Blog Archives

Is it a good thing to put your hands on the bench during pedal solos?

6/11/2025

Dear friends,

Here's what we found worth sharing with you this week:

1. SOPP731: Is it a good thing to put your hands on the bench during pedal solos?
2. Ausra Motuzaite-Pinkeviciene - Meditation on Christe Sanctorum, Op. 33
3. Jeanne Demessieux - Veni Creator, Op. 8 No. 8 | Hauptwerk Alessandria
4. Johann Sebastian Bach - Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 Part III, BWV 1051 | Kiruna, Sweden
5. Live Organ Music - On the Bench with Vidas No. 46 | 2025-06-06
6. Vidas Pinkevicius - Buzzing Fields, Op. 324 (Piano Solo)
7. Vidas Pinkevicius - Hammock Dreams, Op. 323 (Piano Solo)
8. Vidas Pinkevicius - Evening Glow, Op. 322 (Solo Piano)
9. Vidas Pinkevicius - Beneath the Old Oak Tree, Op. 320 (Piano Solo)
10. Vidas Pinkevicius - Veni Creator Meditation, Op. 321 (Organ Solo)
11. Vidas Pinkevicius - Summer Rain, Op. 319 (Piano Solo)
12. Vidas Pinkevicius - Wildflowers in Bloom, Op. 318 (Piano Solo)

Thanks for reading! This newsletter is free but not cheap. If you like our work and want to support it, you can buy us coffee or forward it to someone who’d like it. If you’re seeing this newsletter for the first time, you can subscribe here.

And remember, when you practice, miracles happen!

Vidas and Ausra
www.organduo.lt

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SOPP731: Is it a good thing to put your hands on the bench during pedal solos?

6/11/2025

Comments

Let's start episode 731 of Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast. This question was sent by Dan and he writes:

Interesting podcast episode here, on pedal technique, Vidas. You talk about putting hands on the bench during pedal solos. I’ll often do this, as I’m not playing anything in the manuals. Would you say this is a good thing to do, technically speaking? Or would you advise organists that you’re working with, to keep their hands on the manuals, so they can be ready for when manual parts come back in? Speaking of playing baroque music with toes only, with the Toccata, from BWV 564, and the pedal solo that it has in it, how would you play the part that has triplets in it, as smooth as possible? This is a bit in that pedal solo in that toccata that I've always not gotten as smooth as I’d like it to be, and as smooth as I’ve heard organists generally play it.

Enjoy the conversation!

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I'm afraid to play Bach's Trio Sonatas

6/4/2025

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Dear friends,

Here's what we found worth sharing with you this week:

1. SOPP730: I'm afraid to play Bach's Trio Sonatas
2. Learn with Vidas - How to Improvise Passacaglia | 2025-06-01
3. VU Organ Studio "Unda Maris" Recital | VU St. John's Church | 2025-05-31
4. Johann Sebastian Bach - Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 Part II, BWV 1051 | Kiruna, Sweden
5. Live Organ Music - On the Bench with Vidas No. 45 | 2025-05-30
6. Vidas Pinkevicius - Aurelia Triumphalis, Op. 314 (Organ Solo)
7. Wedding Music - VU St. John's Church
8. Vidas Pinkevicius - Benediction Light, Op. 313 (Organ Solo)
9. Vidas Pinkevicius - Celestial Breath, Op. 312 (Organ Solo)
10. Vidas Pinkevicius - Amen of the Soul, Op. 311 (Organ Solo)
11. Vidas Pinkevicius - Golden Hour, Op. 317 (Piano Solo)
12. Vidas Pinkevicius - Waves and Wind, Op. 316 (Piano Solo)
13. Vidas Pinkevicius - Sunlit Meadow, Op. 315 (Piano Solo)

Thanks for reading! This newsletter is free but not cheap. If you like our work and want to support it, you can buy us coffee or forward it to someone who’d like it. If you’re seeing this newsletter for the first time, you can subscribe here.
And remember, when you practice, miracles happen!

Vidas and Ausra
www.organduo.lt

Comments

SOPP730: I'm afraid to play Bach's Trio Sonatas

6/4/2025

Comments

Welcome to episode 730 of Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast! This question was sent by Benas, our student at Vilnius University organ studio "Unda Maris" and he writes:

After learning to play Bach's Trio Sonata in Eb major, I found myself reluctant to try and explore the rest of the Trio sonatas. What could I try to overcome this fear?

Last year, I played Bach's Trio Sonata in E-flat major (BWV 525) at Vilnius University Unda Maris Studio Recital in winter. I found the entire learning process extremely difficult compared to any other piece I tried to learn. Usually, when I am learning to play any piece of music, at some point I get a certain feeling that it's all going to come together eventually and that has been a good predictor of whether I will perform it well in the concert. However, with this piece, I could not feel that at all and my concert performance was really not up to my liking, making an underwhelming result after practicing it for about a year (although I must admit, the practice schedule was not very rigorous). As a result - I am really reluctant to try to learn the rest of the Trio Sonatas. However, at some point in life, I would still like to learn them. Any tips to overcome this "fear" and strategies for my next practice sessions?

Many thanks!!

Trio Sonata No. 1 in Eb Major, BWV 525 by Bach with fingering and pedaling: https://secrets-of-organ-playing.myshopify.com/products/trio-sonata-in-eb-major-bwv-525-by-bach?_pos=1&_sid=a4ab43be2&_ss=r

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Is it a good thing to put your hands on the bench during pedal solos?

SOPP731: Is it a good thing to put your hands on the bench during pedal solos?

I'm afraid to play Bach's Trio Sonatas

SOPP730: I'm afraid to play Bach's Trio Sonatas

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Is it a good thing to put your hands on the bench during pedal solos?

SOPP731: Is it a good thing to put your hands on the bench during pedal solos?

I'm afraid to play Bach's Trio Sonatas

SOPP730: I'm afraid to play Bach's Trio Sonatas

DON'T MISS A THING! FREE UPDATES BY EMAIL.

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