SOPP662: Who's the composer of that fantastic G major piece?

Vidas: Hello and welcome to Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast!

Ausra: This is a show dedicated to helping you become a better organist.

V: We’re your hosts Vidas Pinkevicius...

A: ...and Ausra Motuzaite-Pinkeviciene.

V: We have over 25 years of experience of playing the organ

A: ...and we’ve been teaching thousands of organists online from 89 countries since 2011.

V: So now let’s jump in and get started with the podcast for today.

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Vidas: Hi guys!  This is Vidas.

Ausra:  And Ausra.
​
Vidas: Let’s start episode 662 of Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast. This question was sent by  Irineo, and he writes:

“Hello there, dear maestro.
Thank you for your latest SOPP about Unda Maris. I really enjoyed it. But I have a question: who's the composer of that fantastic G-Major piece you played from 21:00 until 23:17? It sounds early baroque to me, but I can't really say whether it's Bach. And what an AWESOME Bombarde 16' does that organ feature! Where is it located? Sounds just as beautiful as that Jacek Siedlar instrument where Maestra Motuzaite also played a recital for which I congratulated her a while ago, if you recall. Keep rewarding us with those great treasures, maestro. Say hello to Maestra Motuzaite for me, will you?
Very truly yours,
Irineo.”

Vidas: So Ausra, “Hello!” from Irineo!

Ausra: Yes, wonderful letter. Do you recall about which piece he is talking about?

Vidas: I wrote him an answer like this: “Thanks Irineo!
 
In that video during Unda Maris rehearsal I harmonised and improvised on the chorale tune Komm, Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott using Sonus Paradisi's Hauptwerk sample set from Martinikerk Groningen (Schnitger organ). From 21:00 was the last variation on that hymn tune. Sorry if it sounded like Bach but it was my improvisation.”

Vidas: So, what can you add, Ausra?

Ausra: Well wonderful, you know, if people already think that this sounds like Bach, I should congratulate you on improvising so well.

Vidas: While we are on this topic, I remember checking one video by Sietze de Vries, where he was improvising on some Genevan Psalm Tune, and in the description of this video, there was a YouTube content ID where they mixed up this video music with some piece of Bach performed by a famous organist from Italy, Andrea Marcon. But that was surely improvisation, you see, but YouTube couldn’t differentiate that. 

Ausra: Well, yes. Sietze is a wonderful improvisor, and often you can mix his music with pre-composed music.

Vidas: And it was funny, because YouTube wrote that there was this specific piece by Bach that was quoted in that video.

Ausra: Well, you know, actually many Baroque composers shared similar rhetoric figures that were common at that period.

Vidas: Of course, I’m not at that level where YouTube could confuse me with Bach, but it was a nice comment by Irineo, I think

Ausra: Maybe YouTube will confuse you with Krebs!

Vidas: I think I still have quite a ways to go until I reach Krebs. Krebs was, of course, one of the best students by Bach. I could be a student of Krebs, then, some minor student.

Ausra: Yes. Well, could you comment about that Bombarde? Do you like it? Why have you chosen it?

Vidas: Yes. I think he is talking about the variation where the left hand plays on that Bombarde 16’, the right hand plays 2 voices on two principles, 8’ and 4’, soprano and alto, and the pedal is playing, I think, a chorale tune in the tenor range with the Trumpet 8’, like this, so it was a very nice combination where the bass was played not by the feet, but by the left hand. I think improvisers should learn all kinds of dispositions to place the tune, either in the right hand, or in the left hand, or in the pedals, and at any pitch level as well, 8’, 4’, and even 2’, and 16’ also.

Ausra: Excellent!

Vidas: So, I hope this was helpful to you guys, of course if you like improvisations like that, I’ve been following improviser Sietze de Vries, and Ausra later joined me in studying from his improvisation course on Patreon, so we highly recommend it. Right?

Ausra: Yes, although there are some deficiencies in his course, but it’s fine.

Vidas: Can you tell us what you would like to improve in this course?

Ausra: Well, he could be more specific, you know. He promised to send, for example, to include the sheets of hymn tunes, for example, already a few weeks ago, and he still hasn’t done it, so, that’s not a good thing. And I’m saying that with experience from myself while teaching for many years, because if you tell your students you will do something, you really have to do it. Otherwise they won’t respect you.

Vidas: And of course, they can’t practice as much as you expect them to practice without those notes.

Ausra: Well, they never practice enough.

Vidas: So they will not improve!

Ausra: Sure.

Vidas; Right. Okay guys, we hope this was helpful to you. Keep sending us these wonderful questions and we will try to answer them during the podcast conversations like these. Okay? Thank you guys, this was Vidas,

Ausra: And Ausra!

Vidas: Stay tuned for our future podcasts, and remember, when you practice,

Ausra: Miracles happen!

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