Prom 3 (1.08.21) - Organ Recital

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

1:45 Sunday 1 August 2021
Royal Albert Hall

Johann Sebastian Bach: Prelude and Fugue in E flat major, BWV 552, ‘St Anne’
Olivier Latry: Improvisation on Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in E flat major BWV 552, ‘St Anne'
Johann Sebastian Bach: Fantasia in G major, BWV 572 (Pièce d'orgue)
Olivier Latry: Improvisation on Bach’s Fantasia in G major, BWV 572 (Pièce d'orgue)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582
Olivier Latry: Improvisation on English Melodies

Olivier Latry organ

When the Royal Albert Hall was officially opened in 1871, it welcomed its first audience to the sound of the mighty ‘Father’ Willis organ – then powered by two steam engines. In the first of this season’s two organ recitals marking the Hall’s 150th anniversary, Olivier Latry – Titular Organist at Paris’s Notre-Dame Cathedral – performs key organ works by J. S. Bach before taking them as a starting point for his own improvisations. The recital showcases the power and range of an instrument whose 9,999 pipes would stretch nine miles if laid end to end, an organ that has been played by celebrated recitalists and rock legends alike.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

An interesting concept.

[underthecountertenor]

Presumably because of travelling restrictions, Olivier Latry has cancelled. The recital will now be given by Martin Baker, formerly of Westminster Cathedral. I believe that it will still be a programme of Bach and improvisations.

[Constantbee]

1:45 Sunday 1 August 2021
Royal Albert Hall

Can we have a quick time check on this, please? It's 13:45 and not 11:45, isn't it? The R3 website scedule for today and the forum calendar are correct, though.

Looking forward to this.

[LMcD]

Can we have a quick time check on this, please? It's 13:45 and not 11:45, isn't it? The R3 website scedule for today and the forum calendar are correct, though.

Looking forward to this.

There's a Lunchtime Recital from 1300 to 1400. Today's R3 schedule has the organ recital starting at 1145.

[edashtav]

There's a Lunchtime Recital from 1300 to 1400. Today's R3 schedule has the organ recital starting at 1145.

Thanks for the Heads Up, LMcD!

I listened live and was delighted that Martin Baker, a late replacement, was more than able to essay Latry’s programme.

I felt it took the ‘St.Anne’ Prelude and Fugue for nerves to settle with the mighty fugue having a few smudged details, possibly through a quick tempo.

The Improvisation which followed was exemplary.

I do love JSB’s G major Fantasia and Martin Baker’s interpretation sparkled with sunshine and effervesced like Champagne. The sudden hush at the start of its athletic Coda was delightful.

The improvisation that followed took ideas from the Fantasia into some strange but effective settings. very imaginative!

Is there a greater organ work than JSB’s Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor? I doubt it. I remember hearing George Thalben Ball playing it on the mighty Victorian beast in Birmingham Town Hall. Martin Baker’s performance did not eclipse those memories but the Lion in the RAH roared very lustily.

The Encore Improvisation on British tunes was such a rich medley that it became almost a Suite. Brilliantly virtuosic. Tasteless, maybe, but just the ticket for Staycation Summer.

Full marks to Martin - he filled another’s shoes with élan and then burst their seams with a British earthiness which no Frenchman would dare to emulate.

[PJPJ]

There's a Lunchtime Recital from 1300 to 1400. Today's R3 schedule has the organ recital starting at 1145.

and well worth hearing, too, if you missed it.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000yd4y

P

PS Many thanks edashtav for your review, too.

[jonfan]

Thanks for the Heads Up, LMcD!

I listened live and was delighted that Martin Baker, a late replacement, was more than able to essay Latry’s programme.

I felt it took the ‘St.Anne’ Prelude and Fugue for nerves to settle with the mighty fugue having a few smudged details, possibly through a quick tempo.

The Improvisation which followed was exemplary.

I do love JSB’s G major Fantasia and Martin Baker’s interpretation sparkled with sunshine and effervesced like Champagne. The sudden hush at the start of its athletic Coda was delightful.

The improvisation that followed took ideas from the Fantasia into some strange but effective settings. very imaginative!

Is there a greater organ work than JSB’s Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor? I doubt it. I remember hearing George Thalben Ball playing it on the mighty Victorian beast in Birmingham Town Hall. Martin Baker’s performance did not eclipse those memories but the Lion in the RAH roared very lustily.

The Encore Improvisation on British tunes was such a rich medley that it became almost a Suite. Brilliantly virtuosic. Tasteless, maybe, but just the ticket for Staycation Summer.

Full marks to Martin - he filled another’s shoes with élan and then burst their seams with a British earthiness which no Frenchman would dare to emulate.

Agree with everything here Ed. Just to add what exemplary engineering, the best I’ve heard of this organ on the radio with the full spectrum of sounds clearly heard. Martin B wore cans so he can hear what we are hearing, very 21st century. Jupiter sounds in great shape after 150 years. k

[edashtav]

Agree with everything here Ed. Just to add what exemplary engineering, the best I’ve heard of this organ on the radio with the full spectrum of sounds clearly heard. Martin B wore cans so he can hear what we are hearing, very 21st century. Jupiter sounds in great shape after 150 years. k

You’ve added two good points, jonfan: cans and wonderful engineering.
The first point brings me back to the First Night (Prom. 1). Why, in this digital century, did Daniel Hyde have to depend on a tiny mirror to keep in touch with Dalia Stasevska who was way below and socially distanced on the outer edge of an extended platform?

[Petrushka]

The first point brings me back to the First Night (Prom. 1). Why, in this digital century, did Daniel Hyde have to depend on a tiny mirror to keep in touch with Dalia Stasevska who was way below and socially distanced on the outer edge of an extended platform?

Because it works? Not sure that a small TV screen would be much more of an advantage than the mirror. Personally, I'm in awe of the hand/feet/eye co-ordination displayed by organists. On the First Night, the added stress of a live radio and TV broadcast must need nerves of steel but DH made it all look easy.

[Roger Judd]

Daniel Hyde, in a radio interview, said that one problem he had in seeing the conductor in the mirror was his height (6ft 7ins). Unless he was careful he saw himself rather than the conductor! A problem with modern, digital, TV screens is that there is often a small delay in transmission between camera and screen. I have encountered this in a number of cathedral organ loft installations ... not helpful for the ensemble!

[edashtav]

Daniel Hyde, in a radio interview, said that one problem he had in seeing the conductor in the mirror was his height (6ft 7ins). Unless he was careful he saw himself rather than the conductor! A problem with modern, digital, TV screens is that there is often a small delay in transmission between camera and screen. I have encountered this in a number of cathedral organ loft installations ... not helpful for the ensemble!

The BBC should have the technology to reduce such transmission delays to an acceptable level, Roger. however, I accept that ‘off the shelf’ kits may add problems rather solutions.