Blog Archives - SECRETS OF ORGAN PLAYING - WHEN YOU PRACTICE, MIRACLES HAPPEN

How to Compose or Improvise Variations in the Style of Mozart on the Organ?

9/30/2012

Have you ever wondered what is the procedure in creating variations on the organ in the style of Mozart? This is a very delightful and fun music to play whether you are improvising it or just composing. The style is transparent, light, virtuoso, and it will definitely leave a strong impact on your listeners. When composing or improvising variations in the style of the style of Mozart, follow this structure:

Theme - in two voices (the tune in soprano)

Var.1: In two voices (the tune in soprano ornamented in running 16ths)

Var. 2: In three voices (the tune in soprano, the bass in 16ths)

Var. 3: In three voices (the tune in soprano in 8th note triplets)

Var. 4: In three voices (the tune in the soprano, the bass in 8th note triplets arpeggio)

Var. 5: In two voices (the tune in the soprano with imitation between the hands in 8th notes)

Var. 6: Running 16ths in the bass, chords in the right hand (tune in soprano)

Var. 7: Scale passages in the soprano, use the bass which enforces the harmony of the tune.

Var. 8: Change of mode: tune in the soprano. Movement in 8th notes, some imitation between the voices.

Var. 9: Original mode: three voices, movement in quarter notes with some imitation.

Var. 10: 16th note arpeggio figure, tune in soprano alternating with the bass.

Var. 11: Free variation which only has the same harmonies as the theme - dotted rhythms, virtuoso running 32ths.

Var 12: Change in meter, theme in soprano, running bass in 16th notes. Later both hands are in 16ths.

Coda (optional) - you can take a distant key, only a fragment of the theme (one motive) and build entire variation out of it. At the end add a sudden enharmonic modulation to the home key. End your variations with a bang.

Follow this procedure when creating your variations on the organ today. After you can play them for yourself, be sure to play it with your friends and family. If it is really successful, you can even record a video of your piece and put it on YouTube.

It is essential that you look at the actual pieces by Mozart and see how he has created them. By analyzing how the pieces are put together you can follow his examples in your compositions or improvisations and in doing so Mozart's musical language will become your own.

Before improvising such pieces it is best that you compose at least 10 similar ones on paper. Don't forget the benefit of memorizing your model variations of Mozart and transposing it into different keys.

By the way, do you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach? If so, I suggest you check out my 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

Or if you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my video Organ Practice Guide.

How to Adjust to the Sound Delay While Playing Some Organs?

9/28/2012

Have you ever had an experience playing an organ which has a sound delay? In other words, if you press a note, some organs produce the sound a second later. This experience can be very frustrating and can slow down the tempo of the performance. If you find yourself in such situation, read this article.

The best way to adjust to the sound delay on some organs is this: do not listen to the sound in the room. I had experiences with sound delay on pneumatic organs here in Lithuania.

The first one I tried was a 19th century 3 manual organ. The first time I played it was at a concert during my student years. It was very strange for me to play Franck's 3rd chorale and hear the constant delay of sound. I knew ahead of time that this would happen. Actually, I was warned by my professor and other colleagues but to experience it personally was a very different thing.

It seems like you can't control the sound, like you can't control the instrument and it gets slower and slower every time. It's sort of similar to the feeling when playing with the orchestra - if you enter on time - you are actually a little late. It reminds me also of the experience I have sometimes in a large church when I have to play the organ and accompany the choir which is singing from the front of the church. Because of the great distance we (the organist and the choir and in some cases, the conductor as well) might be constantly fighting each other and slowing each other down.

The only cure to this problem is this: we all must look at the conductor and not listen to the sound. I mean, the choir (or several choirs placed on different balconies) and the organist must follow the movements of the conductor. That means the organist must press keys a little earlier than normal.

Actually, this is one of the major reasons we hear some church congregation members and some organists dragging the tempo when singing hymns. This is so natural - people listen to the organ and sing only when they hear the sound. The organist also listens to the congregation and plays on time but in reality - he or she is late. The cure for it is this: keep the constant pulse, ignore the singing, and play ahead of time.

So going back to this topic, I suggest you just press mechanically the keys without actually expecting to hear the sound. In other words, you must constantly be in a leading position and not following, if this makes any sense.

Yes, it sounds counter-intuitive but listening to the sound in the room slows you down. What happens is that you press the key and wait for the sound. The sound is delayed by a second, and you feel like you can't press the next note UNLESS you hear the first one. So it is a circle which slows down performance tempo.

I'm certain that after you played there for a while, you would start to adjust to the room and the instrument which also means that the next time you come back there (and I hope the pastor will grant you this opportunity) it will be easier and easier for you to play on time.

I can only tell you that this is NOT the most difficult situation. Some organs have tracker organs with pedal electric action. That means the pedals are constantly dragging. The organist must again play only the pedal part a bit earlier. THIS is really complicated.

One last tip: you must try to relax your body while adjusting to the sound delay. You see, your immediate physical response to this situation is most likely a tension. If you can't control the sound very well, you subconsciously tend to tense your shoulders, hands, and even your feet. The end result is obviously not so great - your are fighting the instrument and not adjusting.

However, while playing such organs, you should try the exact opposite - relax your body by breathing deeply and slowly through your nose. Do not depress the keys with the force - play mezzo piano. This way you will be in harmony and unity with the instrument and can control the sound delay much easier.

Use these tips when adjusting to the sound delay the next time you play such an organ. With proper preparation and practice, such performance can be quite successful and actually pleasant experience.

By the way, do you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my video Organ Practice Guide.

Or if you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach? If so, I suggest you check out my 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

How to Interpret Registration Indications in the Works of Mendelssohn and Other German Romantic Organ Music?

9/27/2012

Are you struggling with finding the best registration when playing German Romantic organ music, such as works by Mendelssohn, Brahms, Reger, Liszt, Reubke, Rheinberger, and others? Read this article which will clarify some of the most common registration indications.

The following guidelines are taken from the Preface to the 6 Organ Sonatas, Op. 65 by Felix Mendelssohn which is written by the composer himself.

FF (Fortissimo) – Full Organ. With this indication you can use most of the stops on your instrument, including principals, flutes, and chorus reeds of various pitch levels. Add couplers if you want a bigger sound. However when in doubt, omit certain stops or couplers because there is the danger for the organ to sound too loud. In other words, listen how the instrument sounds in the room and make appropriate adjustments.

pp (Pianissimo) – Soft 8’ stop alone. Such register might be a soft sounding flute or a string stop. If you have many such stops available on your organ, try to find the one which has an original character.

F(Forte) – Great organ without some of the loudest stops. In this case you should probably omit the loudest reeds, such as Trumpets of 16’ and 8’ pitch level. A full principal chorus based on the 16’ (if available) with flutes of different pitch levels will do.

p (Piano) – Several soft 8’ stops combined. Two or more flutes and strings will usually sound nice. In some cases you can also use manual couplers.

Registration in the pedals. Use 16’ and 8’ stops together in the pedal, except where expressly stated otherwise. The composer specifically refers to the variation part of the 6th Organ Sonata, where you can find indication that a chorale tune (cantus firmus) “Vater unser im Himmelreich” should be played on the 8’ stop (perhaps the reed).

2 manuals – different tone color, without too great contrast. When registering pieces for two different keyboards, aim to use stops which are not too different in terms of volume level. Instead, choose the ones which produce a different sound character.

Suitable for other German Romantic music. It is interesting to note that Mendelssohn’s suggestions are valid not only for his music, but also for the works of other German Romantic Composers. This is based on the fact that the organs which were built at that time in the German lands share many similar concepts.

Follow these guidelines when registering organ music by German Romantic composers in general or pieces by Felix Mendelssohn in particular. As always, when adapting original registration indications to modern organs, have in mind the ideal sound that you want to produce and make necessary changes. If in doubt – choose the solution which is the simplest.

By the way, do you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my video Organ Practice Guide.

Or if you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach? If so, I suggest you check out my 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

How to Compose or Improvise a Fantasia on the BACH Theme For the Organ?

9/26/2012

The BACH theme fascinates many organists and composers. Just the notion of being able to create a musical composition on the name by the greatest composer can be a great motivator. Although the term „Fantasia“ might refer to many different types of pieces, one of the most common one is a contrapuntal fugal fantasia with imitative counterpoint. In order to compose a fantasia on the BACH theme, you can follow these steps:

1. Place theme in the soprano (Tonic key)

2. Theme in the alto (Dominant key)

3. Theme in the tenor (Tonic)

4. Theme in the bass (Dominant)

5. Interlude

6. Theme in the soprano (Dominant)

7. Theme in the alto (Tonic)

8. Theme in the tenor (Dominant)

9. Theme in the bass (Tonic)

10. Interlude

11. Theme in the soprano in augmentation (Relative key)

12. Theme in the alto in augmentation (Relative of the Dominant)

13. Theme in the tenor in augmentation (Relative)

14. Theme in the bass in augmentation (Relative of the Dominant)

15. Interlude

16. Theme in the soprano in double augmentation (Subdominant key)

17. Theme in the alto in double augmentation (Tonic)

18. Theme in the tenor in double augmentation (Subdominant)

19. Theme in the bass in double augmentation (Tonic)

20. Interlude

21. Theme in the soprano in diminution (Relative of the Subdominant)

22. Theme in the alto in diminution (Relative)

23. Theme in the tenor in diminution (Relative of the Subdominant)

24. Theme in the bass in diminution (Relative)

25. Interlude

26. Theme in the soprano in double diminution (Dominant)

27. Theme in the alto in double diminution (Tonic)

28. Theme in the tenor in double diminution (Dominant)

29. Theme in the bass in double diminution (Tonic)

Follow these steps if you want to create a fantasia on the BACH theme for the organ. After you have written on paper, play your piece on the instrument and make necessary revisions.

If you compose or improvise at least 10 fantasies on different themes in different keys, you will see tremendous improvements in your creative abilities in no time. Some of the best examples of contrapuntal fantasia can be found in the works by Sweelinck, so you may want to analyze his works as well.

By the way, do you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach? If so, I suggest you check out my 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

Or if you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my video Organ Practice Guide.

How to Create Organ Arrangements - 7 Tips for Organists

9/25/2012

There are often times organists would want to make an organ arrangement of their favorite choral, chamber, piano, or orchestral music. Although the art of making an organ transcription (arrangement) might be very complex, the fundamentals of it actually are not as difficult as it would seem at first. In this article, I would like to share with you 7 tips about arranging a piece for organ.

1. The most important voices in the score usually are soprano and the bass. This rule is very important. In most cases, the soprano is the most melodically developed voice and the bass is the foundation of harmony. If you really want to keep it simple, you could even have a two-voice arrangement of your piece and it will not sound bad.

2. There are exceptions to this rule. This can happen especially in the modern music. Another exception is when the bass is absent. But even then the lowest voice is the foundation of harmony and should be kept in your arrangement.

3. Try to keep the voice numbers constant. You can choose a certain number of parts and keep it throughout the arrangement. For example, from the orchestral score, you can have 5 voices - 2 in each hand and one in the pedals.

4. Avoid playing too many repeated notes on the organ. If you see fast-moving repeated notes in the original score, keep the top note tied. Otherwise it would not sound idiomatic to the organ.

5. Check the score that your arrangement doesn't go beyond the range of organ keyboards and pedalboard. If the original goes above or below the normal range of the organ capabilities, you can take advantage of stops with 4' or 16' levels.

6. Avoid arranging for more than 2 voices in one hand. It would be quite difficult to play more than 2 constant voices in each of your hands, so keep it simple enough for yourself to play.

7. If the bass line is too complex to play it with pedals, you can either simplify it or put it in the left hand. Very often you can adjust the bass line so it is idiomatic to the pedal technique. Alternatively, add 16' to the left hand and play the bass part with it. Your pedals can even have a break or they can carry a tune in the tenor range with a 8' solo stop.

Start using these tips today in the process of arranging for organ your favorite choral, piano, chamber, or orchestral compositions. While doing so, you will not only have lots of fun but also learn a lot about how these pieces are put together which will in turn make your compositional and music theory skills much stronger.

By the way, do you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my free Organ Practice Guide.

Or if you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach, I suggest you check out my free 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

Organ Recitals: 10 Tips for Getting Successful Concert Engagements

9/24/2012

Many organists want to develop a successful recital career. This means that they must play recitals regularly. Playing recitals can be very exciting and worthwhile to pursue but you must know how to get such contracts in advance. In this article, I would like to share with you 10 steps for getting successful concert engagements.

1. Create an original and exciting recital program. Think of the ways you could be unique among many hundreds of organists. Keep in mind your audience, an instrument, and your own capabilities.

2. Master this program. Do your best to learn this program thoroughly. Even if you will plan to play your concert from the scores, I recommend you memorize all the pieces in your program.

3. Develop a strong professional portfolio. Create professional website and a page on social media sites with your bio, video samples of your recordings, calendar of past and future concert engagements and start a blog.

4. Start submitting your videos to YouTube. Share them on social media sites. Be careful not to spam and always think of your readers and listeners first so that they get value from your postings.

5. Find a venue. Look online for possible churches, concert halls with nice organs where you would like to play your concert. Make a list of these places with contacts.

6. Send your proposal to the organisers. Write an attractive concert proposal and send it to your prospective contacts. It is crucial that you make an offer that would be interesting to these people. When writing this document, first think why they should select you to play a concert from hundreds of other organists.

7. You can also send some letters of recommendation along with the proposal. Since only a small percentage of your contacts will ever reply to you, it is important that you write to as many people as possible.

8. Decide on the dates and sign the contract. If your proposal will seem interesting to the organisers, you will need to set up your concert dates and sign the written contract agreement. At this point but not earlier make sure you discuss the issue of honorarium with them.

9. Submit the exact concert information to the organisers. Once the recital contract is done and the organisers receive your signed copy of it, it is time to send them the exact program of your recital along with the professional photo and CV.

10. Write the program notes and send excerpts to the organisers. Use a language that the regular organ music listener would understand. This will help for publicity purposes.

Use these steps when looking for concert engagements today. If you succeed in getting your first recital contract, it will be quite exciting for you and it may start to open up new possibilities because one event frequently leads to another.

You can also recycle the steps you take in preparation for recitals for the future events. This way you will develop a system which will be reliable and efficient.

By the way, do you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my free Organ Practice Guide.

Or if you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach, I suggest you check out my free 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

How to Compose or Improvise an Introduction and a Coda for a Classical Sonata on the Organ?

9/23/2012

If you are composing or improvising a classical sonata on the organ, your piece will be much more interesting and advanced, if you add an introduction in the beginning and a Coda at the end. In this article, I will show you how to do it.

Imagine that you have just composed or learned to improvise an organ sonata. The next step would be to add an introduction.

When adding introduction to your composition or improvisation, choose a slow tempo and a contrasting theme and texture, perhaps in chords. The introduction does not have to be long - 1 page (1 minute) is enough. End on the Dominant chord in the main key which prepares for the entrance of the Exposition.

By the way, the material from the Introduction can also appear right after Exposition and at the end of Coda. In such case, end the Coda with a bang - perhaps a brief reminiscence of the main theme. This approach will make your sonata truly dramatic.

If you want to compose or improvise a Coda in your sonata, you can briefly recall the main themes of your piece (perhaps in a distant key, such as flat II). Then use a sudden Enharmonic modulation to return to the tonic key. In a way, your Coda could be like a second Development section (Beethoven's invention). End your sonata perhaps with the repetition of the closing theme.

For the best results, try to look at actual compositions of Beethoven, Mozart and others. If you analyze the works of your favorite composers, you will find many ideas when composing a sonata with or without introduction or a Coda.

By the way, one of the most famous examples of sonatas with introduction and a Coda is Sonata No. 8 for piano by Beethoven. Here the composer uses a slow introduction before and after the exposition and even after the Coda.

Beethoven's Codas tend to be much longer than by other composers. In Codas he can try to exhaust the thematic material even further than in the Development section. If you do this in your own organ sonata, it will truly be quite dramatic.

Try these tips when composing or improvising an introduction or a Coda for your sonata today. At first the process might be a slow one. However, the more you compose or improvise, the better and faster you can become. You just have to remember your goal, take action, persevere and you will succeed.

By the way, do you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach? If so, I suggest you check out my 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

Or if you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my video Organ Practice Guide.

Organ Practice: How to Change Incorrect Practice Habits?

9/22/2012

For many organists practice forming the right practice habits is a real challenge. This is because very often they are stuck in a practice routine which is inefficient and does not produce the results they want. In this article, I am going to teach you how to change the wrong practice habits into the ones that will lead you to success.

Imagine that you really like playing organ and spend time with this instrument every day. In fact, you might be so in love with the organ and its music that you play it for several hours. However, as it often happens, somehow you don't see the good results of your practice. Sounds familiar?

The thing is your practice has to be not only regular but also wise. Because your time is limited, you have to apply only the most efficient practice methods there are. In other words, it would be foolish to hope to see the results of your efforts if you just play the pieces in a casual way.

But many people make this mistake, they just play the compositions from start
to finish without proper attention to details, without correcting mistakes and without forming the right practice habits.

Is this what happened to you? Don't despair because you know what is the most beautiful thing in all this?

That despite all our mistakes we made while practicing incorrectly in the past, a year ago, a month ago, a week ago, even yesterday... we can start a new chapter in our life today, remember our goal, devise a plan with the steps necessary to achieve this goal and start implementing these steps every day in
the correct way.

That's it. It's that simple. Is it easy? No.

Because when we have to apply these steps in practice, our incorrect practice
habits we build up in the past just dictate the way we behave today.

But we can surely fight back and don't give up because there is so much to learn and so much to discover.

I think practicing wisely might be also fun. If you truly love the music that you are playing then it all comes naturally. You just need to speed up the learning process.

One of the best ways to practice is to take a slow tempo and work in small fragments of about 4 measures each. Don't just jump right into playing all parts
together as it will not sound nice right away.

Instead, practice solo voices, then combinations of two voices, three voices, and only then the entire four-part texture (if it is a four-voice composition, of course).

Try these tips in you practice today and remember that even if you spent many
months practicing inefficiently and incorrectly, you can start forming your right practice habits from now on.

By the way, do you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me
to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my free Organ Practice Guide.

Or if you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach, I suggest you check out my free 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

Organ Playing: How to Control the Sound on Mechanical Action Instruments?

9/14/2012

Have you ever thought that the way you depress and release the keys on the organ can have a big impact in the overall performance? While not all type of organ actions lend itself to control the depression and release of the keys, mechanical or tracker action instruments are especially well suited for that. In this article, I would like to share with you how you can control the sound of the organ on the mechanical action organs.

Basically, the way we play tracker (mechanical action) organs or any other type of organs is the same on all instruments. It's just the possibility to control the speed of opening the valves under the pipes that is unique for tracker organs.

You see, in tracker organs there is a possibility to physically feel the breaking point when that valve starts to open.

Just hold the key with two fingers and start to depress it very slowly. At some point, you will start to hear this hissing sound - the beginning of the sound, actually.

If you depress the keys on such organs slowly and gently, you will hear the sound coming out of the pipes in a much gentler way.

If you want accents, especially in dramatic places, you have to depress the keys with a crisp motion of the finger. This must be done without using excess force, of course, still mezzo piano, without lifting your fingers off the keys. But this sudden motion will produce a different effect on the sound.

On electric, electronic, pneumatical, electro-pneumatical action organs this is not possible to achieve. This differentiation in touch is unique for mechanical action organs only.

A word of caution: since in the majority of organ music the attack and release of the keys are very important, when you have a soft and gentle touch make sure you are precise in your depression of the keys. In other words, in places where you have to press two or more keys at the same time, try to depress them exactly together.

The same can be said about the release of the keys. When you release a chord with several notes, make sure all the notes stop sounding at the same time.

Just try this out on your tracker organ today and you'll see what I mean.

By the way, do you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my free Organ Practice Guide.

Or if you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach, I suggest you check out my free 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

Steps in Composing or Improvising an Organ Sonata

9/13/2012

Are you struggling with composition or improvisation of the organ piece in the classical sonata form? If you know how to do it, it is not as difficult as it may seem at first. Here are the steps you could take in composing or improvising a sonata on the organ.

The sonata form consists of 3 main parts: Exposition, Development, and Recapitulation.

I. Exposition (in the major key)

1. Choose a key and create the main theme of the energetic character. This will be the so called "question" (4 measures). Tip: end on the Dominant chord.

2. An answer to the question (4 m). Tip: end on the tonic chord.

3. Repeat the question (4 m).

4. A different conclusion (4 m) in the tonic key.

5. A bridge from the main key to the Dominant. End on the Dominant of the new key (8 m).

6. The secondary theme in a lyrical character in the key of the Dominant (4 m)

7. An answer to the secondary theme (4 m).

8. A contrasting episode (question) (Dominant of the Dominant, 4 m)

9. Answer of the contrasting episode (Dominant of the dominant, 4 m)

10. Repeat of the secondary theme (4 m)

11. A different answer to the secondary theme (4 m)

12. Closing theme of a lively character in the Dominant key (4 m)

13. Answer to this theme (4 m)

14. Repeat of the answer (4 m)

15. Repeat of the second half of the answer (2 m)

16. Repeat the cadence only (1 m) in the Dominant.

17. (Optional) Repeat the Exposition from the very beginning until this place.

II. Development

Tips for creating a Development section:

1. You can start with the main theme in the minor dominant key or minor Tonic.

2. When developing a theme, choose a fragment of it (1-2 measures) and use sequences, modulations, and imitations. You can also change melodic intervals in the theme, rhythms, harmony, and texture.

3. Structure you development so that 1) you will develop the main theme in the above ways, 2) develop the secondary theme, and 3) prepare for the recapitulation.

4. The preparation is usually done by using a Dominant pedal point - an episode which increases tension. Here the main emphasis is on the Dominant chord which alternates with the 2nd inversion tonic chord and/or diminished 7th chord built on the 7th scale degree of the Dominant. The reason for a rising tension is this - there is no real resolution to the tonic chord.

III. Recapitulation

1. Repeat steps 1-5 from the Exposition but instead of modulating in the Bridge, stay in the tonic key. Tip: In order to end this Bridge on the Dominant chord of the tonic key, START the bridge in the Subdominant key.

2. Repeat steps 6-16 from the Exposition transposed to the Tonic key.

Variation: you can reverse the order of the main and the secondary themes in the Recapitulation.

Use these tips when composing or improvising a classical sonata on the organ. For best results, don't forget to analyze the works of your favorite composers. If you choose an opening minor key, the first modulation of the Exposition is in the relative major key. In such case, the secondary theme and later parts of the Recapitulation can be in a major tonic.

By the way, do you want to learn to improvise in the style of Bach? If so, I suggest you check out my 9 day mini course in Keyboard Prelude Improvisation.

Or if you want to learn my special powerful techniques which help me to master any piece of organ music up to 10 times faster? If so, download my video Organ Practice Guide.