Peter Hurford R.I.P.

[Keraulophone]

There don’t seem to be any official obits yet published, though Slipped Disc has noted that ‘An Organ Giant has died’, adding that PH had been suffering from Alzheimer’s following a stroke. There’s also a thread on the Mander Organs MB: https://mander-organs-forum.invision...rd-march-2019/

Here’s a link the text of an interview from Chicago in 1990 which provides some insight into his approach to playing the organ, which includes a few familiar record sleeves featuring Peter’s smiling face:

http://www.bruceduffie.com/hurford.html

[french frank]

Thanks to Wolsey for his memories, and Keraulophone for that interview link. Even more sad to be reminded of his earlier days and compare them with the latter ones.

[underthecountertenor]

There don’t seem to be any official obits yet published, though Slipped Disc has noted that ‘An Organ Giant has died’, adding that PH had been suffering from Alzheimer’s following a stroke. There’s also a thread on the Mander Organs MB: https://mander-organs-forum.invision...rd-march-2019/

Here’s a link the text of an interview from Chicago in 1990 which provides some insight into his approach to playing the organ, which includes a few familiar record sleeves featuring Peter’s smiling face:

http://www.bruceduffie.com/hurford.html

His death was very properly marked on R3 Breakfast this morning, just after 6.45 and at about 8.55. And Petroc Trelawny graciously made it, in effect, an additional news headline after the 8.30 news bulletin.

[Barbirollians]

That will have been either on 6 February (in the latter part of the 1979/80 series) or 19 November (towards the start of the 1980/81 series); I was his page-turner on both occasions. I'll repeat here what I posted a little earlier on Facebook, that I am devastated to hear of his death. I have such happy memories of my two years of lessons with him during my second and final years at Cambridge, and I remain eternally grateful for the way he opened my ears and eyes to the playing of JS Bach (and others). He strove to ensure that musical line was at the heart of his students’ organ-playing - and, indeed, music-making in all its forms. I shall take down his boxed set of Bach Organ Works from the CD shelf (there's also the Franck, Hindemith and a more recent Bach recording), and relive his art. RIP Peter. Your influence on my musical development was immeasurable.

A lovely and moving tribute .

[hmvman]

Very sad news. I never heard him perform live but I recall how eagerly I anticipated each new release of his Bach cycle. Those LP box sets are still treasured.

R.I.P.

[Wolsey]

[...] One should not forget his excellence as a choir trainer. [...]

Absolutely. He was Acting Director of Music at St John's, Cambridge from 1979-80 during George's Guest's sabbatical. Anyone who has volume 8 of the vinyl boxed set of his Bach Organ Works should treasure it. It features the chorales of the Orgelbüchlein being sung so well by the choir of John's under his direction, and may well be the only surviving record of his time there. Sadly, these chorale interpolations were not included in the transfer to the 17-CD boxed set.

[Dave2002]

Sad to hear of this news, but in tribute I ordered the Bach box set. It'll take me some while to play through it all, and even longer to compare with other sets I've already got.

He hasn't been in the news recently, and the explanation that he suffered around 10 years of deterioration explains that.

Mostly his CDs seem to have been of Bach, though there are CDs of Saint Saens' third symphony, and Poulenc's organ concerto, as well as at least one of Buxtehude and I think also some Mendelssohn.

Peter Hurford, RIP

[Wychwood]

Worth remembering, too, his recordings of Handel concertos with Joshua Rifkin and the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra.

[Finzi4ever]

Absolutely. He was Acting Director of Music at St John's, Cambridge from 1979-80 during George's Guest's sabbatical. Anyone who has volume 8 of the vinyl boxed set of his Bach Organ Works should treasure it. It features the chorales of the Orgelbüchlein being sung so well by the choir of John's under his direction, and may well be the only surviving record of his time there. Sadly, these chorale interpolations were not included in the transfer to the 17-CD boxed set.

I only heard him play once live, though I was an avid collector of the Decca cassette series, waiting keenly for the next volume to appear; sadly the tapes have long-since perished. The live performance was in Clare chapel, prob in 1980. It was extraordinary what he achieved in a wholly Bach programme on that 24 stop, 2 manual von Beckerath of the early 1970s. His technique and the sense of musical line was phenomenal and all the time with a driving and unerring rhythm that made the music so vibrantly alive.

[Wolsey]

The live performance was in Clare chapel, prob in 1980. It was extraordinary what he achieved in a wholly Bach programme on that 24 stop, 2 manual von Beckerath of the early 1970s.

I'm looking now at the programme for that recital. It was on Thursday 31 January 1980; I was the page-turner. After that recital (which Gillian Weir attended incognito), he asked me to page-turn again for his RFH recital on the following Wednesday, mentioned in an earlier post. Incidentally, he wasn't at all pleased with the way he played at that Clare recital...

[Petrushka]

That will have been either on 6 February (in the latter part of the 1979/80 series) or 19 November (towards the start of the 1980/81 series); I was his page-turner on both occasions. I'll repeat here what I posted a little earlier on Facebook, that I am devastated to hear of his death. I have such happy memories of my two years of lessons with him during my second and final years at Cambridge, and I remain eternally grateful for the way he opened my ears and eyes to the playing of JS Bach (and others). He strove to ensure that musical line was at the heart of his students’ organ-playing - and, indeed, music-making in all its forms. I shall take down his boxed set of Bach Organ Works from the CD shelf (there's also the Franck, Hindemith and a more recent Bach recording), and relive his art. RIP Peter. Your influence on my musical development was immeasurable.

I was at the recital on November 19 1980. Thanks for your moving tribute.