Grade 8 Pieces Options

[David Garner]

Well, I have just done Grade 7. It went OK - but could have been better. There would have been a marked improvement if I'd drawn some stops on the swell before starting my first piece (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ohmy.gif)

Anyway, with that under my belt I couldn't help looking at the Grade 8 list. Any tips on what pieces to choose? There are some stalwarts of the organ repertoire there, but I'm curious about the lesser known pieces. I have heard nothing on List C except the Whitlock toccata from the plymouth suite. List B is similarly uncharted waters, apart from the Boellman and the Howells Psalm Prelude.

So, does anyone have any thoughts on the pieces? Which are good and worth learning, which are easier/harder than average for the grade and/or have specific technical challenges?

I'm interested in your thoughts.

David.

[Holz Gedeckt]

As my syllabus is at church, any chance of a reminder of the pieces, please, David?

[organistno1]

Let someone who has taken their grade 8 organ give you some advice.

For my Grade 8 I decided on the P+F and Ciaconna by Buxtehude from list A has I had picked Bach for all my other exams.
It made a welcome change. It is a lovely piece and I prefer it to the Toccata in F. It lasts about 4-5 minutes and the only real difficulty is in the chaconne. It is of a medium tempo and though the ciaconna is marked as presto in my edition, I dont play it really fast.

The Bohm Prealudium is well worth a look. I like it but dont find it has interesting as the Buxtehude.

From list B I picked the Elgar piece (Andante Expressivo). It is really difficult for people with small hands and it is not easy to master the legato. You cant let the speed drag particularly in the louder section. I thought I would never learn it but did! It is quieter and slower than the Boellmann and the Whitlock and indeed the Buxtehude.

From list C I picked the Langlais (Mors et Ressurectio). I love his work and this didn't dissapoint. In order to play it well registration suggestions are to use a 32ft foundation stop at the beginning, an expressive trompete (I used one from the solo) and some good reeds in the pedal for the final carillon like section. It starts quiet and ends of FFF so on a big organ it sounds really good. It looks very chromatic but once you have learnt the notes, it is easish to play. There is double pedaling at the end though.

Hope this helps

[liebe_klavier]

I played the following for grade 8:

List A: Praeludium in C (with Fuga and Ciacona), BuxWV 137
List B: Mendelssohn Sonata in Bb, Op. 65 No. 4: 3rd movt, Allegretto.
List C: Flor Peeters Herr Jesus hat ein Gärtchen: No. 10 from ‘10 Organ Chorales’, Op. 39

[organ_dummy]

Hi David,

I did my Grade 8 two and a half years ago and played Bach/Vivaldi, Mendelssohn and Whitlock. Here are my thoughts on some of the pieces set for Grade 8:

Bach/Vivaldi, Concerto in A minor, 1st mvt -- moderately difficult, need to maintain clarity in articulation, and make sure the pedal doesn't sound too heavy

Bach, Fugue on a theme by Corelli -- technically easy, but need to maintain clarity of lines and be expressive

Bach, Trio Sonata in G major, 1st mvt --probably the hardest piece on List A, but worth learning, requires loads of practice to synchronise the hands and feet, requires loads to practise to shape the three independent lines musically

Buxtehude, Praeludium in C major and Toccata in F major -- moderately difficult, among the more interesting pieces by this composer, the most challenging parts are probably the fugal sections

Boellmann, Toccata -- manual parts lie easily under the fingers, easy to register on a three-manual organ but also playable on a two-manual, the only difficult bit is to align the dotted rhythm in the pedal with the semiquavers in the hands

Brahms, Chorale Prelude -- not difficult, need a good legato

Elgar, Sonata, 3rd mvt -- difficult, need to achieve a good legato on those big chords, the texture is quite dense

Howells, Psalm Prelude -- difficult, requires imaginative registration and good control of the swell shoe

Mendelssohn, Sonata, 3rd mvt -- not difficult, the main challenge is to make the semiquaver accompaniment flow and not become monotonous

Reger, Passacaglia -- difficult, almost an FRSM piece!

Dupre, Fugue in G minor -- very difficult because of the brisk tempo

Durufle, Fugue on the Carillon of Soissons -- quite difficult, doesn't sound effective on a small instrument

Peeters, Chorale Variations -- the variation in trio texture and the final variation are very difficult in terms of coordination, other variations are not too hard

Whitlock -- perhaps the easiest of all List C pieces, the organ should have at least three manuals to play this effectively

[mrbouffant]

I disagree about the Whitlock - to get it at the correct tempo and with the right degree of articulation is pretty difficult; it will also depend on the instrument you will be doing the exam on. A prompt action is an absolute must - a flabby electro-pneumatic, for example, would ruin it completely. Oh, and you need a big solo reed - Percy did like his Tuba (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

The Mendelssohn is very straightforward and the Bach Corelli Fugue is worth learning if only because Tippett used it in his Fantasia Concertante and that is a beautiful piece to get to know...

[Holz Gedeckt]

I disagree about the Whitlock - to get it at the correct tempo and with the right degree of articulation is pretty difficult; it will also depend on the instrument you will be doing the exam on. A prompt action is an absolute must - a flabby electro-pneumatic, for example, would ruin it completely. Oh, and you need a big solo reed - Percy did like his Tuba (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

The Mendelssohn is very straightforward and the Bach Corelli Fugue is worth learning if only because Tippett used it in his Fantasia Concertante and that is a beautiful piece to get to know...

Agreed, except for the fact that PW probably had to play it on pneumatic/rheumatic actions himself more often than not. EP action of whatever speed would probably have been a comparative delight for him!

[mrbouffant]

I disagree about the Whitlock - to get it at the correct tempo and with the right degree of articulation is pretty difficult; it will also depend on the instrument you will be doing the exam on. A prompt action is an absolute must - a flabby electro-pneumatic, for example, would ruin it completely. Oh, and you need a big solo reed - Percy did like his Tuba (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

The Mendelssohn is very straightforward and the Bach Corelli Fugue is worth learning if only because Tippett used it in his Fantasia Concertante and that is a beautiful piece to get to know...

Agreed, except for the fact that PW probably had to play it on pneumatic/rheumatic actions himself more often than not. EP action of whatever speed would probably have been a comparative delight for him!

Agree - but as you know there are good EP's and there are baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad ones... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[organ_dummy]

I disagree about the Whitlock - to get it at the correct tempo and with the right degree of articulation is pretty difficult; it will also depend on the instrument you will be doing the exam on. A prompt action is an absolute must - a flabby electro-pneumatic, for example, would ruin it completely. Oh, and you need a big solo reed - Percy did like his Tuba (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

I played it on a not-so-good EP that didn't have any big solo reed. I had to make changes and comprises, but in the end, the examiner liked my registration.

I still think that this is considerably easier than other pieces on List C. But maybe it's just me--fast broken chords are never a problem for me.

I remember that mrbouffant, who used to be on this forum, felt that the piece was diploma standard because of the fast tempo.

[David Garner]

As my syllabus is at church, any chance of a reminder of the pieces, please, David?

Dear Holz Gedackt,

The pieces are here:

http://www.abrsm.org/resources/organSyllabus0808.pdf

To everyone else: thank you for your useful replies! I'll reply more when I'm less busy.

David.

[Holz Gedeckt]

As my syllabus is at church, any chance of a reminder of the pieces, please, David?

Dear Holz Gedackt,

The pieces are here:

http://www.abrsm.org/resources/organSyllabus0808.pdf

To everyone else: thank you for your useful replies! I'll reply more when I'm less busy.

David.

Thanks. I think organ_dummy has summed things up quite well, although I would agree with Confutatis that the Whitlock takes some nifty playing, especially at Whitlock's tempo.

[guilmant]

My thoughts:

List A: no brainer, def Buxtehude, and probably the P, F and C in C. Its a great piece, I play it often, and so good in recitals as you can programme it with lots of different things.

List B: very much depends on what sort of organ you have. You can get away with the Boellman, Brahms and Medelssohn on fairly modest instruments, the rest need something a little more substantial to bring them off really well. The Reger in particular, because of the slow build up in registration through the variations. A personal preference would be to go for the Guilmant (not for the obvious reasons you might think!), but like the Buxtehude, a good and useful recital piece afterwards.

List C: I've never got round to learning the last two movements of the Francaix properly, but it is a useful suite of pieces, coloured with his very witty sense of humour. If memory serves me correctly, I think it was written for a friend/relative's wedding, and it was between a French and a Grman, hence the quotation in the pedals in the last movement. The Dupre is hard, very hard, though a doddle compared with the prelude! I play and have recorded all of the Whitlock Suite, but there's quite a bit of organ management in the Toccata, so real familiarity with the instrument is a must. (A colleague of mine once examined at a UK major cathedral choir school, where the three organ candidates had only been let loose on the cathedral instrument a couple of weeks before, not aised for this piece.) Don't know enough about the other pieces.

My final choice:
Prelude, Fugue and Chacconne in C; Buxtehude
March on a theme by Handel; Guilmant
Messe de Marriage; Francaix

Hope that's helpful!

[organ_dummy]

List A: no brainer, def Buxtehude, and probably the P, F and C in C. Its a great piece, I play it often, and so good in recitals as you can programme it with lots of different things.

I play and have recorded all of the Whitlock Suite, but there's quite a bit of organ management in the Toccata, so real familiarity with the instrument is a must.

Although I have tried very hard in many occasions, I still find Buxtehude's music rather dull and uninspiring. But the P, F and C in C major can be a useful item on recital programmes and as a service voluntary.

The Whitlock Toccata isn't bad in terms of organ management if the instrument has general pistons.

[guilmant]

Although I have tried very hard in many occasions, I still find Buxtehude's music rather dull and uninspiring. But the P, F and C in C major can be a useful item on recital programmes and as a service voluntary.

I'll be honest and admit I used to think the same for many years. It wasn't until I went to some Performanc Practice classes at university (when the sylus fantisicus was introduced), coupled with hearing people like Tom Koopman play it, I realised what wondeful and exciting music it can be. The G minor P and F that starts with the sextuplets is also worth learning, some strange harmonic twists near the end.

In terms of programming it goes rather well with Bach Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C, and the Krebs Prelude and Fugue in C; a teacher-pupil/teacher-pupil set of influences.

The piece also forms the basis of the first movement of Eben's Hommage to Buxtehude.

[organ_dummy]

I'll be honest and admit I used to think the same for many years. It wasn't until I went to some Performanc Practice classes at university (when the sylus fantisicus was introduced), coupled with hearing people like Tom Koopman play it, I realised what wondeful and exciting music it can be. The G minor P and F that starts with the sextuplets is also worth learning, some strange harmonic twists near the end.

The piece also forms the basis of the first movement of Eben's Hommage to Buxtehude.

Buxtehude introduces many interesting ideas in his music, but my feeling is that he didn't quite know how to deal with those good ideas.

I was looking at the G minor work that Eben quoted. That piece is worse than the P F & C!