Oh Shenandoah is an American folk tune from the early nineteenth century. While some associate the songs with the Shenandoah region of Virginia and West Virginia, the lyrics mention the Missouri river much further west. Shenandoah was actually an Oneida Indian chief and the original lyrics likely tell the story of a fur trader in love with the chief’s daughter.
See a list of other potential traditional song themes here.
The hymn tune AR HYD Y NOS is a Welsh folk tune first recorded in Edward Jones’ Musical and Poetical Relics of the Welsh Bards from 1784. Popular texts associated with the tune include “Go My Children with My Blessing,” “All Through the Night,” and “For the Fruits of This Creation.”
See a list of other hymn and chorale themes here.
Starting a new year often involves setting goals and renewed energy to work on projects that may have fallen by the wayside. My plan for 2019 is to send out at least two emails a month with resources or ideas to help you become a better improviser. to get us started, I want to take a look at a new resource that could provide us with a whole year of work, if not more!
In 2011, Jeffrey Brillhart gave us Breaking Free. It is a very thorough and progressive resource for developing a personal musical language drawing inspiration from many of the 20th-century French masters. In my review of the book, I lamented the lack of specific tasks for the student. While useful for a teacher of improvisation, I wasn’t sure the uninitiated student would know what to do with all the wonderful material presented there. Just before Christmas, I received a new book by Jeffrey Brillhart that clearly addresses that concern.
Subtitled “Master Lessons in Organ Improvisation,” A World of Possibilities contains 32 units. Each unit provides an exposition of material to cover and specific assignments for the student to improvise in order to master the material. Even in the first eight units where tonal language is the primary material, a form is given for the assignment. The result is that one is almost always improvising a complete piece that might be performed in front of an audience or used in worship!
In Breaking Free, form is reserved for the last few chapters
and discussed very broadly. In this new book, he gives us concrete
analysis of two major works for organ: Charles Tournemire’s L’orgue Mystique, Opus 55, no. 7 (Epiphania Domini) and Maurice Duruflé’s Prélude, adagio et chorale varié sur le theme du ‘Veni Creator,’ op.4.
The Tournemire takes two units and the Duruflé three units. Brillhart
breaks down the structure of each of the pieces and identifies elements
for students to include in their own improvisations.
Sandwiched between Tournemire and Duruflé are five units on the language
of Messiaen. Other middle units cover versets, the acoustic scale,
shifting modes, improvising on emotional states, visual images, text and
variations. After the Duruflé units are four on symphony and a final
one on silent film accompanying.
Organists seem to be a rare breed these days. Those who improvise in
public are even rarer. Those who understand improvisation well enough to
teach it well seem to be the rarest of the rare. Jeffrey Brillhart
demonstrates with A World of Possibilities that he is indeed a
master teacher of improvisation. The book deserves its subtitle: “Master
Lessons in Organ Improvisation.” No matter what skill level the student
begins with, each assignment provides a challenge, and no matter how
hard the challenge may seem, it seems only a short distance away from
the previous assignment.
The material is dense, and you will need a copy of Breaking Free in order to take full advantage of A World of Possibilities.
A simple assignment instruction, perhaps only one sentence, might take a
week of practice to explore and master. The organization and structure
of the book however make sure that if you spend the time, you will
become a better improviser and be prepared to tackle the next
assignment.
If you are looking for a way to track your progress and improvise better
in 2019, I can think of no better way than to pick up the two books by
Jeffrey Brillhart and get to work.
Happy improvising,
Glenn Osborne
The Baltimore AGO Chapter recently sponsored a concert and improvisation masterclass by Thierry Mechler. The program included works by Rameau, Fauré, Ravel, Debussy, and Poulenc. Virtually all the pieces were transcriptions of works for piano or harpsichord. Mr. Mechler did a brilliant job of adapting them to the organ. By using the full range of resources available to him at the Cathedral organ, he turned the pieces into orchestral works. He used a multitude of solo and ensemble colors and progressed smoothly from soft whispers to furious fortes. He concluded the program with improvisations on themes by Debussy in honor of the centenary of Debussy’s death.
The day after the concert, Mechler offered a masterclass on improvisation at Peabody. He worked with students at the beginning, intermediate, and advanced level. Because of my background, I was asked to serve as the advanced student:
For beginning improvisation, he stressed simplicity and freedom so that the student can be inspired and develop a positive attitude towards improvising. As a student acquires more skill, more specific tasks and more complicated forms can be tackled. Even as an improvisation teacher and the advanced student for the class, I came away with items to practice. You can hear his ideas and how I did as a student in the two YouTube videos of my time on the bench: Part 1 and Part 2
It was inspiring for me to be back on the bench as a student again. It is my belief that we are never too old to learn new things. After almost a year of silence here, I plan to resume sending out regular newsletters with helpful resources about improvisation. One of my dreams has been to organize a 3-4 day improvisation workshop. The time I spent with Thierry Mechler reminded me of how important it is to be a student. Perhaps I can finally make that dream a reality in 2019.
Hoping you are inspired to improvise more!
Glenn
This Long Meter tune is often ascribed to Bartholomäus Crasselius. He did publish several hymn texts but there is no evidence that he wrote any hymn tunes. The melody is an altered version of ‘Wer nur den lieben Gott lasst walten.’ Common English texts sung to the tune include the Advent lyrics ‘On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry’ and the Palm Sunday text ‘Ride On! Ride On in Majesty!’
See a list of other hymn and chorale themes here.
Videos:
Liam Dekker – Improvisation ‘The Spirit, Sent From Heaven Above’
The hymn tune IRBY was composed by Henry J. Gauntlett and is usually associated with the text “Once in Royal David’s City” for the Christmas season. It is the traditional tune for the opening of Lessons and Carols and King’s College, Cambridge every year.
See a list of other hymn and chorale themes here.
As 2017 comes to a close, this question about ending a hymn seemed quite timely:
I’m looking for ways to creating a good last verse extravaganza of any hymn. I normally do the re-harmonization techniques. Apart from that, what other techniques can you suggest for me.
With Christmas services approaching quickly, I couldn’t help but look to two of my favorite last verses for inspiration. David Willcocks provides fabulous final verses for O Come All Ye Faithful and The First Nowell. What does he do in these two settings that we could apply to other tunes for a thrilling ending?
In the final verses by David Willcocks, he starts with the melody in octaves:
If you have a congregation that sings in harmony, this gives everyone an auditory signal to sing the melody. Unison singing is also typically louder than singing in parts. With a strong organ registration and strong unison singing from the congregation, this gets our final verse a solid start.
In The First Nowell, David Willcocks moves quickly to using a pedal point after the unison beginning:
Pedal points build tension and anticipation by the changing harmonies above the anchor note. The best pedal points tend to be the dominant of the key. In The First Nowell, this is the A held through the entire second phrase of the hymn. For O Come All Ye Faithful, the pedal point doesn’t arrive until the refrain. The D (dominant of G) is held through the first two phrases of the refrain with a little rhythm to energize it when the melody phrases.
While it is possible to create some extravagant final verses through re-harmonization, there are virtually no accidentals in The First Nowell. While my first idea was to suggest using diminished seventh chords as in O Come All Ye Faithful, when I started comparing the two, I realized it was the descant above the melody that makes the final verse soar. Until the refrain of The First Nowell, there is no one singing a descant, but the organ abandons the melody and moves higher many times throughout the verse. The organ acquires its’ own melody which is quite singable. Here then is where our real improvisation practice begins. How many other melodies can you create while using the same harmonies as a given hymn tune? If you can do this while changing the harmony as well, you will be in good shape to create a true extravaganza for the last verse.
Earlier this month, I released my second recording from the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen: A Child Is Born. In addition to compositions for Advent and Christmas, it includes several improvisations. You can find it on iTunes, Amazon, and Spotify.
If you have been a long time subscriber, you may recall a short series of articles on modeling Tournemire. The Advent Suite included on the recording is a result of those newsletter issues. If you missed them, check out Issue 50, Issue 51, and Issue 52.
Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Glenn
Newsletter Issue 70 – 2017 12 23
See the complete list of past newsletter issues here.
Sign up to receive future issues using the box to the right on this page.
Composed by William Jones (1726-1800), this tune in Common Meter has been published with numerous texts. One of the most common is “The King shall come when morning dawns” for the season of Advent. The tune is also known as NEWINGTON and first appeared in Jones’ Church Pieces for the Organ with Four Anthems in Score published in 1789.
See a list of other popular hymn and chorale themes here.
Videos:Wm. Glenn Osborne – Improvised Toccata on St. Stephen – Cathedral of Mary Our Queen
A 16th Century French Noël, commonly sung in English as “O Come, Divine Messiah.” The tune is also used in the Messe de Minuit pour Noël by Marc-Antoine Charpentier to set the lyrics “Laissez paître vos bestes.”
See a list of other hymn and chorale themes here.
Videos:
Pierre Cochereau (David Briggs) – Variations sur ‘Venez Divin Messie’
Eric Dalest – Improvisation on Venez Divine Messie – Aubagne, France
Jean-Jacques Grünenwald – Improvisation on Venez Divine Messie – Nimes
Laurent Chalaux – Improvisation on Venez Divine Messie – Sylvanès
Duncan Middleton – Variation on ‘Venez Divin Messie’ – Notre Dame de France
What a fabulous conference at the University of Kansas! While Philippe Lefebvre’s completely improvised recital was one of my highlights of the conference, the opening concert was a unique experience that will inspire me for years to come. Five organists played a Mass in alternation with a chant schola. Michel Bouvard and Shin-Young Lee played movements from François Couperin’s Messe pour les Paroisses, while the three organists from Notre Dame, Philippe Lefebvre, Olivier Latry, and Vincent Dubois improvised. Here was truly a program in alternatim. No player played twice in a row, and improvisations alternated with repertoire. In between the movements, the chant schola from Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in Denton, Nebraska, under the direction of Nicholas Lemme provided exquisite chant. I have heard that the AGO intends to release videos from the conference over the next year. I certainly hope they include this unique concert soon. This was apparently the first time all three organists from Notre Dame have played on the same program outside of Paris ever. Bravo to the University of Kansas and AGO for organizing such a great event!
From left to right: Vincent Dubois, Olivier Latry, Shin-Young Lee, Philippe Lefebvre, Michel Bouvard
In an opening presentation to the conference, Michael Bauer asked what makes French pedagogy different. Is there anything specific or unique to the French system of training organists that carries across styles, time periods, and even teachers that sets it apart from the way organists are trained in the US, Germany, or other countries? There were panel discussions probing the French organists on their teachers and their own teaching methods, as well as presentations on the approach of Marie-Claire Alain and the conservatory system in France.
Because of the time I spent studying organ in both the United States and in France, I believe I came up with an answer by the end of the week.
Every music student in France is required to have multiple years of solfège. After a few years of learning to read music notation and sight-sing, students begin the disciplines of Écriture. This includes multiple years of harmony, counterpoint, and eventually the possibility of composition. To complete a college degree in music in the US, students generally have two years of music theory classes. In these two years, students cover basic notation, sight-singing, harmony, counterpoint, and analysis for all periods of music history from early to the most recent. Some students or schools may continue into a third year of required studies.
When I went to France, I had completed my Master’s Degree. I had composition lessons and had breezed through the theory classes I had taken in the US. When I took a placement test in France, I ended up in first year harmony! Now, I found it very easy and probably could have placed into second year with a little coaching, but harmonizing melodies in four-part open score (with C-clefs!) without the use of a keyboard was something I had never done in the US. Even the basic level of harmonie instruction in France requires skills that simply aren’t taught in this country.
The French Conservatory system has a system of three cycles for each discipline. The first cycle is a beginner; second level is intermediate; third level is advanced. Each cycle generally takes 2-3 years to master. During my time in France, I was able to complete the first cycle of harmonie. Even now, I wish I could complete the final levels of harmony and counterpoint from the French system.
Most of the organists in France also earned prizes or diplomas in harmony, counterpoint, and/or écriture (according to how the formation was grouped at the time). Many of them completed their studies in these disciplines before they earned their organ or improvisation prizes. If you had six or seven years of harmony and counterpoint classes, how much better would you be as an improvisor? Even for playing repertoire, how much more insight could you have on the construction of a piece if you had to write similar passages while studying harmony and counterpoint?
Pen and paper exercises develop not just the knowledge of music theory, but also the inner ear. I believe it is the extended study of these disciplines that sets the French organists apart. They have in depth study not just of the instrument, but also the disciplines of music construction. If you haven’t done so before, it may be time to sit at a desk and work on your musical écriture.
At the beginning of the month, I gave a presentation to the Baltimore AGO chapter. You can now view my opening remarks here. I truly believe that if we treat music as a language and invest the time into practicing it, we can become as fluent speaking music as we are in our native tongue. The French insist upon longer more detailed studies, and we can see the results there.
Before I ramble on too much longer, today is Halloween in the United States. Somehow, the Bach Toccata and Fugue in D minor has become linked with the celebration. (With my American mentality, it was quite a shock when a couple I met with in France requested the piece as the entrance music for their wedding!) ORGANPromotion assembled two recordings of improvisations on the piece. You can hear them both on Spotify (Disc 1 and Disc 2). Rather than frighten you, I hope these recordings inspire you to improvise more often.
Happy Halloween!
Glenn
Newsletter Issue 69 – 2017 10 31
See the complete list of past newsletter issues here.
Sign up to receive future issues using the box to the right on this page.
