Organ Competition Pieces

[ciaranpt123]

Dear All,

I'm only 12 years old and I recently came second in a local musicians competition, playing Louis-Claude Daquin's X Noel Grand Jeu et duo on the organ. This competition is run in November/ December every year. I would like to begin preparing something impressive for next year- with the hope of winning the competition!

I am around grade 3 on piano, and I can play the organ (pedals included) fluently. I would greatly appreciate any advice, ideally something quite powerful please.

Many thanks

Every blessing,

Ciaran

[Leisesturm]

Dear All,

I'm only 12 years old and I recently came second in a local musicians competition, playing Louis-Claude Daquin's X Noel Grand Jeu et duo on the organ. This competition is run in November/ December every year. I would like to begin preparing something impressive for next year- with the hope of winning the competition!

I am around grade 3 on piano, and I can play the organ (pedals included) fluently. I would greatly appreciate any advice, ideally something quite powerful please.

Many thanks

Every blessing,

Ciaran

Well I certainly wish you all the best! How did you find the Daquin piece? A teacher? They are probably your best bet at this point I should think? I could recommend pieces but, as an American, and one who never studied formally, I do not really understand your Grade system. What composers do you like? Bach? Where would "In Dir Ist Freude" fit Gradewise? Fantasia in C minor? Bach is always correct but there are alternatives as you know. Healey Willan and Percy Whitlock have interesting easy(er) stuff but their impressive stuff is all very difficult. Flor Peeters must have something you could do I should think...

H

Edit: You should probably move this to the "Organ Music" forum in the "Classical" sub-forum.

[Jerry]

L. Vierne - Finale from symphony no. 1

not that I like Diane Bish, I don't but here she plays this piece well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPfXZcB2u_M

- - - Updated - - -

L. Vierne - Finale from symphony no. 1

not that I like Diane Bish, I don't but here she plays this piece well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPfXZcB2u_M

[Leisesturm]

L. Vierne - Finale from symphony no. 1

not that I like Diane Bish, I don't but here she plays this piece well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPfXZcB2u_M

I have never heard Ms. Bish not play something "well", but that is beside the point. Vierne... Grade 3?? I have to admit a french style toccata wasn't in my mind at the moment but lets go there... surely the Boellmann Toccatta (from "Suite Gothique") would be a better choice??? Sacre bleu, even the Widor Toccatta (from Organ Symphony #5) would be a better choice. I would suggest the o.p. lift weights and run up flights of stairs to train for the Widor.

H

[Jerry]

I have never heard Ms. Bish not play something "well", but that is beside the point. Vierne... Grade 3?? I have to admit a french style toccata wasn't in my mind at the moment but lets go there... surely the Boellmann Toccatta (from "Suite Gothique") would be a better choice??? Sacre bleu, even the Widor Toccatta (from Organ Symphony #5) would be a better choice. I would suggest the o.p. lift weights and run up flights of stairs to train for the Widor.

H

Well, she slaughters Bach quite nicely! the Widor is over done! the Boellmann is , well, I won't comment on that. If you want to win, practice all your scales daily, including pedal scales. you asked for a piece that would win, not a piece that was easy to play and get through . if you are meticulous in learning the Vierne and have command of it at a fast tempo , one a little faster than what Bish plays it. You will win. period! good luck! Remember to let the piece breath. fast but not rushed.

If the hand stretches are to much for the size of your hands, and you have the ability to comprehend Bach, THe Prelude & Fugue in "D" major or the Prelude & Fugue in "a" min. are two very good choices.

[JonathanP]

Where would "In Dir Ist Freude" fit Gradewise?

In Dir Ist Freude is on the ABRSM Grade 7 syllabus, so is a fairly advanced piece. It doesn't seem technically hard, but for some reason putting it all together is a little tricky. Of course, it requires the left and right hands to be in perfect timing for it to work, which takes years of practise. I'd strongly recommend letting that one wait for a few years yet! You'll only end up hating it if you try it now, and then 9 months down the road you still won't have a piece ready. Competitions should be judged on execution, not technical difficulty.

On our grading system here in the UK, I recall being told that pedals don't even get used until Grade 3 (mainly due to very young organists - there are any?? - who can't reach the pedals!) I haven't checked out those lower grades though, but I'm sure that's what I've been told. Judging by that, you should be at least a G3 standard at the organ if you can play pedals fluently.

If you have a whole year, be a bit ambitious and skip a grade. On the Grade 5 list, you get some very well known pieces. On the current ABRSM syllabus is Tuba Tune by C.S. Lang. Extremely well known, of course, and a very bold sound! One you can pull out all the stops for, if you want to make a big impression. I recommend you buy Anne Marsden's book for it (Graded Anthology for Organ, I think it's Book 5, it's got a pink cover). It contains Anne's teaching notes. If you don't know of her, she's associated with the Royal College of Organists and is in great demand as both a teacher and performer. I remember reading of her success getting a couple of students to considerable lengths and into Conservatoires within only a few years. Read her notes - and follow them! That's my advice for that. As you can see, she recommends quite a slow tempo. It's often played far too fast, which I was previously guilty of. As she says, light and excitement is created through clear articulation and phrasing (ie, playing exactly as written) - not through speed. It's very true!

Previously on the ABRSM Grade 5 syllabus (and currently on Trinity College's Grade 5 syllabus) is Berceuse by L. Vierne. Another really iconic piece. This was the winning piece at one of the young organist competitions in my local area last year. It can be found in "24 Pieces en style libre: op. 31 Book 2" (LINK). All I would say with this one is two things. One, is that it can be played just a touch faster than written, otherwise it just goes on forever. It's still far better played too slow than fast, however, so bear that in mind! Even a touch too fast, and the emotion is lost. Being a French Romantic piece, it should be crammed full of emotion. Two, is make sure you keep the top melody line very legato within the phrasing. The alto and tenor parts, when played with the right hand, don't matter so much so you can thumb them if necessary. The soprano melody needs to be really smooth within phrase marks though, 100% of the time. Also, make sure you do use the expression pedal where written. Don't be afraid to add in some of your own expression either - for example, on the top of the 2nd page on the soprano solo, I open the swell box as the melody rises and close it again as it falls. I think of it as ebbing and flowing. Of course, needless to say, you'll be wanting a soft string sound for this one on the swell, where you'd play most of the time! The solos can drop down to the great, with a soft flute sound set up. At the end I do something a little interesting to vary the sound, but I won't go into it unless asked as it's not really important in this post.

Also from that book, if you prefer a large sound, is Carillon. It's also called 'Carillon de Westminster', as the basis of it is the infamous Westminster Chime - great if you love Big Ben! It's another iconic Vierne piece, and such a great contrast to Berceuse. If you listen to both, you can really hear what a brilliant composer Vierne was, being extremely versatile. I learnt to play it, as it's so iconic, but admittedly it's not one of my favourites. The chime gets to me after a while! It's classed as a Grade 6, but I wouldn't be worried, as I personally think it's more of a G5/6. If you can play Berceuse, you can play Carillon given enough practise time. Of course, being still a French Romantic piece, remember not to quite go as full as you would with the likes of Tuba Tune! Also, the same applies for phrasing in this piece, it's equally as important.

For a competition, I'd personally steer clear of Bach until you can get up to the likes of Toccata and Fugue. For two reasons, but most crucially one being that most of his simpler pieces are very short. They form part of a collection which would last 5 minutes or so. Within these collections, the grades can vary right from 4/5 to Grade 8. This makes it somewhat difficult to get a lengthy repertoire of Bach which coherently pieces together until you build up some more skill - and there's nothing wrong with admitting that! Saying you simply aren't ready at this stage is extremely commendable and respectable, I've said that to enough people myself lately too. It demonstrates a sound musical knowledge. There are some simpler pieces, such as BWV 721, which last for about 5 minutes. Great as Preludes, but you want something really exciting for a competition. Also, Bach is the most iconic organ composer and everyone performs his pieces. Going into a competition with something really unique, and the likes of Carillon really fits that criteria, automatically gets people interested in your performance and puts you at an advantage before you've even played!

Sorry for a lengthy reply, but I hope it's been of some help!

[Leisesturm]

Jonathan!,
Outstanding. Simply outstanding. I hope young Claran is still with us. As for Jerry... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Csynke0maE

H

[JonathanP]

I'm also a 'BishFan'... Oh wait, was I supposed to keep that to myself? In all fairness, I also agree she does slaughter some pieces. I haven't got any issue with her Bach playing, but Tuba Tube shouldn't be done in under 2 minutes!!! However, she's my favourite organist around today. Nobody interprets everything just as I would, or else I wouldn't bother playing, I'd just listen to them instead. She's very gifted and always remains very musical, and even with her speedy playing she remains accurate and articulate. Not meaning to take this thread off topic, but I do see she receives more criticism than any other organist on here. She's a love or hate organist, I can see, but it's clear which side of the two I fall...

[ciaranpt123]

Hi All!

Yes- I'm still with you and I apologise for my delay in replying as I've been very busy with carol concerts recently. Thank you all for your wonderful suggestions and thank you especially to JonathanP for his detailed reply. I'm in the UK as well so grading system is the same.

Many thanks and God bless you all

Ciaran

[Sathrandur]

A quick and easy suggestion in passing, if I may: David German's Festive Trumpet Tune. Simple, easy, and very effective. An advanced organist would pretty much sight-read it through. You won't find the section in F# too difficult with a little practice either (unlike the Cocker Tuba Tune - a possibility for you in years to come and another great piece).

[JonathanP]

...(unlike the Cocker Tuba Tune - a possibility for you in years to come and another great piece).

Just to add, not to be confused with the Lang Tuba Tune aforementioned. Many organ pieces have the same title unfortunately, which only creates confusion!