How ‘wild’ can one go with organ improvisation??
  • wspinnenwspinnen
    Posts: 34
    I practice Messiaen's modes and the Acoustic scale regularly in my practice, and strongly believe that style has its place in the Catholic liturgy. Personally, I enjoy the more wild improvisations that are mentioned here. But, you need the right organ, right acoustic, right congregation, etc, in order for it to work.

    The organ I have in my parish does not favor this style, so I have to be more conservative, emulating Vierne, early Langlais, or a more Baroque style.

    I've been studying improvisation for two years. It takes time to develop your own personal style, whether it's more Baroque or Messiaen/Tournemire-esque. I favor the latter, but am trying to become conversant in Baroque.

    Regardless of styles, the most important thing I've learned from my current teacher is this: shorter is better.
    Thanked by 4DavidOLGC irishtenor CHGiffen Abbysmum
  • francis
    Posts: 11,241
    Shorter is better only if the people can’t stand it… otherwise, people can’t get enough of excellent improv… (just speaking from experience from comments of parishioners who remain after Mass)
    Thanked by 2DavidOLGC Abbysmum
  • CharlesW
    Posts: 12,053
    parishioners who remain after Mass


    Where did you find such creatures. In our place they wouldn't have left any faster if someone had yelled "fire."
    Thanked by 2DavidOLGC Abbysmum
  • searchfgold6789
    Posts: 29
    I agree that there needs to be silence throughout the liturgy. Too much music (of any kind) can be a distraction.


    Music is liturgy!

    If only Prof Baker had used a better recording setup for this. Everyone, it sounds like garbage because it's a cell phone recording from the console, and he shouldn't have uploaded it.

    It's a very good, standard, sonata form improvisation based on VICTORY, with developments on the chants for the feast, which would be very discernible and enjoyable if not for the lack of a good recording setup. I thought it was perfectly fine for a cathedral setting, although Prof reverted to unmodified diatonic harmonies more frequently than I would expect for a piece relying so heavily on the octatonic and other modes.

    The responses here just reflect the poor recording quality and ignorance of 21st-century music. Look, not all music, including sacred music, should fit into a nice palatable diatonic box, because life and faith don't either. Style didn't stop changing with Franck. Sometimes you have to blast em and use some testosterone, and you can look back to the 16th century for composers who did exactly that. If I played a somewhat dissonant improv like this, say for the Holy Noise after the Gloria intonation, and got responses like the ones above, I would take them as compliments.
    Thanked by 2wspinnen Abbysmum
  • francis
    Posts: 11,241
    @CharlesW
    Where did you find such creatures. In our place they wouldn't have left any faster if someone had yelled "fire."
    Our church is full of pray-ers, admirers of truth and beauty… Our church is a mystical testimony to beautiful architecture… it invites you to come in, rest and take in the wonders of the Faith through art, music, vestment, symmetry, color, pageantry all directed toward the worship of God and the glorification by the heavenly hosts.

    https://youtu.be/hHIEEKQEvDI
    Thanked by 5CharlesW CHGiffen Abbysmum Chant_Supremacist Liam
  • CharlesW
    Posts: 12,053
    Beautiful church!
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