Organ.

Brilliant Classics continues its fascinating survey of Pre‐Bachian keyboard music with a new recording of the complete organ works of Nicholas Bruhns. Bruhns, born into a musical dynasty, was organist, violist and violinist in Copenhagen, pupil of the famous Buxtehude, where he remained till his death, only 31 years old. Bruhn’s works make full use of the many newly developed possibilities of the organ in his days, and form a splendid display of keyboard (and pedal!) virtuosity, and intricate counterpoint. To complement Bruhns’ complete organ works this recording presents other works by Sweelinck (his famous Chromatic Fantasy), Scheidemann, Scheidt and Buxtehude. Adriano Falcioni is one of the foremost organists of this time, winner of many international competitions. He already made several organ recordings for Brilliant Classics (Franck, Muffat, Couperin, Duruflé). Includes liner notes by the artist and an artist biography. Contains specifications of the magnificent organ of the Chiesa di San Giorgio in Ferrara, Italy.

The origins of Philip Glass' Voices, for didgeridoo and organ was specific: a commission from the city of Melbourne, Australia, in 2001. Yet the instrumental combination works so well that it seems almost foreordained, and Glass went on to write further music for the soloist here, Mark Atkins. In this performance, the didgeridoo and organ tracks were recorded separately, in Australia and upstate New York, respectively, and in Glass' metronomic world this works well enough. Yet one hopes that this release on Glass' Orange Mountain Music label is enough to spur future live performances with both players in the same room. The addition of the didgeridoo to the relatively homogeneous texture of Glass' organ writing is dramatic, but it doesn't disturb the basic shifting fields of the composer's music. It just deepens their color and variety in an immensely attractive way.

This acclaimed recording series of the complete organ works of Dietrich Buxtehude (c. 1637-1707) offers a unique musical journey in the footsteps of the Danish-German Baroque master. Organist Bine Bryndorf explores Buxtehudes inventive stylus phantasticus through the beautiful sound of five historic organs around the Baltic area, beginning in the composers native town of Elsinore, and ending in Lübeck, where his successor Johann Sebastian Bach famously went to experience the art of the ageing organ legend.

The present installment of Arturo Sacchetti’s encyclopedic Organ History survey for Arts Music drops anchor in late-19th/early-20th-century France. It can be argued that the five instrumental sections from Satie’s Mass for the Poor that open this recital lose poignancy when shorn of their surrounding vocal movements, although the organ is a perfect instrument for the composer’s quirky, instantly identifiable harmonic language. By contrast, D’Indy’s Les Vêpres du Commun des Saints, Roussel’s Prélude et Fughetta, and Honegger’s Deux Pièces pour Orgue make an arid, academic impression. After Wayne Marshall’s pulverizing speed through the Pastorale by Roger-Ducasse (Virgin Classics), Sacchetti’s relatively conservative virtuosity proves less engaging. However, his incisive hand/foot coordination enliven Tournemire’s Improvisation on “Te Deum” and Langlais’ Hymne d’Actions de grâces “Te Deum”, although the latter yields to Andrew Herrick’s more vivid and better engineered traversal on Hyperion. Organists looking for an effective, unhackneyed encore should consider Ibert’s Musette or Milhaud’s Pastorale.

César Franck gradually abandoned his career as a virtuoso pianist as he completed his training under various Parisian masters, one of whom was the organist François Benoist. Franck then served as organist in various important Parisian churches from 1853 onwards before accepting a position at Sainte-Clotilde, where he benefited from Cavaillé-Coll's brand new instrument. He composed works for the organ as well as in other genres that became part of the apotheosis of what is now termed Le Renouveau français. Franck also composed pieces specifically intended for the harmonium. We are proud to mark the bicentenary of his birth with a reissue of his complete works for organ and for harmonium, in which Joris Verdin's fascinating interpretations have incorporated Franck’s own recently discovered metronome markings.

Britain's Dame Gillian Weir is one of the world's foremost musical artists. Her unique career as an internationally acclaimed concert organist, performing worldwide at the great festivals and with leading orchestras and conductors, has established her as a distinguished musician. She is known for her virtuosity, integrity and outstanding musicianship, which combined with a notable personal charisma, have placed her in the forefront of her profession and won her the admiration of audiences and critics alike.