Passacaglia Motovilov

Little Organ Book, in which a beginning organist is given instruction in performing a chorale in a multitude of ways, and also in mastering the use of the pedal, since in the chorales offered here the pedal is used to its full extent. Glory be to God alone, thereby may we our knowledge hone.

Passacaglia della Vita an homage to the facets of life: heartache, betrayal, seduction, impermanence, excitement, fun and laughter. At the center of the concept of the program is the eponymous song Passacaglia della Vita by Stefano Landi. While the stanzas depict a wide variety of life situations and repeatedly call for the enjoyment of life in accordance with the motto Carpe diem, the refrain repeats the rather admonishing bisogna morire each of us dies. The reminder of death or in a religious sense, the belief in redemption and life eternal illustrates the finiteness of worldly joys and gives us a framework for life.

This in turn led the composer to suggest to Prima Facie Records that the work should be recorded. Other recent works for organ by Richard Pantcheff are also included on the resulting CD, amongst which is the composer's contribution to the outstanding Orgelbuechlein Project, in which contemporary composers complete the Chorale Preludes of the Orgelbuechlein left uncomposed by J.S.Bach at the time of his death. Richard Pantcheff's Chorale Prelude on 'Werde munter, mein Gemuete' was premiered by Jem Stephenson on the organ of Westminster Abbey.

The Chicago Gargoyle Brass was founded in 1992 by its Artistic Director, H. Rodney Holmes, as a chamber group of faculty and students at the University of Chicago, whose campus architecture boasts a charming variety of the ensemble’s namesake. By 2006, the ensemble had slowly professionalized and established a residency in the western suburbs at a major church with a full-time professional organist. Over the next five years, the group transformed itself into a specialized brass and organ concert ensemble, comprised of classically trained musicians, performing a wide variety of repertoire in an equally diverse range of settings. Well into its third decade, the Chicago Gargoyle Brass and Organ Ensemble maintains its position at the cutting edge of music for brass and organ, commissioning and performing new arrangements and compositions for that instrumental pairing.