump downwards for echo effects in toccata. The first manual change was like a cold shower to me – I almost missed the manual. Luckily, at the last moment I remembered that this organ had positive in the lower manual and everything went well. Knowing that, I was on my guard for echo effects in the fugue. However, the feeling of having to jump the wrong way was quite strange. Lesson learned – always practice manual changes both ways, unless there is no other way to do that (like in thumbing down technique).
If only one manual is available, imitate manual changes. My organ students often ask me if it is really necessary to have a two manual organ at your disposal to practice manual changes. My answer is the definite NO. You can practice majority of organ repertoire on a one manual instrument, even on the piano. When the time comes to make a manual change, just imitate the movement you would do with you hands if you had several manuals. In other words, make a mental note of the change, physically move your hand upward or downward but continue playing on the same manual. This type of practice greatly saves time because it involves a powerful strategy – visualization. Using this technique, we visualize the manual switch and make appropriate movements with the hand but use only one keyboard.
Imitate the movements on the table. I explained how manual changes can be practiced on one keyboard but you may be surprised to find out that it could be done on the table as well. Just do all the movements of the hand and pretend you are playing the real organ and jump upwards or downwards for manual changes. This technique is a real time saver. You can practice on the table even during TV commercials. Imagine how much of your precious time that will save. Usually there are at least three commercials during a show or a movie each lasting at least 5 minutes. Practicing your manual changes this way will give you at least 15 minutes (most likely even more). This amount of time is surely more than enough to master at least one difficult manual change in the piece.
If you follow my suggestions, your accuracy will improve over time. Try to plan this in advance, practice slowly and repeatedly. When you hit the wrong note when changing manuals, always go back, correct the mistake and practice not until you play it correctly but until you can’t make the same mistake again. In other words, make your manual changes automatic. Take advantage of the piano or the table and the difficult jumps will become easy to you.
By the way, do you want to learn to play the King of Instruments - the pipe organ? If so, download my FREE video guide: "How to Master Any Organ Composition" in which I will show you my EXACT steps, techniques, and methods that I use to practice, learn and master any piece of organ music.
Much of organ music is written for more than one manual. Quite often manual changes are required within composition which might be challenging to perform accurately. Organist may hit the wrong note accidentally, especially at the beginning stages of organ playing. This is especially dangerous when jumping over two or more manuals. Just like any other skill in organ art, careful planning and practice are needed to achieve accuracy in manual changes. Today I would like to give you some tips which will help you to avoid hitting the wrong notes when changing manuals.
Mark manual changes in the score. Although it might be tempting to have a clean score, it is always best to write in manual changes in your music, however obvious they might be. Mark not only the graphical representation but also write in which manual you will use. For example, if the right hand has to jump from the first manual to the second, write in the exact manual separation by drawing a line. In addition, at the exact place when manual change has to occur, write “II” in your score. This is indeed necessary to avoid confusion when performing the piece in public, at least until you will have more experience in organ playing.
Stay close to keyboards when changing manuals. Once you know the place where the switch has to be made, make sure that you only lift your hand or hands as little as possible from the keyboards. The distance between the manuals is about 5 cm (sometimes more) so your hand has to make a rather noticeable movement in order to reach a different manual. This is even more obvious when jumping from the first manual to the third manual or vice versa. For example, the distance between the manuals on my organ is 6.7 cm (when a note on the lower manual is depressed). It is even greater when I have to reach the second manual diagonally – around 10 cm. I remember having a great trouble when practicing the last page of the notorious Motto Ostinato from Sunday Music by Petr Eben (the most important 20th century Czech composer). This particular episode has frequent jumps over three manuals which make an astounding echo effect on the organ. I managed to learn it with accuracy only when staying close to the keyboard.
Practice slowly. If there is one single most important point about accuracy in manual changes, it is slow practice. Practicing slowly can make a big difference in a challenging spot. Try to overcome the temptation playing technically difficult pieces in a concert tempo frequently. By applying slow motion in your practice you will be able to control your movements much better. You see, at the beginning stages of organ playing, your hand movements are still not precise and fast or medium tempo does not help here at all. In fact, you should take such practicing tempo that will not allow any or almost any mistakes and you will feel comfortable. It is precisely slow practice which helped me master the abovementioned page of Motto Ostinato.
Practice repeatedly. If you managed to play the difficult spot with manual change correctly, do not be satisfied with only one correct attempt. Instead, practice this episode repeatedly 10 or more times until it becomes automatic. Try to achieve the level when you can play correctly with precision and accuracy at least three times in a row. This means that if you play correctly twice and make a mistake on a third attempt, you have to start over and begin counting from one. I know from my personal experience just how frustrating this can be sometimes. Do not get discouraged by your mistakes. They simply mean that you need to take a slower tempo. If you insist upon making manual changes automatic, when the time comes, you will be ready to perform the piece with confidence.
This article continues in Part 2. If you found the first part useful, I suggest you read the second part also because you will find even more helpful tips there.
By the way, do you want to learn to play the King of Instruments - the pipe organ? If so, download my FREE video guide: "How to Master Any Organ Composition" in which I will show you my EXACT steps, techniques, and methods that I use to practice, learn and master any piece of organ music.
Although organ registration is a very complex topic, it is important for every organist at least to have the basic understanding of it. This is necessary because not every organ piece has registration suggestions printed in the performing edition. Sometimes these suggestions are original composer’s intentions which work on a very specific type of organ. Moreover, it is not uncommon to see the registration terms in a foreign language. Whatever the case might be, we have to be aware of certain underlying basic principles that govern our registration choices. In this article, I would like to give you some of my personal suggestions which will help you to use informed decisions when choosing organ registration.
Change registration when structurally necessary. If there are no original registration suggestions from the composer, I suggest changing the stops only in places which are important structurally. Think about the form of the piece. For example, when playing a prelude and fugue, it is often OK to change registration or at least manuals after a prelude. However, some people change stops during the fugue itself. Although there is no right or wrong decision here, still, think about whether or not the registration change emphasizes the structurally important parts of the piece. I think that adding a stop just for the sake of sound is not as strong as changing the stop when you see the need for it (when the second subject comes in or at the start of a stretto section etc.)
Simplicity. In case of doubt, keep it simple. It is always better to play a piece with one registration throughout than to make things over complicated. In other words, if you feel that your prelude and fugue needs changes of registration because the sound of the principal chorus is too harsh on your organ, it is best not to bother with it, unless you are really confident of your decisions. Very often we think that listeners cannot stand this sound for a long time but in reality what is more important is music itself. A fine composition will sound well using several different registration choices. On the other hand, it is hard to make a weak composition more convincing by changing registration (it takes a lot of experience). However, in some cases on certain historical organs, the registration might be perhaps as powerful tool as the music itself. This is why much of early organ music might sound boring on a modern organ.
Another example: I know many organists who register the music of Franck in a very complicated manner. They try to achieve the perfect dynamics and add stops every few phrases. This is obviously too much. For music like Franck’s, we still need to clarify the structure of the piece.
Practice over theory. This is very important: no matter what the original composer’s indications are, still we make our decisions based on the result. For example, if a French Romantic composer wants an oboe for a particular place, we have to think what kind of oboe was available to him. Then we need to check whether or not the oboe on our organ produces the same effect. Or in another case, if the piece from French Classical organ school has very specific registration indications, such as Voix humaine (a reed stop), we still have to compare the French sounds with our organ. A German Vox humana would not be the same. In many instances, we will have to make compromises in order to achieve the desired result.
Use 8’ or 16' as foundation in the manuals. Regardless of what kind of registration you choose, it is the most common to use 8' stop as the lowest sounding stop in the manuals. However, there are also many instances where 16' foundation in the manuals is also advisable, especially in Organo Pleno registration on large instruments. Sometimes mixture stops are constructed on the 16' basis. For example, it is quite common practice to have a low mixture in the Great. By low, I mean it is based on 5 1/3'. In this case, we have to use it always together with a 16' stop. Other mixtures are based on 2 2/3' or higher. In such case, 8' stop as foundation would work just fine.
Use 16’ as foundation in the pedals. For majority of music written after 1700s, it is normal to use 16' as foundation in the pedals. If the manuals would be based on 8' level, the pedals would be one octave lower. In other words, if the lowest stop in the manuals is 8', play with 16' in the pedals. Playing without the 16' in the pedals would lack the necessary gravity.
Exceptions. As with majority of rules, there always are exceptions. For example, it was a common practice in the Baroque period, especially in the 17th century to play the cantus firmus (the chorale tune) in the pedals, even though it would be notated in the manuals. If the choral would be placed in the tenor voice, you would need to use 8' as the basis in the pedals. If the cantus firmus would be in the alto, you could place it in the pedals with 4' registration. Moreover, choral tune in soprano could be played in the pedals with 2' registration.
By the way, you could try to play hymns this way. This would make a fantastic sight-reading exercise. Here you would need to have alto and tenor in the right hand, bass in the left hand with 16' on a different manual, and soprano in the pedals with 2' solo stop.
These are my personal suggestions for registering an organ composition. Of course, this is just a generalization and you have to consider many variables, such as historical period, national school, type of organ music, instrument available and many other things. If you would like to know more about organ registration, I highly recommend The Registration of Baroque Organ Music by Barbara Owen. As Journal of the American Musical Instrument Society writes, "In this book, Barbara Owen has created a rich resource of historical information coupled with strategies for interpreting that information on today's instruments." Sixteenth Century Journal also adds that "... Barbara Owen has succeeded admirably in distilling three centuries of organ registration practice into a volume less than three hundred pages long.... Anyone with an interest in the history of the organ and its music... will not want to ignore this book." I personally use this book as a guide for most of my organ recitals.
By the way, do you want to learn to play the King of Instruments - the pipe organ? If so, download my FREE video guide: "How to Master Any Organ Composition" in which I will show you my EXACT steps, techniques, and methods that I use to practice, learn and master any piece of organ music.
As organists we must acquire the skill of using effective registration in organ pieces, hymns, and choral accompaniments. In order to do so, we have to first get familiar with the four main families of organ stops, the construction of the pipes, their sound, and finally, their use. Today, I would like to share with you some insight into organ stops.
Principals. This is the main stop of the organ. Usually we see the principals in the organ façade, they are visible front pipes. In the large instruments, most of the time the principals are built from metal. However, some organs have wooden principals as well. The façade pipes are mostly built from tin. Inside principals have a large percentage of lead. Although there are a large variety of principals in various organ building traditions, generally the sound of the principal stops is firm and clear. In countries like Spain and Italy principals also had a vocal singing tone quality.
The principals are very well suited to accompany congregational singing in hymn playing. It is very common to add several principals of different pitch levels (16’, 8’, 4’, 2’, etc. and mixtures) to form Organo Pleno registration or the Principal Chorus. Such use of principals is a standard way to register Baroque compositions which are not based on pre-existing chorale melody (preludes, fugues, fantasias, toccatas, ciacconas, passacaglias etc.). Many of the chorale-based works can be played with single principals or various combinations of principal stops, as well.
Flutes. These stops imitate various instruments of the flute family (recorder, orchestral flute, piccolo etc.). Like principals, they can be built both from metal and wood. The diameter of these pipes is usually wider than that of the principals. Therefore they produce a warmer, rounder sound. Flutes are built of various shapes: open, stopped, chimney flutes, conical, over blowing etc. The shape of the pipe makes a big difference on the sound.
Flutes are very well suited for the performance of lyrical organ music. However, pieces of playful character can be effectively played using various flute combinations, even gapped registration, such as 8’ and 2’.Like principals, flutes can be used without the foundation of 8’. Solo flutes of 4’ or even 2’ sound very playful. There is a saying among organists that even the worst organ has at least one interesting stop. Usually it is a 4’ flute.
Strings. The string stops imitate string instruments, such as violin, viola, cello, double-bass, or even viola da gamba which was a very popular instrument in the Baroque period. Strings have much narrower diameter than that of a principal. Therefore their sound is soft, narrow, and gentle. The strings are more commonly built out of wood but there might also be metal stops as well.
The strings are especially important for the performance of the Romantic slow, meditative, and gentle organ music, such as Adagio, Priere etc. If the organ has several strings stops, such as viola, salicional, gamba and others, all of them work very well together. It is also very common to use the celeste sound together with strings. Because the celeste stops are tuned slightly sharper (sometimes slightly flat as well) they produce an undulating sound in combination with 8’ strings. This sound is similar to the effect of the tremulant.
Reeds. This is a very special stop family. They are very different from principals, flutes, and strings in their construction and sound production. They have brass plate called a tongue which vibrates when the air goes into the pipe. The sound is strengthened by the wooden or metal resonators which are placed on top of the pipes.
Reeds can be of two kinds: solo reeds and chorus reeds. All of them imitate various kinds of wind instruments, like oboe, clarinet, French horn, krummhorn, dulzian, bassoon, trumpet, trombone, tuba and many others. The solo reeds can be used as a solo stop on a separate manual or division. They are especially well suited for the performance of organ chorales, and other chorale-based compositions. The chorus reeds are generally louder. If they blend well with other stops, we can use them to strengthen the sound of the principal chorus both in the pedals and in the manuals.
NOTE: This is by no means a comprehensive treatise about the organ stops and their registration. This article is of course just a very brief and generalized overview of organ stop families to help you get started with organ registration. If you would like to know more about organ registration, I highly recommend The Registration of Baroque Organ Music by Barbara Owen. As Journal of the American Musical Instrument Society writes, "In this book, Barbara Owen has created a rich resource of historical information coupled with strategies for interpreting that information on today's instruments." Sixteenth Century Journal also adds that "... Barbara Owen has succeeded admirably in distilling three centuries of organ registration practice into a volume less than three hundred pages long.... Anyone with an interest in the history of the organ and its music... will not want to ignore this book." I personally use this book as a guide for most of my organ recitals.By the way, do you want to learn to play the King of Instruments - the pipe organ? If so, download my FREE video guide: "How to Master Any Organ Composition" in which I will show you my EXACT steps, techniques, and methods that I use to practice, learn and master any piece of organ music.
Changing organ registration can be a challenging task. Very often an assistant is needed to facilitate this task for an organist, especially on organs with mechanical action. However, organs equipped with solid state system or combination pistons make registration changes a relatively easy task. Such organs have possibility to make changes using thumb pistons with hands or toe studs with feet. An organist can program any desired registration in advance and activate it using a sigle piston or a toe stud. Today I would like to share with you some of my personal recommendations how to use toe studs for registration changes on the organ.
Use rests for registration changes. The best places to change registration using toe studs are the spots with rests in the pedal part. The rest is necessary to press the toe stud with the foot. For example, if the registration change is needed at any specific place and you intend to do it using toe studs, locate the rest and press the toe stud with the left or right toe, whichever is more convenient for you. However, it is better to use combination piston if the rest is in the hand part.
Determine which foot to use. If you see an appropriate rest for pressing a toe stud, look on which side this stud is located. If it is located on the right side of the organ, press it with the toe of the right foot. Similarly, if the toe stud is on the left side of the organ, it is better to use the left foot. If the toe stud is around the middle of the organ, you may use left or right foot. However, there might be some cases were it is more appropriate to use the right foot on the left side of the organ. Study the pedal part and you will easily understand which foot is more comfortable to use.
Use the free foot in places without rests. If you absolutely must use toe studs and both hands and feet are busy, use the foot which is not playing at the moment. For example, if on the spot where registration change must be done you play with your left toe press the toe stud with the right toe. Similarly, if the right foot is busy, use the left foot.
Adjust your pedaling. When you write in pedaling in your score, always take into consideration the use of toe studs, if necessary. It is much better if you plan for it from the beginning. However, sometimes you will need to change the pedaling according to whichever foot is more appropriate to press the toe stud. Do not hesitate to make these changes because they will help you to change registration more smoothly.
Prepare in advance. Just like in pedal playing it is best to use pedal preparation, you should prepare for pressing toe studs before the actual spot where registration change is needed. Try to place the foot intended for registration change on the specific toe stud as soon as this foot is free to move. In other words, as you release the pedal with that foot, move it on the stud in an instant. Such preparation will greatly facilitate registration change and you will not have to think about it when the actual moment comes.
Practice repeatedly. Any registration change must be practiced over and over until it will become automatic. Take a short fragment, like one measure before and after the change and play it in a slow tempo 10 or more times. Omit the hand part first and practice only the pedal part. Later, play the entire texture in a similar way.
Imagine the toe studs and practice. If you intend to perform your composition on an organ with toe stops but only have a small organ available for practice, you can imagine the toe studs on your organ. Pretend that the toe studs are located either on the left side, right side or the middle. Make appropriate movements with your feet regardless whether or not they actually exist. The sound is not important here but your physical movements are, so that when the time comes to perform your piece on the organ with the toe studs, you will be ready.
If you follow my suggestions and incorporate registration changes using toe studs in your practice, this task will not be as difficult as it might appear at first. One thing that it is becoming apparent here is that we cannot take the registration changes for granted and hope that when the time comes we will successfully press that toe stud. The skill of changing registration, like hand or feet coordination must be practiced as a drill until it becomes automatic. If you achieve the level of automation, you will have no difficulty changing registration by yourself.
If you would like to know more about organ registration, I recommend a treatise by G.A.Audsley "Organ Stops and Their Artistic Registration".
By the way, do you want to learn to play the King of Instruments - the pipe organ? If so, download my FREE video guide: "How to Master Any Organ Composition" in which I will show you my EXACT steps, techniques, and methods that I use to practice, learn and master any piece of organ music.
Pièce d'Orgue in G, BWV 572, also known as Fantasia in three parts, is written in a French style. It originated rather early in Bach's career (before 1712). The first part is entitled as Tres vitement (very fast), the second - Gravement (heavy) and the final part - Lentement (slow).
Because of fast runs and passages, the opening and closing parts remind of a toccata, and the central solemn episode is written in a 5 part polyphonic texture. In this article I will give tips and advice on how to play and practice this wonderful composition.
The Italians would call the opening section the Passagio which was also a common feature in the North German Praeludia. However, it is questionable whether the Italian term is appropriate in the French style composition.
Basically it is a virtuosic episode written in a monophonic texture where we can find both the elements of arpeggio and scale-based passages. At any rate, even at this early stage of Bach's career, the composer shows a unique angle of blending multi-cultural elements in one work.
Although written in deceptively simple and clear one-voice texture, the opening section has various potential dangers for an organist. This includes note grouping and articulation. Note groupings have something to do with the meter signature which is 12/8.
Such a meter has 4 relatively accented beats (on sixteenths 1, 7, 13, and 19, or if we count the eighth notes – 1, 4, 7, and 10). In a measure of such a meter, there are four groups of sixteenth notes. Each group has 6 notes. However many sixteenths are grouped not by the meter requirements, but according to which hand has to play them.
For example, in measure 2, the sixteenths are grouped in threes for the right hand and left hand respectively. If we play and make accents according to such a grouping, then inevitably the listener will have the feeling of triplets which is not the correct way to play this passage.
Instead, the organist should try to make very gentle accents on every other note and emphasize beats 1, 4, 7, and 10 of the measure.
Concerning the articulation, articulate legato touch should be used which was the traditional way of playing any instrument in the Baroque period. Articulate legato means that there should be very small distances between each and every note.
However, this does not mean, that the musical passage should be choppy and very detached. On the contrary, the organist should strive to have a Cantabile or singing manner of playing where the notes are connected into one line.
However, playing with articulate legato touch in such a lively tempo is not exactly easy. Try to keep all your fingers in contact with the keys at all times. Practice in a slow tempo and with correct articulation.
Rhythmically lean on the places where there are important changes of harmony (before measures 17, 21, and 27). Slow down before reaching the end of this section so that you could naturally connect it with the next central section.
In the longest main central section, we can hear very imposing stepwise rising theme in long note values which is treated in a fugal manner in various voices. This is a typical French 5 part texture, because the French employed 5 stringed instruments in an ensemble (2 violins, 2 violas, and a violon).
Therefore, many of the French classical type of compositions are written in this texture as well (especially the fugues). By the way, can you guess what kind of ominous chord sounds at the end of this section?
This central section raises various performance difficulties for many organists. Notice that the meter signature is alla breve or cut-time. That means that there are really two beats per measure and the first is strong and the second is weak.
The harmony also changes mostly twice per measure. We have to be aware of that and emphasize rhythmically various important harmonic changes, especially occurring in cadences.
Apparently for Bach this central section was like a case study in suspensions. Just look at any measure you want and you will see tied notes over the bar lines. The suspension technique gives a constant feeling of tension and continuity. Most of the cadences in this section are deceptive.
That means whenever Bach ends a fragment in one key, he does not use chords of the Dominant and Tonic but rather Dominant and the chord of 6th scale degree. Try to emphasize rhythmically these cadences. Such an approach will help you to clarify formal structure of this section.
Because this section is written in 5 independent voices, there is an inherent danger that the organist will not be able to listen to each separate line, everything will just sound legato, and correct articulation will be lost.
In other words, it is easy to understand that all the notes should be played with articulate legato touch but the suspensions over the bar line make it exceedingly difficult to control the releases.
If you truly want to have a precise articulation, my suggestion would be to take a fragment of four measures and practice each of the 5 voices separately, then combinations of 2 voices, 3 voices, 4 voices, and only then practice playing the entire 5 part texture.
Then take another fragment of 4 measures etc. Practicing this way will ensure that your articulation will be unbeatable and that you will hear each part separately which you have to strive for in every polyphonic composition.
Pièce d'Orgue ends with a virtuosic but a little slower and heavier texture which has 5 voices encoded: 4 voices could be perceived in both hands and magnificent Dominant pedal point in the pedal line.
Try not to play this final section too fast because it has a tempo marking Lentement. Like in the opening section, here too, the notes are grouped according to which hand plays which of the three note groups.
When you play them, instead of emphasizing two groups of triplets, try to feel three groups in each sextuplet. Make a natural connection between the hand part and the magnificent long Dominant pedal point in the middle of the measure 200.
Because this is the French style piece, the ornaments also should be performed in such a tradition. Always start the trills and mordents from the upper note.
By the way, it is worthwhile looking at the heavily ornamented version of the middle section in the Neue Bach Ausgabe edition (Volume 7 of Bach Organ Works ). You can try to adapt many of the ornaments in your performance, too.
The most trusted registration of this piece obviously would be Principal chorus or Organo Pleno (with or without 16’ in the manuals). Manuals could be coupled as well. The use of the deep pedal reeds, such as Posaune 16’ (or 32’ if there is one on your instrument) is most welcome.
If you use a modern instrument with unnaturally sharp sound mixtures, sometimes it is a good idea to add some additional 8’ and 4’ flutes in the manuals for thickness. Feel free to play on the secondary manual in the opening section, if you wish.
In this case, avoid using 16' in your opening registration. That way you will achieve the true gravity which Bach wished for his Pleno sound.
Overall, this is a rather difficult composition to play. If you are new to the organ, I suggest you start with shorter free works, such as 8 Short Preludes and Fugues for organ earlier attributed to J.S.Bach and leave the Piece d’Orgue for the future.
At any rate, even an experienced performer should have much perseverance and attention to detail while practicing this wonderful work. Memorizing the piece would give the organist a full mastery at a much deeper level.
By the way, do you want to learn to play the King of Instruments - the pipe organ? If so, download my FREE video guide: "How to Master Any Organ Composition" in which I will show you my EXACT steps, techniques, and methods that I use to practice, learn and master any piece of organ music.
The road to achieving a high level in organ playing can be a lifelong journey. This is so because organist's profession requires a person to have many skills. That is why people studying at universities and conservatories to become organists need to take many different music classes. Although all of them are vitally important to the aspiring organist, there are four which I consider indispensable.
1. Organ Technique. In this field, we learn the basics of organ playing. These may include depression and release of keys, legato touch, finger independence, glissando playing, finger substitution etc. The same holds true to the pedal playing. This area of study involves playing specially designed exercises which develop specific organ technique.
Some people do not consider the basics of organ technique very important and they start teaching organ with organ repertoire right from the beginning. I think that although this can be done, playing repertoire from the start might be sometimes too difficult for the beginner. However, the repertoire can be incorporated and mixed with the exercises quite successfully.
2. Organ Repertoire. This area, of course, involves practicing and performing many organ compositions from various national schools and historical periods. Because the organ repertoire is so vast (the earliest surviving music was composed about 700 years ago), every organist can learn something from it that is interested and useful.
Naturally, the Bach organ works are the main emphasis of most organist's repertoire, but various other important schools need to be learned as well. For example, very popular among organists today are French Classical, French and German Romantic, North German Baroque, 20th century French repertoire. However, I think one can benefit from playing other lesser played composers from the Italian and Spanish Renaissance, English Baroque composers etc.
3. Organ Registration. Organists would not have sufficient skills, if they did not know the basics of organ registration. This involves knowing how to register specific types of organ composition, how to mix the stops, how to achieve balance between manuals and pedals, how to adjust historical registration practices to different modern organs etc.
It is important for an organist to know how to make a good seamless crescendo, how to apply principles of terrace dynamic, how to make good use of the swell pedal etc. All these things can be learned if we study organ registration practices.
4. Sight-Reading. Organists also need to sight-read new repertoire pieces every day. This is the skill which will be very useful when organists have to accompany choirs or collaborate with other musicians. Without practicing sight-reading regularly, organists will have difficulty of reading and learning new music.
It often happens that we are given new music to perform with choirs, ensembles, and soloists just a few days in advance (or less). If a person does not have good sight-reading skills, he or she might have much trouble and stress learning to play these new pieces fast.
So you can see, how these four areas of study (organ technique, repertoire, registration, and sight-reading) are crucial, if the organist wants to be successful.
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