THE DIAPASON AN INTERNATIONAl. MONTHLY DEVOTED TO THE ORGAN, THE H.4RPSICHORD AND CHURCH MUSIC S4 11> Iy-N irtlll rea r, ,\ '0. 6, Wlwle "'0, K2'..! A Scranton Gillelle Puhlication ISSN 0012·2378 MAY. 1978 William Albright's Organb ook I a Master Lesson by Anne Parks In the last two decades, composers Thc title of Organuook I is an adap­ III lcarning "Bencdiction," the fint hands on the same manual the notes ha\'c taken a lIew interest in writing tatioll of the French baroque tenn piece of Org(J llbook I, the Urst diffi· overlap occaSionally. Howe\'cr, I bclie\'e music for organ. music which uses recent "Livre d'orgue" which "implies a col· cult)' aile sees is the spatial rhythmic this m'erlap docs not drastically changc developments in composition. This reo lection of relath'ely short works, each notation. Each line takes approximate­ the effect of the picce. "h'al of interest has been refelTed to of which deals with a sonoral aspect of ly 20 seconds, and \'alucs within a line The opcning section of "Benediction" as "" Second Wind for Organ" (the the instrumcnt and a r.articnlar type arc rclatil'c to the space occupied. Some has long chords with important, subtle title of olle of many rceorus of new OT­ of composition."· Albrig It's interest in perfonners divide each line into a num­ changl.."S of timbrc. Sensitivity on the gan music) • and iL, new music is attract· sonority is reflected in his sensithity to hel' of segments, one per second; this part of the pcrfonncr to these changes ing a lIew audience for the organ and tone color and 10 stich resources as enables thcm to judge the length of of color is a major aspect in dctennin­ orreling pcrfonncrs an exciting new multiple organ chambers, allowing an)' nole or passage in tenns of one ing the rhytliln of the first section of field of (("pcrtoire. sounds to occur in different locations. beat per sccond. Some music is notated this piece. One judges the length of the l'crfonncrs exploring this new field Changes of registration, of spatial loca­ in Ihis manlier. However, Albright Jlas chords by listening 10 the quality of disco\'cr many dtallengcs to their habi­ tion. and of \'ohulle arc important for­ choscn 1I0t to mark off such specific the sound, and the nature of thc changes tual ways of thinking and working. The mal clements in his works. In this he timings, bccause he wants the timing in that quality brought about through first of these challenges is one of sound­ is part of a 20th·ccnlur)' trend toward 10 depend partly (Ill the judgtncnt of the added chords against the initial image. which Martha Folts has caUed greater importance for stich clcments for the pcrformcr. In his CRI recording, chord. To be more spccific: how long the "virtuosity of the imagination";' rormal purposcs, often coupled with Albright himself tak('s 40 scconds to Ihe rirst chord is held before adding with new music (or organ, the pcrronn. Ics.'i importance fur mclody and har­ perfonn the first linc. To dccide on I he second chord depends on how pleas­ er must devclop a souml·imagc qUite mony. the exact timing requires dC\'eloping a ing or effccth'e the quality of the initial diUercnt rrom most music usually per­ sound is on a particular organ. This rormed. The rirst stcp to"'ard this is length determines in part how long the listening to as much contemporary mu­ listener will nced to absorb the rela· sic as possiblc, both ror orI,,,m and ror tions bctwccn this first sound and the other instnnnenlS.t In the case or \\TiI_ second sound. The third sound creates 1iam Albright'S Organ book I a recom· l"Cl a IICW quality, which must be held ing of the work itself is a\'ailable, but umil the three chords are blcnded into the performer must remember that this onc sound. This opening section is in is only onc of many possible perfot'­ nne way analogous to the opening of mances. A further step may be COIlSUIt­ Ligcti's r ~olllmi"a : in both pieces the ing the composcr.. , length of the opening sonority is essen­ A second, related problem may be tial to the balance of the entire work. Teading the lIlusic. Many composcrs usc )1'" -1 An opening pace which is too rapid will fonns of notation which lIIay be new , crcate a fccling of movement and anx­ to the performer or may e\'en be the , \ iet)' for resolution which will detract composer's own invention. If tIlC pre· (rom the effcct of those movemcnts f ) ratol')' remarks do not clarify all areas, 1 • when there is fasler rhythmic motion. consullation of other scores using simi­ I In this first section of "Benediction" lar notation may do so. Othcr compo­ 'l \ wc rind a slow, pulseless irregular rate I sers lIlay be able to clarify the mcan­ / I of change of harmony and timbre. After ing of unusual symbols. Also, the com­ I \ ,t the introdution of the opcning sonority, poser of the piece will usually welcome I which is crucial to the piece both for inquiries. Patience is also callcd for: in the reasons discussed above and for my experience, notation which seems 'l harmonic reasons whidl will be dis­ unreadablc at rirst may suddenly collie cusscd below, the slowly altering sounds into rocus later. Some perrormers may include changes of chord, of timbre, rind it hclpful 10 work. out a small sec­ and of dynamics. The first change of tiun of the music, rewriting it in other • 'Il timbre is accompanied b)' a changc of ]lotation or mcmorizing it rather than chord; thc change of timbre is as im­ learning to play directly from unwual ~ I ~~ \ portant 3S the change of chord. When notation. '" Ucllediction" retuOlS 10 the original Performance technique oUers a third '0 timbre (at the top of the second page) . challcnge. Many of our most creati\'e r d this change of timbre is not accompan­ composers for organ view the instl'u­ ". ied by any change of hamlOny or rhytIl· ment as a sourcc of many possible rule e\'cnt, hut is an e\'cnt in itself. This sounds which they might usc, rather use of timbre is unusual as compared than exclush'ely as an instrument with ~ ftJ to past practice. but is characteristic of established tedtniques. This new view much ncw music. including that for organ. of the instrument means that one must rn. I .. .... , "I. ] Dr._boob I + II be prepared to modify hard·earned tech­ ~" ~ ~ Within the first section of thc piece. niqucs where ncw ones will scn;e bet­ In each of the four mO\'cmellts of concept of the intendcd effect of thc a .section characterized b)' long chords. ter. In "Mclisma," the second 1II00'elUent Organbook I, Albright combines mo­ piece. there are thrce shorter sections sepa­ in Organbook I, for example, it is nea..'s­ tion with stasis in a unique way by This movement depends as much on rated by rests with fennatas. The per· sary to abandon the traditional hand pus­ using "a particular type of composi­ timbre as on other elemcnts for its formcr must judge the length of these ture with the ringer tips down and the tion," In "Bcnediction," chords are sus­ effect and structure. Albright consid­ rnts by considcring not only the reso­ hand arched. Instead, one must relax the tained for long spans of time before ered timbre important enough to gh'e lIancc of the building, as would be tile hand and allow it to glide loosely across changing, while certain structural chords very prccise instructions for all the case for an)' organ music, but also the the keys. Learning new music, even rccur throughout the piece. In "Melis­ pieces of Organbook I. The score in­ differences betwccn the subsections. The music which looks improvised to the ma," the limited dynamic range gives cludcs the registration for the organ for second subscction has sc\'cral momcnts audience. requires as milch painstaking a static effect. In "Fanfare:' the re­ which he collcch'ed the piece. It is a of more rapid motion whidl create practice as was necessary for learning peated 32nd-note chords are only ,'ery largc eclectic instrument with many hrid mclodies. The third subsection in­ onc's first Bach Trio Sonata, isolating brradually modified. In "Recessional;' small gradations of sound possible; thus troduces the use of the Swell box for difficulties in as many ways as possi­ although the inner ,'oices in the six-to­ he is able to specify five different sort b.... adual crcsccndi and subtle changes of ble. In "Fanfare," the third movement ten note dlords fluctuate rapidly. there eight· foot stops on cach of two differ­ timbre as tone colors cmerge and bright­ of Organbook I, for example, one has is a slow rate of harmonic change. ent manuals for "Benediction." To play en, thclI fade. The timing of the lise or to work carefully to develop the stami­ Few of the sections within pieces in this piece with fewer stops reqUires carc· the Swell pedal depends both on the na to perform at its level of dirficulty Organbook I are delineated by caesurae (ul combinations of available registers, exact effect produced by the organ and for the duration of tile piece. and few have sharp immcdiate con­ not nccessarily aU at eight-foot, to give thc balance between the manual which William Albright's Organbook I is a trasts of material.