In advanced organ music written for 3 parts, such as Bach Trio Sonatas, every part is highly independent. Here even the bass can imitate the soprano or the middle part very frequently. This produces huge technical difficulties for the organist.
Probably the most important tip here is to master each individual part separately. Practice it to the degree that you could play it from memory from the beginning until the end without stopping. Apply the usual memorization technique where you subdivide the piece in fragments of 4 measures and first memorize each measure individually, then two measures at a time, then three measures without stopping and at last the entire four-measure fragment. In order to connect the fragments and the measures, start and finish each fragment on the downbeat of the measure. After you master each part separately, start combining the two parts together. If you want for this process to be as enjoyable as possible, every single combination of two parts must be mastered before going on to the entire three-part texture. Every single step in the above procedure has to be done very slowly. Perhaps twice as slow than the concert tempo. You will pick up the tempo very naturally once the piece has sunk in into your hands and feet. Some people do these steps but still have problems with controlling the trio texture. If this is the case with you, there might be two reasons for this. The first reason might be that the piece is too difficult for you at the moment. It doesn't necessarily mean you will not master it. However, it might take many months in which case you might lose interest in practicing them over such a long period. Therefore, it would be wiser to master a few less challenging pieces before going to the advanced level composition. The second reason might have something to do with focusing your mind. Very often we sort of know the piece and it appears that we have done all the necessary steps to master it and yet we still make some mistakes. Sometimes we can play fluently, sometimes not. Then try to fix your eyes (and your mind) on the measure you are currently playing. Dismiss your thoughts about the previous fragments or the ones that are coming up next. This is very difficult to achieve because our mind is constantly moving. But like every muscle, the mind can also be trained with diligent and mindful practice over time. Please note that even in less advanced music written in a trio texture, many organists feel quite a challenge to control the three parts. So if you are in such situation, the above points and tips will definitely help you as well. P.S. There could be a third reason as well but we would like to dismiss it sometimes overemphasizing the importance of simply playing the music. I'll say it anyway: the lack of practical knowledge in music theory. If you could build a solid foundation from the ground up of how this piece is put together, if you could know exactly why this note (or chord) is here and what is its function and meaning in a musical composition, then not only your understanding and appreciation of the piece would improve dramatically but also your playing level as well. I have found out that the best way to go about learning music theory and the structure of the composition is to created a similar piece based on the model you are currently playing. Not only it is absolutely amazing feeling to have created something of your own but there is no way you can do it successfully unless you understand all the intricacies of your model piece. It doesn't mean you have to compose long and difficult pieces. It could be simple 8 measure preludes at first. You don't need to look very far for the proof of the above statement. Look at any master organist you respect. They know their pieces inside out. Moreover, they think like composers do. In fact, many of them are composers themselves. So start today.
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Is not because we want to prepare for a church service.
Is not because we want to prepare for a recital. Is not because we have to prepare for an exam. Is not because we have to meet a deadline. Is not because we want to impress others. For an artist, the act of practicing is self-validating. By practicing we want to give back to God (or whatever higher power you believe in) all we got from him. For us who have a calling or a dream to advance our craft, not to practice would be in fact selfish. The real reason we practice is that we don't have a choice. When a professional shows up at work, he stays there for however long is his working day. Normally he doesn't leave his working place because of any distractions which might come his way. In fact, he shuts off all distractions and does his work.
If you get a plumber to fix your toilet, he doesn't leave until the job is done (or at least until his part of the job for this day is done). If you go to the dentist, he doesn't let you go until he finishes whatever he decided to do with your teeth. Organ practice can be like that. An organist with professional attitude doesn't stop practicing until she has completed her work for this day. She doesn't check her email, turn off her cell phone and any other distractions. Sure, she takes breaks, drinks a glass of water, stretches or takes a walk but later she comes back to practice for more. In the middle of her practice she doesn't listen to this voice in the back of her head which says: Oh, you've done enough for today, go now and watch some TV. If she decided she will practice for 90 minutes, she will do that for 90 and not 85 minutes. If her plan was to practice for 30 minutes, she will not leave after 28 minutes. The reason we want to quit practicing early is because of Resistence (Steven Pressfield's term) - this wierd internal force which tries to sabotage our success in whatever it is we decide to do. Every day is a battle between you and Resistence. You can win this battle by wearing a hat of the professional. That's a complicated question. We can remember times when concert halls and churches were full of lovers of organ music. In the past 15 years, the situation has changed.
People have many more choices now. Sure, there are a few elite concert halls and cathedrals which don't seem to get a shortage of people interested in organ music but for the majority of venues - that's a difficult time. If you choose a concert which you would like to attend, you have to like at least one of these 4 things about it: 1. The music 2. The performer 3. The instrument 4. The venue The problem is when a person doesn't know the music, nor the performer or the instrument or the venue. In other words, she doesn't have any personal ralationship with them. In this case chances that she will choose to come to that concert are very slim. Of course, I'm only talking about a person who goes to concerts from time to time. But there a plenty of people who don't go to concerts whatsoever. Then only her friends or relatives whom she trusts can convince her to come. No advertisement or marketing (in the traditional meaning of the word) can change her mind. Another problem is that for our would-be listeners many of our concerts really don't differ that much one from another. Yes, there is a difference between the performers or music or instruments but in general, often they are average concerts for average listeners. This tactic could have worked in times when there was only one concert a year in such a town. People simply didn't have a choice. Now if you are in a larger city, the listeners have abundance of choices. Plus there is an unlimited organ music supply on the Internet for everyone which makes the matter dramatically worse. If you are the performer, you have only one solution - find 10 people who trust you and who can't live without organ music and offer them a concert which would be so unique and remarkable and live-changing that every one of them would feel compelled to bring 10 of their friends to your next concert. And each of these friends later would invite 10 of their friends. So 10 x 10 x 10. That's how you spread the idea about organ music. When it comes to writing in the registration changes in the organ composition, usually people do one of the following:
1. Write in the stop numbers. 2. Write in the shortenings of stop names. The problem with the first method is that you don't know what exactly stops to change, you only see the numbers. Also if you want to re-use the same composition on a different organ, you have to erase or remove every registration marking to fit the new organ. And if you play the same piece after a break of several years, you might even not remember what stops did you use. The problem with the second method is that it takes time to get used to such system (for example, instead of adding Principal 8' and Subbass 16' of the pedal division, write Ped. + P8, SB16 etc.). But the beauty of this method is that it allows you to see what stops you are using. This method prevents strange mistakes an assistant can make. For example, instead of pulling 37 (Mixture), would engage 38 (Trompete). If you knew the difference between the Mixture and the Trompete and had at least a partial sense of good taste, you wouldn't get confused, right? Sure, it's easier for the assistant (and for you) to only worry about the numbers but in the long run, it's far more effective to actually help both of you think about the stops themselves. It's better to use your brain in addition to your eyes. When an organist is seeking for more information about some aspect of organ playing, it may mean that she is hiding from doing the important work.
More books on registration, more advice on fingering and pedaling, more manuals for your organ, more organ music videos, if you can get all these things, what then? Sure, at the beginning you must know the basics how to depress the keys and pedals and how to read music, but even more importantly - you have to do the scary work of facing yourself and simply doing the work. More information will not give you the results, taking action day after day will. 1. Too much unity
2. Too much contrast Too much unity - no change in texture, key, mode, melodic and harmonic direction, too many repetitive rhythms. Too much contrast - constant change of new textures, themes, rhythms, melodic contour, harmony, keys, modes, and other compositional elements. A good improvisation (like a good composition) must have a balance between unity and contrast. A remarkable improvisation happens when the listener (but not the organist) forgets about all these compositional elements and simply is in awe. If we wanted to count the stars which are visible by the naked eye, it seems like it would take us a very long time. Although the number of these stars is limited, the feeling is that even the visible part of the sky is limitless.
I think organ music is rather similar to the sky. In those seven hundred years (from the point when we have the first surviving manuscripts of organ music) composers created an unbelievable amount of pieces. If the organist would want to sight-read at least once through every single surviving composition, probably it would take a few years to do it. But if you wanted to listen at least once through every YouTube organ video - you would need more than your full life's span for this purpose. The beauty of it is that these videos can be seen by every person who is interested - you can listen to them and share, you can raise interesting questions about any of the pieces or videos, you can write blog posts about them. There really are no limits for generous and curious minds (unless we create them, of course). The first way is to amplify fear.
Calling a person on the phone to ask her to do something and remind her of the favor you have done for her in the past. Sending an email to someone without having permission and trust to do so. Talking with an employee in a way that would remind him that I'm in charge here. The second way is to amplify passion. Giving an example by leading and watching other people grow. Stepping forward and volunteering when everybody around you says "it's hopeless" or "it's stupid". Giving that kid support he needs and showing faith in him even though our natural response would be to punish him for what he has done wrong. The problem with the first way is that you sometimes can get what you want, but you won't get respect and trust from this person. You would steal his dignity this way. The beauty with the second way is that you and the person you interact with will both change from this interaction for the better. You would increase his humanity. You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help other people get what they want (Zig Ziglar). Have you had a situation when you play the organ and feel that something is not right? That your little finger or other parts of the body start to be in pain?
This situation is dangerous but you can always listen to how your body feels in your practice and make necessary changes. This may mean you need to stop playing before your fingers or your back or your ankles start to feel tired. It's easy to get lost in the music, to feel the pressure of the deadline approaching, to push yourself too much. But if you want to practice for long years to come, you need to relax, breath deeply and slowly and not to overexert yourself. The hard part is figuring out the right practice plan (the choice of music, the choice of practice routine, the choice of fingering and pedaling) in advance so that you don't need to overexert yourself. |
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Drs. Vidas Pinkevicius and Ausra Motuzaite-Pinkeviciene Organists of Vilnius University , creators of Secrets of Organ Playing. Our Hauptwerk Setup:
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