Our Favorite Holy Week Recordings - Part 2

The week leading up to Easter is usually referred to as Holy Week, and encompasses many major days of celebration. We have many great recordings of choral and organ music that is appropriate for these celebrations, but this week we thought we would feature some of our favorites! Make sure to see the albums featured yesterday!

Dubois: The Seven Last Words of Christ
Choir of First United Methodist Church, Lubbock, Texas
Teresa Maria Gomez, soprano
Kim Childs, tenor
Edward Pleasant, baritone
Frederick Swann, organist
Gordon McMillan, conductor

A timeless, Romantic setting of the agony of Christ's Passion, this CD is consistently a Gothic Catalog best seller. Sung in English, and beautifully accompanied on organ by Frederick Swann. Also included are Mendelssohn's classic "Hear My Prayer" and Dubois' Grand Chorus for organ.

Hear My Prayer—Mendelssohn (Teresa Maria Gomez, soprano)
Grand Chorus—Dubois (organ solo)
The Seven Last Words—Dubois

Easter on Fifth Avenue
Choir of Saint Thomas Church, New York City
The Saint Thomas Brass
Jeremy S. Bruns, Associate Organist
Christian Lane, Assistant Organist
John Scott, director

John Scott directs the famous Saint Thomas boys choir in Easter favorites.

Jesus Christ is risen today (Easter Hymn) · arr. John Rutter
Haec dies · William Byrd
Most glorious Lord of life · William H. Harris
Christus Vincit · Joseph Noyon, arr. Gerre Hancock
Dum transisset sabbatum · John Taverner
My beloved spake · Patrick Hadley
Come ye faithful, raise the strain (Gaudemus Pariter) · arr. John Scott
Feierlicher Einzug (Solemn Entry for the Knights of St. John) for brass quintet, timpani and organ [1909] · arr. by Scott McIntosh · Richard Strauss
Surrexit Christus hodie · Samuel Scheidt, ed. John Rutter
Lord of the Dance · arr. John Bertalot
Dic nobis, Maria · Giovanni Bassano
If ye be risen again with Christ · Orlando Gibbons
Sing ye to the Lord · Edward C. Bairstow
Ye choirs of new Jerusalem · Sir Charles Villiers Stanford
He is risen, He is risen (Unser Herrscher) · arr. John Scott
Grand Choeur Dialogue for brass, timpani and organ · Eugene Gigout · arr. by Scott McIntosh



Easter Sunday in Imperial Vienna 1666
Antonia Bertali: Missa Resurrectionis
Spiritus Collective
Yale Collegium Players, Robert Mealy, director
Ilya Poletaev, organ
Yale Schola Cantorum, directed by Simon Carrington

Our Favorite Holy Week Recordings

The week leading up to Easter is usually referred to as Holy Week, and encompasses many major days of celebration. We have many great recordings of choral and organ music that is appropriate for these celebrations, but this week we thought we would feature some of our favorites!

Easter—Hymns, Carols and Anthems
Choir of All Saints' Episcopal Church, Beverly Hills, California
All Saints' Brass Ensemble
Craig Phillips, organist
Thomas Foster, director
World Premier Recordings!

Tom Foster and the choir of All Saints' present a program of Easter music, including a significant number of first recordings. Supplemented by an eleven member brass ensemble and the organ playing of Craig Phillips, this CD shows why this choir is among the most highly regarded in Episcopal churches. Intentional, focused, spiritual singing.

Includes "Jesus Christ is risen today", "Now the Green Blade Riseth", and Britten's Festival Te Deum.


J.S. Bach: St John Passion (1725 version)
Derek Chester, Evangelist
Douglas Williams, Jesus
Ilya Poletaev, organ
William Perdue, violoncello
Abigail Haynes and Mellissa Hughes, soprano
Ian L. Howell and Sylvia Aiko Rider, alto
Steven Caldicott Wilson, tenor
Joshua Copeland, bass
Yale Collegium Players (Robert Mealy, director)
Yale Schola Cantorum
Simon Carrington, director

The rarely performed 1725 version of Bach’s St. John Passion is presented by Yale University’s premier early-music ensembles. Simon Carrington, who initiated his illustrious musical career as cofounder of the King’s Singers, directs this live performance.

Click to view all of our Holy Week Recordings!

The Organ Loft - Dubois’ Seven Last Words

The Organ Loft - March 28, 2010
Dubois’ Seven Last Words, with organist Frederick Swann
Webcast and Broadcast Schedule


Program: Dubois’ Seven Last Words, with organist Frederick Swann

1. THÉODORE DUBOIS: The Seven Last Words of Christ outcue: "…next, on the Organ Loft”
2. J.S. BACH (arr: V. Fox): Come, Sweet Death

Recordings Used:
“The Seven Last Words of Christ” Choir of First United Methodist Church, Lubbock, Texas; Gordon McMillan, dir; Frederick Swann, organ; Teresa Maria Gomez, sop; Kim Childs, tenor; Edward Pleasant, baritone GOTHIC G 49124
“Riverside Revisited” Frederick Swann, organ GOTHIC G 49086

Listen Online:

KING-FM Seattle's Classical Choice — Sundays at 10:00 PM

OREGON: KWAX-FM and the University of Oregon radio network — Sundays at 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM

Bach Celebration Week Sale

This is the last day that we will be reminding you of the Bach Celebration Week savings that you should be participating in! So, make sure to head over to http://gothic-catalog.com today!

J.S. Bach: St John Passion (1725 version)
Derek Chester, Evangelist
Douglas Williams, Jesus
Ilya Poletaev, organ
William Perdue, violoncello
Abigail Haynes and Mellissa Hughes, soprano
Ian L. Howell and Sylvia Aiko Rider, alto
Steven Caldicott Wilson, tenor
Joshua Copeland, bass
Yale Collegium Players (Robert Mealy, director)
Yale Schola Cantorum
Simon Carrington, director

The rarely performed 1725 version of Bach’s St. John Passion is presented by Yale University’s premier early-music ensembles. Simon Carrington, who initiated his illustrious musical career as cofounder of the King’s Singers, directs this live performance.

List Price: $24.98
Our Price: $15.98
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Bach Influences: Kimberly Marshall two-CD special
Kimberly Marshall's "Bach and the Italian Influence" plus "Bach and the French Influence" for a special price!

Bach and the Italian Inflence
Fisk-Nanney Organ
Stanford Memorial Church
Kimberly Marshall, organist

"Bach and the Italian Influence" explores the Italian influences on Bach, and is presented by organ scholar and international performing artist, Kimberly Marshall.

The Stanford Fisk is unique in that it incorporates two different tuning temperaments (well-tempered and meantone), both of which are heard on this recording.

Toccata and Fugue in F-Major, BWV 540/ J.S. Bach
Concerto in d-minor, BWV 596 (based on the Concerto in d-minor, Opus 3, no. 11 by Vivaldi)/ J.S. Bach
Toccata avanti la Messa della Madonna/ Frescobaldi
Canzona dopo l'Epistola/ Frescobaldi
Recercar dopo il Credo/ Frescobaldi
Bergamasca/ Frescobaldi
Canzona in d-minor, BWV 588/ J.S. Bach
Fugue in b-minor on a theme of Corelli, BWV 592/ J.S. Bach
Concerto in G-Major, BWV 592 (based on the Concerto in G-Major by Prince Johann Ernst von Sachsen-Weimar)/ J.S. Bach
Toccata and Fugue in d-minor ("Dorian"), BWV 538/ J.S. Bach

Bach and the French Influence
Fisk-Nanney Organ
Stanford Memorial Church
Kimberly Marshall, organist

Noted organist and scholar, Kimberly Marshall, explores the relationship between French classical composers and Johann Sebastian Bach. The Stanford Fisk incorporates two different tuning temperaments (well-tempered and meantone), both of which are heard on this recording.

Prelude in E-flat major, BWV 552/J.S. Bach
Fantasy in c minor, BWV 562/ J. S. Bach
Fugue à 5/ Nicolas de Grigny
Trio in F Major, BWV 587/ J.S. Bach
Excerpts from Messe des Paroisses/ François Couperin
Fantasy and Fugue in c minor, BWV 537/ J. S. Bach
Excerpts from Livre Premier/ Louis Marchand
Pièce d'orgue, BWV 572/ J. S. Bach

Buy Both Discs together for one Special Price:
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Bach: Clavierübung III & Schübler Chorales
Joan Lippincott, organ

Joan Lippincott continues her Bach series with two of the most substantial collections published during Bach's lifetime. The Clavierübung III follows Book I (Italian Concerto) and Book II (Goldberg Variations) and precedes Book IV (Art of Fugue), and altogether represents Bach’s highest achievements in the art of writing for the keyboard. Clavierubung III, sometimes called “The Organ Mass” begins with settings of the Kyrie and Gloria, but is structured after the German Lutheran catechism. Included in this recording are both the large chorales, the alternative chorales for manuals only and the four duetti. Bach’s collection of cantata movement transcriptions for organ published by Schübler in 1742 includes the famous “Wachet Auf!”, and rounds out this two-CD collection.

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Bach Week Celebration Sale!

It's still Bach week here at The Gothic Catalog, and our celebration translates into major savings for you! Here are a couple of examples of how you can celebrate Bach's birthday:

The Bach Masses - Volume 1
FIRST AMERICAN CD RECORDING!

Washington Bach Consort
J. Reilly Lewis, music director

The success of Bach's B-minor Mass has obscured a number of his shorter masterpieces of the same genre. Written in the 1730s (when Bach was in his 40s), these masses—which consist only of a Kyrie and Gloria setting—could be performed in both Catholic and Lutheran liturgies. Sometimes misleadingly called "The Lutheran Masses," Bach used them to gain recognition from the Catholic court of Dresden, which bestowed upon him the title "Electoral Saxon and Royal Polish Court Compositeur." Later he was to take one of these masses and expand it into the full B-minor Mass so popular today. The Washington Bach Consort, directed by J. Reilly Lewis, is one of America's leading Bach ensembles, having recently performed the entire 5-year cycle of Bach cantatas. In this first volume of the complete Bach masses, they explore some of the B-minor Mass's lesser-known, but equally interesting, companions. Program notes by eminent Bach scholar Christoph Wolff.

Mass in F major, BWV 233
Kyrie-Christe, Du Lamm Gottes, in F major, BWV 233a
Mass in G minor, BWV 235

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The Trio Sonatas of Johann Sebastian Bach
performed on a diverse collection of period instruments

Dana Maiben, violin (Nicola Amati, 1658)
Wendy Rolfe, flute (Rod Cameron, after G.A. Rottenburgh)
Alice Robbins, 'cello and viola da gamba (Thomas Urquhart, and William Turner, respectively, after instruments from London c. 1680)
Christa Rakich, harpsichord (French double after Blanchet by Willard Martin)
Christa Rakich, organ (Brombaugh, Taylor/Boody, Fritts, Fisk, Richards/Fowkes, and Harrold)

Scored for organ (or pedal clavichord), the Bach trio sonatas can be played on a variety of instruments, as Christa Rakich demonstrates in this imaginative program. Six different organs, six different organ builders, and an assortment of period chamber music instruments are used on this double-CD set!

Audio sample here (CD1 track 4)

"Christa Rakich’s new recording of the Six Trio Sonatas of Bach is remarkable for its variety, ingenuity, elegance, and scholarship. Ms. Rakich has assembled a unique presentation of these notoriously difficult contrapuntal masterpieces. ...She is a serious, intellectual musician, cognizant of every detail in this intensely linear music. Whether in the three-part counterpoint of the sonatas, the massive textures of the preludes, the intricate four-part dialogue of the fugues, or her beautifully realized continuo in the two transcribed sonatas, Ms. Rakich exhibits a pristine technique. She sensitively conveys the unique character of each of the many themes as well as the special ambience of the various keys through which each movement progresses. Her registrations delight the ear with one beautiful combination on one superb instrument after another, and her embellishments and flourishes are always tasteful.

Ms. Rakich begins her program notes with a question: “Why another recording of Bach’s Trio Sonatas?” and she correctly acknowledges that “so many fine ones exist.” The varied instrumental color palette brought to this familiar repertoire by Ms. Rakich and her colleagues is itself a compelling reason to produce a new recording. Adding to that the precision, clarity, and vitality of the playing, there is every reason to welcome this outstanding recording to the Bach Discography." — The American Organist

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Bach's Birthday Celebration!

It's Bach's birthday and we're celebrating at The Gothic Catalog with a few of our favorite Bach recordings!

So to really celebrate we are passing on some ridiculous savings to you! For example:


The Complete Joan Lippincott Collection of Bach on Gothic Records
Eight discs, total, at a special price.

This set includes:

1. Toccatas & Fugues by Bach/Lippincott
2. Bach: Leipzig Chorales/Lippincott
3. Bach Trio Sonatas/Lippincott
4. Sinfonia: Organ Concertos and Sinfonias by J.S. Bach/Lippincott
5. Preludes & Fugues/Lippincott
6. Bach: Clavierübung III & Schübler Chorales/Lippincott (2 CDs!)
7. J.S. Bach: Weimar Preludes and Fugues/Lippincott

List Price: $197.80
Our Price: $49.98
You save $147.82!
Buy it Now at this amazing price!

The Organ Loft - Bach Organ Fugues

The Organ Loft - March 21, 2010
Bach Organ Fugues
Webcast and Broadcast Schedule


Program: Bach Fugues

1. Fugue in c-minor, BWV 575 1
2. Fugue in G major, “Jig”, BWV 577 2
3. Fugue in g-minor, “Little”, BWV 578 2
4. Fugue in C major, BWV 566 3
5. Fugue in D major, BWV 532 4
6. Fugue in C major, BWV 564 5
7. Fugue in e-minor, “Wedge”, BWV 548 6
8. Fugue in g-minor, BWV 542 7

Recordings Used:
“Bach: Preludes and Fugues” Lionel Rogg, organ HARMONIA MUNDI 290772
“Bach: Great Organ Favorites” E. Power Biggs, organ CBS42644
“Johann Sebastian Bach” Wim van Beek, organ MARTINIKERK GRONIGEN WBG 9905
“J. S. Bach: The Works for Organ, Vol 2” Kevin Bowyer, organ NIMBUS 5289
“Bach on the Fritts!” Jonathan Biggers, organ CALCANTE RECORDINGS CAL CD009
“One of a Kind” William Porter, organ LOFT RECORDINGS LRCD 1025
“Bach organ works, vol. 1” George Ritchie, Raven OAR-250

Listen Online:

KING-FM Seattle's Classical Choice — Sundays at 10:00 PM

OREGON: KWAX-FM and the University of Oregon radio network — Sundays at 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Celebrate at St. Patrick's Cathedral!

It's Saint Patrick's Day, and there's no better way to celebrate than by listening to recordings from Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York City! Also, a great way to celebrate is that one of these albums is a part of the March Madness Choral Music Sale!


O Come Let us Sing
Choir of St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York City
Donald Dumler, organ
John-Michael Caprio, director

Twenty selections are sung by 55 voices, volunteer and professional, of accompanied and a cappella anthems for the church year. Repertoire ranges from short motets of Byrd and Palestrina to those of Pablo Casals and Healey Willan and the majestic choruses with organ from Berlioz, Gounod, and Joseph Noyon. John-Michael Caprio conducts and Donald Dumler accompanies on the famous Kilgen organ of the cathedral. One of our most popular discs!

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GREAT ORGAN OF ST. PATRICK'S CATHEDRAL, New York City
Donald Dumler, organist

This organ CD is always in our best-sellers list, year after year. With both popular and unusual works in his progam, Cathedral Organist Donald Dumler strikes just the right balance of musical choices.

Both the Chancel and Grand Gallery Organs were built by Kilgen, and are controlled by two new "twin" five-manual consoles. With 177 stops and over 9,000 pipes, the organ is both a grand musical statement, and a priceless antique whose sounds evoke the ideals of organbuilding in the 1920's.

March Madness Choral Sale - New Releases

For those of you out there that were hesitant to get our most recent choral releases, now is the time!

Dominick Argento: Evensong: Of Love and Angels
The Cathedral Choral Society
Washington National Cathedral, Washington, D.C.
Elizabeth Futral, soprano
Nelson James LePard Reed, treble
The Very Reverend Samuel T. Lloyd III, reader
J. Reilly Lewis, conductor

WORLD PREMIERE RECORDING!

Commissioned by the Society in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Washington National Cathedral, this piece also serves as a moving tribute to the memory of Argento's wife, Carolyn Bailey Argento, who died in 2006.

Threnody—orchestra prelude
Preces: Phos Hilaron—treble (an Angel), chorus (the Afflicted)
Psalm 102—chorus a cappella
The Lesson—reader
Sermon—solo sprano (Homilist)
Meditation—orchestral intermezzo
Canticle: Nunc Dimittis—chorus
Prayer/Lullaby—solo treble (the Angel)
Anthem—chorus

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Hymn to Potatoes and other choral masterworks from
A Prairie Home Companion
Garrison Keillor, Philip Brunelle and the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers

Who knew a choir could be this funny? Garrison Keillor, Philip Brunelle and the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers dish up a generous helping of Potatoes a la Schubert, run away to Europe to indulge their “Shenandoah” habit, and enlighten us on the T.U.L.I.P. doctrine. This two-CD set of the best choral skits and bits from 10 years on A Prairie Home Companion includes the often-requested “Julia” (John Lennon) and a rare choral interpretation of “Karma Chamelon” (Boy George). With Charles Kemper and Richard Dworsky at the piano, The Guy's All-Star Shoe Band and guest appearances by Tom Keith and Tim Russell.

Now available nationally for the first time—on Clarion Records from The Gothic Catalog!

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Over the River & Through the Woods
VocalEssence, Garrison Keillor and The Hopeful Gospel Quartet

On a chilly November evening, the Hopeful Gospel Quartet — Garrison Keillor, Mollie O’Brien and Robin & Linda Williams — traded musical moments with the VocalEssence Chorus and Ensemble Singers in a concert at Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis. The evening seamlessly blended American folk traditions with choral masterpieces old and new, from “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” to “Now Thank We All Our God.” Garrison Keillor shared his Thanksgiving memories in a hilarious yet poignant monologue. Thanks to Minnesota Public Radio, the evening was captured for posterity in this charming two-CD set.

Now available nationally for the first time—on Clarion Records from The Gothic Catalog!

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March Madness Sale - Choral Edition

It’s March, and our $9.98 March Madness organ CD sale has ended...But it was so successful, we decided to do a choral CD sale just like it!

This week, for one week only
All single $18.98 choral recordings are $9.98
All double $29.98 choral CDs are $14.98

Includes new releases!

Offer limited to stock on hand on the labels:

Loft Recordings, Gothic Records, reZound and Clarion
Offer expires midnight Friday March 19, 2010

Check out all of our March Madness Choral Sale Here

Organ Loft - Potpourri

The Organ Loft - March 14, 2010
Potpourri
Webcast and Broadcast Schedule


We have a lot of variety in the Organ Loft this week! More samplings of the new recording from Choral Arts (Robert Bode) “Mornings like this”, “Even Song” by John La Montaine with Frederick Swann playing the large Fisk organ in Costa Mesa, Three Irish hymns/songs in honor of St Patrick’s day, with the Choir of St Clements Church (Philadelphia) and the men of King’s College Choir (“Danny Boy”), Bach’s Passacaglia on the newly restored organ in the ballroom of Buckingham palace, And Marcel Dupre’s, Cortege and Litany with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Wanamaker organ.

Program

1. Marcel Dupre: Cortege and Litany, Op. 19, No. 2, for organ and orchestra
2. J.S. Bach: Passacaglia
3. Irish ballad, arr. Barry M. Rose: tune name: Slane, text title: “Lord of All Hopefulness”
4. Irish melody, arr. Edward C. Bairstow: tune name: St. Columbia, text title : “The King of Love my Shepherd is”
5. Irish folksong,“arr. William Thompson: Danny Boy
6. John La Montaine: Even Song
7. Spiritual, arr. Harry T. Burleigh: “My Lord, what a mornin’”
8. Michael Hennagin: “Sunrise” from “Give Me the Splendid Silent Sun”

Recordings Used:

1. “A Grand Celebration: The Historic Grand Court Concert for Macy’s 150th Anniversary” Peter Richard Conte, organ, The Philadelphia Orchestra directed by Rossen Milanov; Gothic G-49270
2. “The Organ of Buckingham Palace Ballroom” Joseph Nolan, organ; Signum SIGCD114
3. “Hymns of Heaven and Earth” Saint Clements Choir, Philadelphia, Peter Richard Conte, director, Matthew Glandorf, organ; Dorian DOR-90259
4. “Carry me home” Collegium Regale (the men of King’s College Choir, Cambridge) Quilisma QUIL403
5. “Frederick Swann plays the William J. Gillespie Concert Organ”; Gothic G-49268
6. “Mornings Like This” Choral Arts, Robert Bode, director; Gothic G-49273

Listen Online:

KING-FM Seattle's Classical Choice — Sundays at 10:00 PM

OREGON: KWAX-FM and the University of Oregon radio network — Sundays at 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM

March Madness Sale - New Releases

There's only one day left in or March Madness Sale here at The Gothic Catalog, so make sure you get those Organ albums and collections you've been wanting by Friday!

A Fantasy Through Time: Five Centuries of Organ Fantasies
Richards-Fowkes organ, Pinnacle Presbyterian Church, Scottsdale, Arizona
Kimberly Marshall, organist

Free bonus DVD! This compact disc includes a DVD of Kimberly Marshall playing the tracks from the CD on the Richards-Fowkes organ; also included are interviews with Dr. Marshall about the music, the organ, and the composers.

The new Richards-Fowkes organ in Scottsdale provides a wide variety of tonal resources for this historical exploration of Fantasies for organ on this, its premiere recording. Kimberly Marshall is internationally known as an organist and scholar. She currently is Director of Arizona State University School of Music.

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Mendelssohn Organ Sonatas
Holzhey Organ (1787)
Abbey church of Weißenau, Germany
Jonathan Dimmock, organist

Recorded on the spectacular Holzhey organ at Weißenau Abbey (Bavaria)—an organ which Mendelssohn loved—these Sonatas synthesize Baroque and Classical style with Romantic sentiment, establishing the musical vocabulary later used by Schumann, Brahms and Liszt.
“Dimmock’s performances are elegantly stylish and display a keen understanding of how the music moves.” – American Record Guide

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The Music of Dan Locklair
Marilyn Keiser, organist
Casavant Freres organ of St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Indianapolis, Indiana

Dan Locklair is one of America's most widely performed composers. His music has been performed at Presidential inaugurations and funerals, and he was named Composer of the Year by the American Guild of Organists. Marilyn Keiser has long been a champion of his organ music and presents here the definitive performances of his most popular works.

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March Madness Sale - Feature Albums

You still have until Friday to get in on the March Madness!!! Here are some more examples of the amazing deals we have right now at The Gothic Catalog:


French Masterworks from St. John the Divine
Ernest M. Skinner Company, Opus 150 (1910)
Aeolian-Skinner Organ Company, Opus 150A (1954)
The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York City
Jonathan Dimmock, organ
World premier recording!


The definitive recording of the magnificent Aeolian-Skinner at St. John the Divine! Dimmock shows the genius of tonal design with this instrument and uses the acoustics of the world’s largest gothic cathedral to best advantage. Also includes the only piece which Langlais wrote for St. John the Divine’s organ and its State Trumpet. The piece is dedicated to Mr. Dimmock.

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French on the Flentrop
1965 Flentrop organ, restored and augmented by Paul Fritts
Saint Mark's Cathedral, Seattle, WA
J. Melvin Butler, organ

Cathedral organist Mel Butler plays a program of French music, from de Grigny to Tournemire. Although it is a Dutch organ, the 1965 Flentrop is surprisingly well-suited to French repertoire. With an abundance of reeds, beautiful flutes and six seconds of reverberation, the organ renders French music in an highly effective style. Mel Butler gives a superb performance, which is captured by our proprietary 24-bit recording technology. Highly recommended!

The organ just jumps out of the speakers from the very start featuring the horizontal trumpets in Balbastre’s Noël . . . Organ recordings seldom get more exciting than this—don’t miss it! — The Organ magazine (UK)

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Viaticum: A Journey of the Mind, Body and Soul (3 CD Set!)
Robert Bates, organist and composer
Organs of Stanford Memorial Church

This unusual CD documents a tri-part program of 20th-century music, organized and composed by Robert Bates. It includes many world premier recordings (in red). With interspersed spoken texts and imaginative programming, Bates explores the nature of the world and ourselves, through verbal themes and non-verbal sound paintings. This is the most unusual organ recording in our collection, and it is a masterpiece of invention, symbolism and imagination.



Includes 24-page book on the music and organs used, plus a 16-page graphical audience score.

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March Madness Sale - Feature Albums

It's our March Madness Sale this Week and this Week ONLY, so to show you how incredible these deals are, we are going to feature some of the albums on sale!

FANFARE

Gerre Hancock, organist

St. Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue, New York City

A master of improvisation in Anglican style plays the great organ of St Thomas Church in NYC. Also includes works by Bach, de Grigny, and Reger.

List Price: $18.98

Our Price: $9.98

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Hommage à Messiaen

La Nativite du Seigneur

Fisk organ of St Paul's Episcopal Church, Greenville, NC

Colin Andrews, organ

Olivier Messiaen’s French-Catholic mysticism is reflected in his unique musical vocabulary—it forms the basis of one of the most important organ repertoires of the twentieth century. His “Nativity Suite” is one of the most popular of his early organ works, offering musical meditations on the themes and characters of the Christmas story. Also included is the premiere recording of Lionel Rogg’s Hommage à Messiaen.

Acclaimed organist Colin Andrews presents his own musical homage for the centenary of Messiaen’s birth (2008).

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Buxtehude Complete Organ Works, volume 3: 

Buxtehude and the Schnitger Organ

North German Baroque Organ, Gothenburg, Sweden

Hans Davidsson, organ

Buxtehude's visit with Arp Schnitger in Hamburg in 1687 began an association that lasted for many years and resulted in the building of the four-manual organ at the Cathedral in Lùbeck, as well as modifications to the organ at Saint Marien. Hans Davidsson explores the encounter between Buxtehude and Schnitger using the four-manual organ in Gothenburg, Sweden in this final volume of the complete works of Buxtehude.

List Price: $39.98

Our Price: $19.98 

You save $20.00!

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100th Posting! March Madness

It’s March, and time for a little madness!
And…we are celebrating our 100th posting here on The Gothic Catalog Blog!

So how can we celebrate 100 entries of Gothic Catalog related material?
A Gothic Catalog March Madness Sale!

This week, for one week only, all single organ solo recordings are $18.98 $9.98
Double organ CDs are $29.98 $14.98
Triple organ CDs are $39.98 $19.98

Includes new releases!

Offer limited to stock on hand on the labels:
Loft Recordings, Gothic Records, reZound
Offer expires midnight Friday March 12, 2010

We have nine new releases. View them all HERE.

Click here to see all our organ CDs at The Gothic Catalog!

Roger Sherman in Concert

This Sunday in Seattle, WA, The Gothic Catalog's very own Roger Sherman will be giving a concert at the St. Mark's Cathedral at 2pm in the Thomsen Chapel.

The "Organ Plus Concert" will feature Heidi Kim, soprano; Bruce Sherman, violin and Robbie Sherman, viola in works from the Anna Magdelena Notebook and other pieces written for or by J.S. Bach’s children.

For information on cost, tickets and more please visit www.saintmarks.org

Roger Sherman has many recordings available from The Gothic Catalog.

He has also previously recorded an album at St. Mark's Cathedral titled "The Thomsen Chapel Inaugural Recitals"

The Organ Loft - Anna Magdalena Notebook

The Organ Loft - March 7, 2010
The Anna Magdalena Notebook — A View into the Bach Household
Webcast and Broadcast Schedule

The Anna Magdalena Notebook - A View into the Bach Household

Welcome to the Organ Loft! Today, on the Organ Loft we are going to do something a little different. Our program will include some organ music, and some chorale music, but we are not going to visit an organ loft. Instead, we are going into someone’s home, to hear the favorite music in the home life of that household — the home of Johann Sebastian and Anna Magdalena Bach.

Just like photo albums, the Bach family had albums of favorite music. There was one for Ms. Bach, and each of the older male children. These albums included pieces for children, as well as adults. While most of the music was probably from Johann Sebastian’s hand, there is a significant sample from other composers known to the family, as well as some of the children. And many kinds of music are included – songs, keyboard works, and excerpts from larger pieces like cantatas and suites.


Anyone who has taken music lessons probably knows some of the pieces from the Anna Magdalena Notebook. Unfortunately, this sometimes makes us think that these small pieces nothing more than a musical primer. The notebook is much more than that. It is at the least, a collection of family favorites, tunes everyone in the household probably knew by heart, which could be played on whatever instruments were available.

Our recording is from a now out of print CD by Tragicomedia, directed by Seattle native, Steven Stubbs.

Program

1. J.S. Bach: “Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme” BWV 140
2. J.S. Bach: “O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort” BWV 513
3. Anon: Gedenke doch, mein Geist zurucke” BWV 509
4. J.S. Bach: “wer nur den lieben Gott lasst walten” BWV 691
5. F. Couperin: Rondeau No. 6, “Les Bergeries” BWV 183
6. Anon: Musette No. 22, BWV 126
7. J.S. Bach: Chorale on ”Gib dich zufrieden und sei stille”, BWV 510
8. J.S. Bach: Aria on “Gib dich zufrieden und sei stille” BWV 511
9. Anon: “Erbauliche Gedanken eines Tobackrauchers”
10. C.P.E. Bach: Marche, Polonaise, Marche, Polonaise, BWV 122-125
11. J.S. Bach: “Dir, dir, Jehova” BWV 299
12. Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel: “Bist du bei mir” BWV 508
13. J.S. Bach: Aria No. 26 BWV 988 (theme of the Goldberg Variations)
14. Anon: “So oft ich meine Tobackspfeife”, BWV 515
15. J.S. Bach: Recitativo “Ich habe genug” BWV 82, second movement
16. J.S. Bach: Aria “Schlummert ien, ihr matten Augen” BWV 82, third movement

Listen Online:

KING-FM Seattle's Classical Choice — Sundays at 10:00 PM

OREGON: KWAX-FM and the University of Oregon radio network — Sundays at 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM

Featured Product - Hymns We Love to Sing

Hymns We Love to Sing

The National Lutheran Choir, directed by David Cherwien

Hymn CDs are among our best sellers, and this one represents a Lutheran flavor of hymn singing and arrangements that is beautifully done. With varied arrangements by conductor and organist, David Cherwien, this large choir from Minnesota has produced a CD that is guaranteed to have you singing along with hymns like “Beautiful Savior,” “A Mighty Fortress,” and “Abide with me.”

Featured Product - Joan Lippincott

Sinfonia
Organ Concertos and Sinfonias by J.S. Bach
The Joe R. Engle Organ of Miller Chapel, Princeton Theological Seminary
Paul Fritts and Co. Opus 20
Princeton University Chapel Camerata
Joan Lippincott, organ



Bach concertos for organ and orchestra?  Joan Lippincott makes a compelling and logical case for constructing organ concertos from the "organ sinfonias" of Bach's cantatas.  Booklet includes essay on these organ solo+orchestra pieces by noted Bach scholar, George Stauffer.

Joan Lippincott is also involved in our new recording project with the Eastman organ.

Featured Product - Path of Miracles

Path of Miracles by Joby Talbot
Tenebrae (choral ensemble), directed by Nigel Short

The 62-minute a cappella choral work, "Path of Miracles" depicts the journey of medieval pilgrims to Santiago, Spain, resting place of St. James. Extensive use of ostinato patterns, soaring soprano lines, and Tenebrae's incomparible vocal virtuosity make this CD a must-have for anyone who likes contemporary choral music.

One reviewer wrote: "I would go as far to suggest that Talbot’s “Path of Miracles” is to the first decade of the 21st-century what Arvo Pärt’s "Passio" was twenty years earlier." (Classics.com) Another said, "Path of Miracles is little short of a musical miracle itself."

This hybrid super-audio CD (SACD) plays in both a standard CD player, and those equipped for SACD.

Dan Locklair - Rubrics video

We want share a video that gives you a preview of some of the music you will find on our new album The Music of Dan Locklair. But what makes this video great for us is that not only does it give you selections from "Rubrics" which is on the album, the video is the piece being performed on the Aeolian Organ at the Duke University Chapel. The Aeolian Organ is the organ for which the Dan Locklair piece The Æolian Sonata for organ was commissioned, which is also a piece on our new album The Music of Dan Locklair!

Marilyn Keiser - The Music of Dan Locklair

Today we wanted to share some more information about the wonderful organist, Marilyn Keiser featured on our new release The Music of Dan Locklair.

Marilyn Keiser:

A native of Springfield, Illinois, Marilyn Keiser began her organ study with Franklin Perkins, then attended Illinois Wesleyan University where she studied with Lillian McCord, graduating with a Bachelor of Sacred Music degree. Dr. Keiser entered the School of Sacred Music at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where she studied organ with Alec Wyton and graduated summa cum laude in 1965 with a Master of Sacred Music degree. She earned her Doctor of Sacred music degree from Union Seminary in 1977.

Upon graduation from Union Seminary, Dr. Keiser became Assistant Organist at the Riverside Church in New York City, and one year later was appointed Associate Organist/Choirmaster of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, a position she held from 1966-1970.

In constant demand as an organ recitalist and workshop leader, Dr. Keiser has appeared throughout the United States in concerts sponsored by churches, colleges, and chapters of The American Guild of Organists. An active member of the AGO, Dr. Keiser has served as National Registrar, dean of the Western North Carolina Chapter, and as a member of the National Nominating Committee and the Committee on Professional Education. She holds the Associate, Fellow, and Choirmaster certifications from the Guild. She has been a featured artist for regional conventions of the AGO as well as for national conventions in Dallas and Washington DC, where she played with orchestra at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and in Detroit, where she appeared with the Detroit Symphony. In addition, she has appeared as featured artist for the International Congress of Organists in Cambridge, England, in concert at the Royal Victoria Hall with the Singapore Symphony, at the American Cathedral in Paris, the Southern Cathedrals Festival in Winchester, England, and the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil.

A virtuoso concert organist, Marilyn Keiser has performed across the United States. In addition, she has given lectures and workshops in church music for all of the major denominations, specializing in music for small churches. She has been president of the Association of Anglican Musicians, a contributing editor to the hymnal Ecumenical Praise, has served on the Episcopal Church's Standing Commission on Church Music, and was a consultant to the Hymn Music Committee for the Episcopal Hymnal 1982. Dr. Keiser is past-Chairman of the Worship and Music Commission for the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis and is Director of Music at Trinity Episcopal Church in Bloomington. She is also the author of a publication in the Church Hymnal Teaching Series entitled Teaching Music in Small Churches. Dr. Keiser has been heard in performance on radio broadcasts throughout the United States, and has made several recordings, available from Pro Organo CDs and the Organ Historical Society.

Dr. Keiser is a member of Phi Kappa Phi and Alpha Lamba Delta national honor societies. She is also a national honorary member of Sigma Alpha Iota, a national professional music fraternity. In May of 1995, she was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters, Honoris causa, from Virginia Theological Seminary, and has also had the Doctor of Humane Letters degree conferred upon her by Illinois Wesleyan University.

Marilyn Keiser retired in 2008 following twenty-five years of service to Indiana University. As Chancellor's Professor of Music in the Jacobs School of Music, she taught applied organ and courses in the church music curriculum. Prior to her appointment at Indiana University, Dr. Keiser was Organist and Director of Music at All Souls Parish in Asheville, NC, and music consultant for the Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina, holding both positions from 1970-1983.

Make sure to listen to Marilyn Keiser on The Music of Dan Locklair from Loft Recordings