John Cage: The Works for Organ

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a clearly magnificent project...the DVD has numerous advantages which will appeal to audio buffs, the considerable spatial qualities of the remarkable 1971 Grönlunds organ in Gammelstad being... — MusicWeb International, 22nd July 2013 More…

Release Date: 3rd Jun 2013
Catalogue No: MOD-CD-253
Label: Mode
Length: 1 hour 43 minutes

Usually despatched in 3 - 4 working days

Cage: Souvenir

Work length6:47

$1.00

$1.30

Gary Verkade

Cage: Some of "Harmony of Maine"

Work length41:11

$15.00

$19.45

Gary Verkade

I. Alpha C. M. —

Track length1:34

$1.00

$1.30

II. Majesty C. M. —

Track length3:25

$1.00

$1.30

III. Harmony C. M. —

Track length3:28

$1.00

$1.30

IV. Creation L. M. —

Track length1:53

$1.00

$1.30

V. Hallowell S. M. —

Track length3:47

$1.00

$1.30

VI. Advent C. M. —

Track length4:22

$1.00

$1.30

VII. Turner L. M. —

Track length1:23

$1.00

$1.30

VIII. Sunday C. M. —

Track length1:09

$1.00

$1.30

IX. St. John's C. M. —

Track length1:02

$1.00

$1.30

X. Invitation L. M. —

Track length5:27

$1.00

$1.30

XI. Transmigration

Track length10:20

$3.00

$3.85

XII. Chester L. M. —

Track length1:09

$1.00

$1.30

XIII. The Lilly P. M. —

Track length2:12

$1.00

$1.30

Cage: ASLSP (Arr. for Organ)

Work length22:54

Album only

Gary Verkade

Cage: Organ2 / ASLSP

Work length32:47

Album only

Gary Verkade

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About

This release is the first complete recording of all of Cage’s works for organ, plus 4’33” (on the DVD version only).

The organ is ideally suited to Cage’s aesthetic — its multitude of stops make it the ultimate prepared instrument. The fact that sound emanates from a number of pipes placed at discrete locations in space nicely accords with Cage’s idea of the separation of sounds in space. And it represents vast possibilities that could be released as sound through the use of chance operations. For this reason Cage’s organ music occupies a small but quite important place within his output.

For Some of 'The Harmony of Maine' Cage selected 18th-century American hymns by Billings, Law, and Belcher and altered them by extending certain tones and removing others through chance operations so as to attenuate the functional harmony underlying them. Here and there, melodic fragments from the original hymns remain.

The 1978 and 1987 works were written for the German organist Gerd Zacher, an important champion of new music. American organist Gary Verkade, a student of Gerd Zacher, is on the faculty of the Musikhögskola in Piteå, Sweden. He has appeared at major festivals and concerts throughout Europe and the USA. Verkade was one of the registrants in the first German performance of Some of 'The Harmony of Maine'.

Includes booklet with trilingual notes by Rob Haskins.

Reviews

22nd July 2013

a clearly magnificent project...the DVD has numerous advantages which will appeal to audio buffs, the considerable spatial qualities of the remarkable 1971 Grönlunds organ in Gammelstad being captured in fascinating surround-sound on the DVD...I can’t imagine these recordings being bettered any time soon

John Cage: The Works for Organ

2 CDs

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