Page 15 - Organ etudes book one

THE COMPLETE CHURCH ORGANIST: ORGAN ÉTUDES BOOK ONE SOUTHWELL
Verse 4 informs this piece: “Lord Jesus think on me, Nor let me go astray; Through darkness and perplexity, Point thou the heavenly way.” This is portrayed literally, as the registration and harmonic language conspire to create the effects. It is an example of a piece where all the content is carefully scripted, and the player really only need do what’s in the copy. As a study piece, the task is to follow the markings. If this were repertoire, it might be left almost unphrased, or just with indicative elements, and the player would need to interpret and present a view of it.
Articulation-control within part-playing is the aim here. The duple-time-signature is important – the half-bar is the unit of momentum, not the crotchet. Follow the phrasing very carefully, and re-strike repeated notes even when other notes in the same chord move legato to the next place. Where a long phrase is shown, this indicates a single musical thought and should be rendered by pressing on without rubato or allowing the articulation matrix to interrupt the flow of the line. There is deliberate variation in phrasing so beware getting into a half-bar rut of lifting your hand on reflex.
Page 15
CCO Organ Etudes 1.indd 15
26/08/2020
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