Live in Concert 27.3.14 - Olivier Latry

[Mattbod]

But if the artist is dead who makes the decisions, especially if his estate knows nothing about music? Would the composer in this case have objected? I doubt it very much indeed. If the publishers are getting paid for the use of the work then what is the problem?

In this case I really wish the BBC had binned the Fafferty waffle show and broadcast the pre concert talks in full. I imagine they would be very enlightening. Anyway the Widor was great and the improvisation had me slack jawed. Anyone who can improvise a fugue like that has my deepest respects. In fact I would go as far as to say that Latry for breadth of ability is probably the finest player (or at least one of them) in the world.

[ardcarp]

I reacall a comment made about 'that Toccata' as heard at the average parish church:

Very fast with a certain amount of fumbling seems an entirely appropriate way to send the blushing couple off to wedded bliss.

[Vile Consort]

is the transcription by Latry himself ? (and is it for two people seated at one organ ? )

No. In fact, it isn't a transcription at all. In his talk before playing the Widor, Latry said it is Stravinsky's own two-piano version played with no changes whatsoever. The publishers are merely objecting to Stravinsky's dots being played on the organ rather than the piano.

And yes, it is played by two people at one organ console.

[Bryn]

Well here's Part 1.

Part 2 to follow.

[mercia]

I see, thanks
........ the left-side player deciding as and when to use the pedals presumably (unless they stick to keyboard only)

[Bryn]

Part 2:

[Vile Consort]

I see, thanks
........ the left-side player deciding as and when to use the pedals presumably (unless they stick to keyboard only)

Not necessarily. The top part of the pedalboard will be completely out of reach to the left hand player and vice versa; both will have to play on the pedals if the full range is going to be used. Plus there is the opportunity to play not only two independent lines on the pedals, but 4-note chords (and even 5-, 6-, 7- or 8-note ones!)

[Bryn]

Latry's BNL CD of the Rite of Spring, Alain's Trois Danses and Heiller's Tanz-Toccata seems to be pretty much unavailable at the moment. However, some lossy downloads can be found, on amazon.co.uk and elsewhere. Not sure such downloads will be that much better than the YouTube offerings.

[Mattbod]

The whole thing is ridiculous and whoever made the decision should be shot. Surely a high profile gig by one of the world's foremost organists would increase the attention of the duet version and increase sales due to the interest. They should be backing Professor Latry not behaving like this...In the end such a high profile gig turned into a PR disaster as said Prof Latry vented his spleen not just to an enthusiastic audience but on national radio too: very savvy of him!

Indeed he was in quite belligerent mood that night wasn't he, upbraiding Martin Handley or whoever it was who sniggered when he said "evvvv cerrrrrzeee zeee couleeeurs are important, I am French it is not a joke" Lol before going on to lecture him in the importance of registration in Couperin, Marchand, De Grigny et al. He was much more relaxed with Rafferty the day before. Maybe he still thought he was going to play the Stravinsky then!

Thank god he is interested in colours though as I am currently listening to his BNL CD of Durufle on St Etienne du Mont Paris playing the Choral Varie on Veni Creator and it is the most sublime rendering of the piece I have ever heard and was recorded in 1985 when he was a mere 23!

[ardcarp]

Thanks for putting that up, Bryn. Listening now. Fantastic. It would have been a great opportunity to explore the 'colours' of the RFH organ, but I doubt it would have had the magic of Notre Dame de Bon Voyage, Cannes!

I boggle at the logistics of doing The Rite 4-handed at an organ console, quite apart from the sheer difficulty of the parts.

[Rolmill]

I boggle at the logistics of doing The Rite 4-handed at an organ console, quite apart from the sheer difficulty of the parts.

Funnily enough, I heard The Rite played as a piano duet (i.e. four hands on one piano) a few months ago at a local concert - and thrilling it was too, albeit necessarily without quite the range of colour of the orchestral version. It certainly sounded (and looked) very difficult for the pianists - would it be equally so for a pair of organists?

I hadn't realised there was also a two-piano version as cited above.

[Mattbod]

Interesting that the BNL cd is listed as "temporarily out of stock" at Amazon UK when it is shown as available on Amazon. France even though the warehouse for both is in the UK...strange machinations:

http://www.amazon.fr/Trois-danses-Anton-Heiller/dp/B00B3WUQ6W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396118031&sr=8-1&keywords=olivier+latry+trois+danses

Would be a rather costly buy though as they charge foreign postag even though in UK and at 19 Euro for the Disc. One available for 9.46 on FNAC and they send to the UK:

http://musique.fnac.com/a5273265/Heiller-Trois-danses-CD-album

[Alison]

Well resourced as ever, Nethersage. I had no idea this version existed.

Would have been sensational at the RFH. Fiddlesticks!

[Lento]

[QUOTE=I hadn't realised there was also a two-piano version as cited above.[/QUOTE]

The Wikipedia article states that the 2 piano version was prepared and subsequently lost, and may have been used to demonstrate to Diaghilev and Monteux in 1912. So presumably it must have resurfaced at some stage.

[Daniel]

Thanks for putting that up, Bryn ... Fantastic.

Yes indeed, thanks, Bryn, I found that quite revelatory (in a way that perhaps only transcriptions can be). For me the organ is capable at times of sounding the most utterly solitary thing in the world almost, and there are moments in that Latry vid that I found very affecting in a way I certainly haven't ever in the orchestral version. The hopeless isolation in the mind of an innocent being confronted by such incomprehensible brutality and the desperate knowledge of her own end, seemed very much to the fore in this version.