That was from the program,"Evening At Pops" with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra. And Mr. Fox was the guest. I remember seeing that broadcast on TV . And it was the first time I ever heard Mr. Fox.
This was obviously a Boston Pops concert with the late Arthur Fiedler. This must have been an encore. What did he play with the Pops Orchestra? Would be wonderful if that could be posted!
I remember watching this concert when it was originally broadcast...the "Main Event" was the Symphonie Concertante" by Joseph Jongen. I believe that Virgil was the first to record that monumental work in about 1958 or so. There is a more recent performance (about a year before VF died) on YouTube, but I think that the original recording was better. I'll always remember the many times I heard Virgil live...there was no comparison.
Dear mountainsong, if you knew Virgil, it was his way only ! right down to pedaling, his system, hand position for fast notes, his way, Only if you knew him as I did, can you understand. Thanks for you comment.
Virgil's rhythm was always spot on. Strong drive of the pulse in all his playing. I truly miss him as my friend and mentor. Sometimes when playing I think to myself, is this how he would want me to play this piece.
Lips, I'll teach you how to play the Gigue as I do - without ceasing the Mordents, Grace Notes and Trills after the beginning. Times are for E. P. Biggs' recording. 0:48 - Mordent followed by Grace Notes and Trill 1:01 - pedal Mordent 1:23 - M & GN 1:50 - M & GN (no second grace note) 2:10 - pedal M, 2:13 - Trill (or Mordent) on pedal E 2:23 - M & GN 2:40 - M & GN 2:55 - pedal M (Have I failed to list some Trills?)
This was great fun. My advice is to ignore musical snobs who try to confine and categorise the genius of Bach to suit their pretensions. And it is ridiculous to compare Fox to Liberace. I wish I had had the chance to see more than the one Fox concert I managed way back in 1968!
Two Great Legends together. The Late Virgil Fox and The Late Arthur Fiedler. This was done at Symphony Hall in Boston, Mass. Oh to have been there and heard these 2 great legends together. I wish there was copy of the whole preformance with better quality Video. Godspeed to both Virgil Fox and Arthur Fiedler. You will Never Be Forgotten.
One would wonder if those who deplor Virgil Fox's musicianship could Play from memory the works of JSBach in every tonality on the keyboard all in one concert,,he did!,The Bach Gamut, at Kennedy Center,,play a different 21/2 hour concert every other night,(from memory only) for 10 month of the year?,,he did,,will have their name etched on anything other than their own tomb stone after 30 years. Virgil Fox's will.But then,those who have done more than he can cast the first stone.
@sirinferno Let's see you do better.....He at least made organ playing fun for the masses instead of dry. I to play the organ and have played professionally but compared to Fox, I am a rank beginner...his technique and skill was unsurpassed. When he toured with his "Black Beauty", he introduced Bach to the masses and made it fun as it is meant to be. The call the organ the King of the Instruments for a reason and Fox was its master.....
i don't need to do better; i'm just someone evaluating the "master of the organ" title, and even perusing youtube's related videos i can see plenty of people executing this piece in a superior manner
sure, laud him for making organ playing fun, or introducing Bach to people, or humble yourself in comparison to his playing skills, but don't try and pretend he's some kind of virtuoso organ player in this piece, when he plainly isn't.
This is just so appallingly American. It has nothing to do whatsoever with Bachs music. Virgil Fox could certainly move his agile fingers, but his musical taste, oh, my God !! -Why is everything the Americans do in such low taste. Every musial piece is made so trite and shallow and reduced to being the cheapest imaginable vulgar entertainment. Didn't Virgil Fox once say, "Bach, he is just one hell of a guy". He was the Liberace of the organ, a clown !
@bihonning I think this comment is just a little unfair and unqualified (in its context). Virgil Fox did a great deal to revive public interest in Bach's wonderful music. A little more research should be done be for dismissing him as a "clown". He had a very great musical talent, even if his playing of Bach was not to your particular taste. His musical talent far and away transcended his interpretation of Bach. His artistry deserves more investigation, lest you be just another ignorant critic.
jacekrz01, wiem, że też jesteś organistą (świetnym z resztą), ale Virgil Fox chciał zaznajomić zwykłych, prostych ludzi z muzyką Bacha. A jedyny na to sposób to zrobić z tego show, tak jak z resztą robi to dziś Waldemar Malicki. I to tyle.
I saw him live when I was 16. I have been hooked on Bach and organ music ever since! It was a mind blowing experience with lights and insence! I got to meet him afterward. he was like an elf!
What a gifted clown he was ! Yet, so far from music...On one occasion, the comment was made by one of Bachs companions, My guests cannot dance at your dance music! Others commented that his music was too beautiful to be danced to as they stood in place clapping to the beat. Bachs reply was, The thing is that I want them to listen and not to dance...
Back in the 1960's, Fox played the dedicatory recital of a new organ in The Presbyterian Church at Tenafly, NJ, of which my father was later a pastor. He loved the instrument, but in rehearsal, something was wrong. He looked up and saw "acoustic tile" in the barrel vault of the ceiling, the unhelpful contribution of some misguided architect. In front of everyone, he then hurled himself onto the floor of the chancel, drumming his fists and heels, and yelling "no, no, no, no..." What a character!
@farthereast54 . I was with working with Virgil at that time and to all our viewers, I say this person is fancifull,but I do have stories about"men of the cloth" in Tenafly, thanks for recalling them to memory I had tried to forget.!!
David Snyder Lumierist, Revelation Lights Heavy Organ Productions.
In fairness to both DavidSnyderLumierist and Virgil Fox' memory, I tell this story second hand as it was a bit of the lore of that church, oft repeated. The truth is likely lost to history as nearly all of the players are dead. I am, however, fascinated to know what unbidden memories of clergy I may have provoked. If D S L would like to contact me, I would interested to learn his take on all of that, and his role in it.
This guy is just the coolest -- I remember him from when I was a kid. My dad loved his recordings. He rocks ... Who else can get a ton of people clapping and dancing to Bach?
@janiscortese I agree. And as far as that jerk a couple comments back saying he was a clown, AND appalingly American, well he can get his butt up there and perform with even a tiny bit of Virgil's talent then he can say what he wants. I don't think we will see another like Virgil in our life time
This was great fun. My advice is to ignore musical snobs who try to confine and categorise the genius of Bach to suit their pretensions. And it is ridiculous to compare Fox to Liberace. I wish I had had the chance to see more than the one Fox concert I managed way back in 1968!
Myślę, że troszkę pokory by się Panu przydało. Nie wiem czy się Pan orientuje jak wiele ten człowiek osiągnął i jaką okrył się sławą. Fox był, jest i będzie wirtuozem organów (dla mnie), ale myślę, że wielu się ze mną zgodzi w tej materii.
Pokorę należy okazać Bachowi, nie robiąc z Jego Muzyki knajpianej rozrywkki. Doceniam dokonania Pana Foxa i szanuję jego dorobek, dlatego tym bardziej nie mogę pogodzić się z tym, że tej miary artysta arcydzieła Johanna Sebastiana wobec wielotysięcznej widowni nieudolnie i z zamysłem by się wygłupić prezentuje jak kurewski taniec z kiepskiego wodewilu w stroju godnym klauna w tych okolicznościach przyrody.
Wg mnie muzyka Bacha jest na tyle uniwersalna, że - podejrzewam - nawet w knajpie możnaby się dobrze przy niej bawić. Proszę zwrócić uwagę jaką ci ludzie na filmie mają radość z tej muzyki. Okazuje się, że do fugi Bacha można sobie nawet potańczyć:) A swoją drogą to chciałbym tak "nieudolnie" grać na organach.
I was blessed enough to see him play in person, somewhere in San Diego, 74? I stood on the chair and whoooohood!
What an awesome experience I will never forget.
Also got to see Mighty Moe played by Regenald Fourte...oh those were the days. I took lessons at College Ave Babtist church, but it didn't come naturally to me, but I do appreatiate great talant. I loved my teacher, Lois Parsely...I hope to see him in the great beyond! He was most precious soul ever! I will never forget him!
Diane Belcher Not complimentary enough? Wonderful! Perfectempo. First mordent note was held too long. This is natural and would happen elsewherexcepthat other notes keep the rhythm steady. Love mordent at 2:23! Why not everywherelse? (I continue the mordents, grace notes and trills throughout.) Play the first note of the subject for its full value. Don't leave it too quickly. Play pedal notes for their full value. No leaving too soon to get to the next note.
Thanks for posting! That was the year I fell in love with Bach, & I was dancing up & down during this Pops performance. I guess you have to be young & uninhibited to dance to it :-)
I agree whole heartedly. It is good to have a performer who makes music like this fun. So what if he is a big showman. Some of the naysayers kill me with "clown this" and "clown that"! Come on people. Enjoy the music people!
I saw Fox do this live, and I remember watching this Boston Pops show - This piece is one of THE most difficult organ works (ask someone you know who plays organ in any church if they'll play it for you... yeah, right). Yet he pulls it off like he was waiting for coffee to brew. An absolute genius, Fox was.
Arthur Fiedler and Virgil - amazing. Thanks for uploading this gem. And to the ignorant that think Sebastian Bach did NOT pen this work... well... God bless you and go back to your EZ listening records. If you can read, you might see if your library has a copy of Phillip Spitta's biography of Bach. Perhaps the nurses in the home will help you get a copy?
Well since you started the abuse (typical of Virgil Fox fanatics), you are the "dumbass' as the fugue almost certainly isn't by Bach. That is why it was omitted from the New Bach edition.
Sorry, MEP, but you are incorrect. Bach most certainly did compose the fugue, and it is clearly marked as Gigue in the tempo.
Not only have I studied organ, I also toured with Virgil for nearly a year, and he and I discussed the structure of the piece many times. If you check the catalog, it's not too hard to find it.
I agree. I'm no scholar but I can tell that the construction piece is so ingenious that I can hardly believe anyone other than Bach wrote it.
Now unless we find the manuscripts then there is no way to actually know we can know for certain but this sounds like something Bach would definitely have done.
@MEPPO06 No.ne.lse was capable of writing this magnificent fugue. I wish another had written it. Buxtehude had the right idea but could not develop it as Bach did this fugue. So wonderful on so many levels.
Just because you are talking does not mean you are not paying attention to what you are doing. It means he memorized the music. Another example of this, my piano teacher used to play at a piano bar...wheny ou play for 5 hours straight you learn to play attention to what youre doing while playing an instrument and be able to talk to people at the same time. Did it occur to you maybe he practiced talking during it before playing because he wanted to teach people about the music while he played.
It doesn't seems to be the case...Especially during the episodes between the exposition of the theme in the development ! Articulation is the first thing which fails....And is a very important thing in a type of piece a fugue is !
Does it matter that some don't agree with his style of playing? Look, there's an audience at the organ concert. He seemed to do anything to make people fall in love with the instrument and also with J.S. Bach.
I don't consider myself important enough to be judgmental about someone whose career in the art of playing the organ is indelible in the history of the instrument. In other words, Virgil Fox is beyond criticism. It doesn't matter what those bigots down there say. Anyway, Fox as a musician was greatly interactive with his audience, and that's what made accessible and not unreachable like other maestros. I think that's why he's so well remembered today, and will always be.& this is my fave version
We can listen to some of those concerts that Virgil played for the hippies at the Fillmore in the late 60's at Wolfgangsvault which is Bill (Wolfgang) Graham's concert archives. A great website with some historic music from the 60's and 70's.
Fox can play this all day with authority and move the crowd like no other. It's a shame there isn't anyone like him playing the organ like this now. This is talent and showmanship, something not seen much today. It's also a shame people thinking Brittney Spears is the vioce of their generation.
All you organ purist snobs: I'll bet very few of you know that J. S. Bach once got into a sword fight for calling someone a "nanny goat bassoonist". That alone indicates a man with spirit! No doubt, were he alive today, he would yet create master works that would continue to live as his 18th century work does. And you can damned well bet that he would be an extremely prolific and versatile composer, not limiting himself to one genre or rigid style as you are so fond to believe he once did.
haha....it's funny how people are quick to state that oh no Bach couldn't have written this.... I guess ignorant people tend to forget that Bach, while being a sacred man, liked to relax with a few beers and remember popular secular music of the time as well. He was just like many of the other famous composers in that respect.... I'm sure Bach was one hell of a showman in his day as well, especially considering how he was friends with Frederick the Great and all.... :-)
The fastest I've ever heard it. A little more volume from the pedals and a bit less noise from the audience and performer would have enhanced it, but, hey! he's a performer par excellence!
i dont like fox's interpretations they are inaccurate and flashy beyond recognition BUT i do admire his ability to get the audience on his side and there is clearly great technical ability here.
@lipsbach So funny. My girlfriend and I were wearing hiking boots. While driving we happened to discover an Allen Organ store and stopped in. (No longer there.)
Yes, I continue the mordents, grace notes and trills throughout. More difficult, but wortheffort. Does anyonelse? Under E. Power Biggs' recording, I list what ornaments, where.
My recordings are on cassette.
Too bad the crowd clapped - and out of time.
Wish we could hear Virgil better. Also wish he weren't so sloppy here.
@robertgift I'm finished with this piece, and i usually add a trill at 3:18 which my teacher finds unusual but delightful nonetheless... I wonder if I could get a proper recording of me playing because I would certainly post it on youtube
Years ago I made camcorderecordings from three different views. Surprisingly, the tempo remained closenough that all three recordings could have been combined as though one recording session with three cameras! I did nothink I'd be consistant enough.
But I had no way to edithe recordings to appear as one. They are on 8mm stereo video.
Have someone record from different places. Or set up and run to the console and record, run back and stop, move to another location, press record and run to the console, repeat. Good for theart and sweating is also good! My camcorder had no remote. Not sure if the remote's range would benough, anyway. But worth a try.
Continue all the ornaments athe beginning throughouthe work, even in the pedal. Find my notes in Biggs' video.
@robertgift not sure If i could do any trills on the pedal yet, I mean, i can, but it would be plenty more practicing now that i've finished the piece... I wonder if you'd be surprised that this is the first song I've ever formally learned on organ... all others I've learned where hymns by ear.
This was also an early WORK in my repertoire because I love it so much. I learned a fewonderful hymns but most are boring.
You can do ALL the trills. I had to "Finger them out" to have fingers available.
Th.is best played fromemory. (All pieces are.)
Practice with a metronome at a very slow tempo to keep everything perfect, even and steady. Metronome is such a great coach! Don't leave some pedal notes too soon to geto others - play them full value.
@robertgift yes, that's the exact reason I learned it so early as well. Before I picked it up for organ, I arranged it for piano by ear. If anything, I'll be looking for some constructive criticism if I DO manage to post it since my organ technique (due to being a born and raised classical pianist), is almost infantile at best! I'll have to find out the best way to record this on my own of course, and since my teacher made me a key to the cathedral and organ, I should have no problem time-wise!
Alra1975, you are a stuck-up snob and you probably don't play an instrument AT ALL, let alone well. If you have studied the lives of the great composers and knew ANYTHING, you would know that a composer's work only lives when it is played and listened to, not left to academics, who will never play as well as Fox did. He studied with Marcel Dupre, you ignoramus, and you ought to be able to tell that he has excellent technique, if you weren't such an idiot, musical illiterate that you are.
Yes, illiterate folks like me. Thanks for that. Educated and learned musician here that has read just about every Bach book I can get my hands on. He may not have been Mahler or Mozart or even Lasso, but he brought hundreds of new (mostly unmusical) folks to Bach and classical music. When you can do that, you'll be better than him.
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
Fox was an entertainer, a showman.
That was his choice, he abandoned the musician way for the entertaining one, for money, fame and success.
He was the Elvis of the organ.
He was like McDonald's, cheap food for cheap money.
Art is no cheap entertainment; when Art becomes fun-fair entertainment like a circus show, it is no more Art, it is a parody of Art, indicated for sub-cultural purposes, for uneducated masses of people, as Fox did.
If he can bring thousands of people to know the name of Bach, then he's done nothing wrong in my book. There are thousands of "serious" conductors that have done WORSE in the name of showmanship than Fox ever did.
What is the musician way? Being so serious in your art that you forget to laugh or have a little fun? God help us then, because there were times when even Mozart wouldn't be a "musician." I'll agree, Fox isn't Wagner or Bach; but he serves a purpose in the musical world.
Fox was a showman. Fox was an entertainer. Fox was also an organist, and a musician.
He was one of the few people who were able to prove that the four are not distinct, and I don't know if there will be any others like him, but there haven't been so far.
Wow, I guess ignorance really is bliss..... for someone that was "like McDonald's," I guess the fact that he memorized ALL of Bach's organ works, played over 600 concerts while serving the United States in uniform (in addition to his numerous other tours), and was the first American allowed to play at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig really illustrates how "cheap" he is.
Dr. Fox was brilliant and yes risque at times, but ultimately he brought people from all walks of life to the organ.
I don't know if alra1975 is just trying to wind people up or not. If he is being serious then he is in the running for stupidest YouTube poster of all time. Seriously, "uncoltured"?? People always complain about pointing out spelling mistakes in arguments but why is it that those who try to criticize the intellectual abilities of Americans usually tend to have the spelling ability of a chimp? Learn how to read and write before you criticize others, alra!
This was, of course, recorded in the days before "whooping" and "howling" became de rigeur behaviour for American audiences. Imagine the holwing that would accompany this performance nowadays!
Saw/heard Virgil Fox in person over 30 years ago in Balto. He played this and "Now Thank we all our God" and I was hooked. He brought Bach to the masses. I wish he were still with us, but he's probably entertaining Him now.
In Europe, Virgil Fox is completly unknown. If I understand, Fox liked to popularize organ music, and even for a Frenchman like me I think it was a very good idea. Anyway,he did not intend to be a success with musicians or people who already know this music. And too many organists betray JS Bach in playing his opus with boredom, or too mechanically. It is possible to criticize this kind of show, but at least I prefer this kind of enthusiastic organists to some boring guys !
He was indeed well known in Europe, particularly France where he studied for two years and concertized in the mid 20th century. He very much loved France.
I have a CD of VF, I think it was one of the first CD's made in US. I bought it long ago because it had some music I was interested in, but had never heard of Virgil, me being from Puerto Rico. I was astounded by his palying when I heard the CD. However, it's not until now I realize how great of a showman the man was. I always imagined him being an austere and humorless genius of the organ, Nothing fartehr from the truth, and I'm so glad it is so, This video has made me even more of a fan.
I love the way he bounces his hands up and down, not exactly what most teachers would call 'good organ playing technique', but who cares? I bounce my hands around when practicing this too!
I am a serious musician, I play in orchestra still and this video is fantastic. To get people interested in Bach is not an easy task.Fox had a way of engaging people and it worked. Bach was not a stuffy old man, listen to the music, full of life and dance. Thinking Bach is stuffy is the kitsch.
Though Fox is more than a bit flamboyant for my own taste (think the Liberace of the pipe organ), if in his lifetime he got some measure of the general public interested in and listening to Bach's music with a different ear than just as it's boring classical stuff, and in so doing actually piqued their interest enough to get them to try some of his other, more serious yet equally sublime works, Mr. Fox did his job well, albeit in his campy way :) The performance STILL is flawless!
Fox was definitely campy, but, he was also a serious musician, let us not forget, he was a graduate of Peabody, with artist's Certificate, and became head of Peabody's organ dept. at an age when most people are just beginning their careers, or are still studying for a career. Fox was also organist at Riverside for a number of years, and Riverside, as everyone knows is "only" the second largest pipe organ in New York. Fox was very campy, but he got many to listen to Bach and as a whole organmusic
Man, what is your problem? If you do not like Fox, then don't listen. I frankly love his interpretations of Bach, as well as the fact that he makes it accessable to people that might not otherwise ever listen to such music. Yes, I love E. Power Biggs; I also love death metal and music for string quartet. If I don't like something, I simply don't listen. I don't post nasty comments about others that have a musical skill far superior to mine.
Yes, I am very very jealous of Fox charlatanerie, buffoonerie and McDonald's styled ridiculous, entertaining sub-cultural performances for illiterate peasants...
But its music, its meant to entertain - its about people!! Of course theres a place for serious music (I spend my life attending serious organ recitals!), but at the end of the day, the organ is an instrument made by people for people, like a guitar, violin, etc.
Says who, why?? Such a glum view of life!! Take my advice, go drink a good bottle of Bordeaux or Rioja, then go play the organ. It'll be so much more fun, I guarentee it!! :-))
The organ he plays here is not electronic, it is the 75 rank Aeolian-Skinner Opus 1134. I can't fathom how you consider Virgil Fox's performances 'sub-cultural'; they were anything but sub-cultural, and I cannot figure how you could call the people he performed for 'illiterate peasants'. This is in my home city and I feel offended. He played a concert at the University where I live now; are the students 'illiterate peasants'? I know some very, very intelligent people who adore his playing.
Sono indeciso se sia più penosa l'esecuzione carica di errori di quel pagliaccio integrale di Fox o forse la massa di bifolchi che batte le mani facendo balletti...
Anzi, adesso che ci penso direi che trattasi di un connubio perfetto!
Symphony Hall, Boston Mass. It has been somewhat altered since Fox gave this concert here, my understanding is that it was rebuilt and was given some new pipework, mostly principals, but is mostly the same as it was in 1949 when it was done by AEolian Skinner.
The specification was rearranged to be a large three-manual instrument, and its new console was built accordingly. Check out the Foley-Baker organ company's website for a full description of what was done...
Wow! I play this piece and i cant imagine talking and pulling stops while playing it all at the same time! what an infectious rhythm he had! very sweet how he asks the great conductor Arthur Fiedler to "come on, give us a little twirl!" and then he does! what fun they all had that night.
hopefully people went home inspired to listen to more JS Bach! too bad organ concerts are usually SO boring now, suggesting that "fun" or flair is an effront to it or Bach. it's not ALWAYS IN the music!
We had his recordings when I was a kid too, loved him.
duckypam 1 month ago
Thank you Virgil, we all miss you.
phonophaninfl 1 month ago
That was from the program,"Evening At Pops" with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra. And Mr. Fox was the guest. I remember seeing that broadcast on TV . And it was the first time I ever heard Mr. Fox.
johnhrobiii 4 months ago
Virgil Fox passed away a year before I was born, I am still amazed how a true master of the organ he was.
Jerr00Bear 5 months ago
There is nothing like Virgil Fox ! He was a master and a great showman :-)
Amunhotep4th 6 months ago
This was obviously a Boston Pops concert with the late Arthur Fiedler. This must have been an encore. What did he play with the Pops Orchestra? Would be wonderful if that could be posted!
kraftpr 1 year ago
@kraftpr
I remember watching this concert when it was originally broadcast...the "Main Event" was the Symphonie Concertante" by Joseph Jongen. I believe that Virgil was the first to record that monumental work in about 1958 or so. There is a more recent performance (about a year before VF died) on YouTube, but I think that the original recording was better. I'll always remember the many times I heard Virgil live...there was no comparison.
VaPipeorgantuner 1 year ago
Dear mountainsong, if you knew Virgil, it was his way only ! right down to pedaling, his system, hand position for fast notes, his way, Only if you knew him as I did, can you understand. Thanks for you comment.
mountainsong100 1 year ago
Virgil's rhythm was always spot on. Strong drive of the pulse in all his playing. I truly miss him as my friend and mentor. Sometimes when playing I think to myself, is this how he would want me to play this piece.
mountainsong100 1 year ago
@mountainsong100 Virgil would want you to play it YOUR way, not copy him.
He said, "Let the notes speak for themsleves."
This was so fun. The dancers must have been exhausted by the end.
robertgift 1 year ago
If the musician is able to involve all your senses while playing an instrument, then you are in front of a genius.
Deathss81 1 year ago
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robertgift 1 year ago
How the hell does he talk and play at the same time????? amazing.
John19182004 1 year ago 2
This was great fun. My advice is to ignore musical snobs who try to confine and categorise the genius of Bach to suit their pretensions. And it is ridiculous to compare Fox to Liberace. I wish I had had the chance to see more than the one Fox concert I managed way back in 1968!
RupertW1 1 year ago 2
ma per favore, ma sei ridicolo veramente... che tristezza..
aosjimzaw 1 year ago
Two Great Legends together. The Late Virgil Fox and The Late Arthur Fiedler. This was done at Symphony Hall in Boston, Mass. Oh to have been there and heard these 2 great legends together. I wish there was copy of the whole preformance with better quality Video. Godspeed to both Virgil Fox and Arthur Fiedler. You will Never Be Forgotten.
WolfyRandallBear69 1 year ago 2
One would wonder if those who deplor Virgil Fox's musicianship could Play from memory the works of JSBach in every tonality on the keyboard all in one concert,,he did!,The Bach Gamut, at Kennedy Center,,play a different 21/2 hour concert every other night,(from memory only) for 10 month of the year?,,he did,,will have their name etched on anything other than their own tomb stone after 30 years. Virgil Fox's will.But then,those who have done more than he can cast the first stone.
DavidSnyderLumierist 1 year ago
so many mistakes...
sirinferno 1 year ago
@sirinferno Let's see you do better.....He at least made organ playing fun for the masses instead of dry. I to play the organ and have played professionally but compared to Fox, I am a rank beginner...his technique and skill was unsurpassed. When he toured with his "Black Beauty", he introduced Bach to the masses and made it fun as it is meant to be. The call the organ the King of the Instruments for a reason and Fox was its master.....
flh5281 1 year ago
@flh5281
i don't need to do better; i'm just someone evaluating the "master of the organ" title, and even perusing youtube's related videos i can see plenty of people executing this piece in a superior manner
sure, laud him for making organ playing fun, or introducing Bach to people, or humble yourself in comparison to his playing skills, but don't try and pretend he's some kind of virtuoso organ player in this piece, when he plainly isn't.
sirinferno 1 year ago
This is just so appallingly American. It has nothing to do whatsoever with Bachs music. Virgil Fox could certainly move his agile fingers, but his musical taste, oh, my God !! -Why is everything the Americans do in such low taste. Every musial piece is made so trite and shallow and reduced to being the cheapest imaginable vulgar entertainment. Didn't Virgil Fox once say, "Bach, he is just one hell of a guy". He was the Liberace of the organ, a clown !
bihonning 1 year ago
@bihonning I think this comment is just a little unfair and unqualified (in its context). Virgil Fox did a great deal to revive public interest in Bach's wonderful music. A little more research should be done be for dismissing him as a "clown". He had a very great musical talent, even if his playing of Bach was not to your particular taste. His musical talent far and away transcended his interpretation of Bach. His artistry deserves more investigation, lest you be just another ignorant critic.
VirgilFoxMusic 1 year ago
@bihonning "Appallingly American", I like that phrase! Too bad the rest of your post sucks :(
bazilmonk 1 year ago
jacekrz01, wiem, że też jesteś organistą (świetnym z resztą), ale Virgil Fox chciał zaznajomić zwykłych, prostych ludzi z muzyką Bacha. A jedyny na to sposób to zrobić z tego show, tak jak z resztą robi to dziś Waldemar Malicki. I to tyle.
grubytube 1 year ago
I saw him live when I was 16. I have been hooked on Bach and organ music ever since! It was a mind blowing experience with lights and insence! I got to meet him afterward. he was like an elf!
1956mj 1 year ago
haha, he and the audience had a lot of fun that night!
TrinityUMCOrganist 1 year ago
only Virgil Fox could do this and get a crowd excited :O
poopingeneral 1 year ago
Go Virgil!!!
caddyorganist 1 year ago
This is the best recording of Bach's Gigue Fugue. All the others are simply unexciting or mistake-ridden.
jtingyz 1 year ago
What a gifted clown he was ! Yet, so far from music...On one occasion, the comment was made by one of Bachs companions, My guests cannot dance at your dance music! Others commented that his music was too beautiful to be danced to as they stood in place clapping to the beat. Bachs reply was, The thing is that I want them to listen and not to dance...
guinguette07 1 year ago
@guinguette07
yes, I agree, totally! a gifted clown -- how did Riverside put up with him for
19 years
philomela100 1 year ago
VF could practically read the New York Times while playing a concert!
cnmmnc8852 1 year ago
Bach will be known for all time..
Bachzart 1 year ago
Its Bachhhhhhhhhhh
dithbmine1 1 year ago
hahaha...thats the most amazing thing i've ever seen an organist do
flobtheblob 1 year ago
Back in the 1960's, Fox played the dedicatory recital of a new organ in The Presbyterian Church at Tenafly, NJ, of which my father was later a pastor. He loved the instrument, but in rehearsal, something was wrong. He looked up and saw "acoustic tile" in the barrel vault of the ceiling, the unhelpful contribution of some misguided architect. In front of everyone, he then hurled himself onto the floor of the chancel, drumming his fists and heels, and yelling "no, no, no, no..." What a character!
farthereast54 2 years ago
@farthereast54 . I was with working with Virgil at that time and to all our viewers, I say this person is fancifull,but I do have stories about"men of the cloth" in Tenafly, thanks for recalling them to memory I had tried to forget.!!
David Snyder Lumierist, Revelation Lights Heavy Organ Productions.
DavidSnyderLumierist 1 year ago
In fairness to both DavidSnyderLumierist and Virgil Fox' memory, I tell this story second hand as it was a bit of the lore of that church, oft repeated. The truth is likely lost to history as nearly all of the players are dead. I am, however, fascinated to know what unbidden memories of clergy I may have provoked. If D S L would like to contact me, I would interested to learn his take on all of that, and his role in it.
farthereast54 1 year ago
This guy is just the coolest -- I remember him from when I was a kid. My dad loved his recordings. He rocks ... Who else can get a ton of people clapping and dancing to Bach?
janiscortese 2 years ago 25
@janiscortese Virgil Fox :D
poopingeneral 1 year ago
@janiscortese I agree. And as far as that jerk a couple comments back saying he was a clown, AND appalingly American, well he can get his butt up there and perform with even a tiny bit of Virgil's talent then he can say what he wants. I don't think we will see another like Virgil in our life time
bige002000 1 year ago
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@janiscortese
This was great fun. My advice is to ignore musical snobs who try to confine and categorise the genius of Bach to suit their pretensions. And it is ridiculous to compare Fox to Liberace. I wish I had had the chance to see more than the one Fox concert I managed way back in 1968!
RupertW1 1 year ago
haha, classic video. He was a great performer, at this point, more of a showman, still a funny video.
TrinityUMCOrganist 2 years ago
@TrinityUMCOrganist
Likely the greatest organist we will ever experience.
Thank you for writing.
David Snyder Revelation Lights
DavidSnyderLumierist 2 years ago 2
Wow the memories, I have his autograph from when I was a kid
arthurkitchen 2 years ago 2
@arthurkitchen Arthur, please tell us more.I'd love to hear your memories and your reflections of long ago with Virgil.
Blessings my friend
DavidSnyderLumierist 1 year ago
That was a lot of fun!
sylvestermeow 2 years ago
what a real treat to listen to this great organist!!!
poopingeneral 2 years ago 2
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lokalexi1 2 years ago
W zad jebany pajac !!! Żałosne !!!
jacekrz01 2 years ago
Myślę, że troszkę pokory by się Panu przydało. Nie wiem czy się Pan orientuje jak wiele ten człowiek osiągnął i jaką okrył się sławą. Fox był, jest i będzie wirtuozem organów (dla mnie), ale myślę, że wielu się ze mną zgodzi w tej materii.
LuKoN0988 2 years ago 8
Pokorę należy okazać Bachowi, nie robiąc z Jego Muzyki knajpianej rozrywkki. Doceniam dokonania Pana Foxa i szanuję jego dorobek, dlatego tym bardziej nie mogę pogodzić się z tym, że tej miary artysta arcydzieła Johanna Sebastiana wobec wielotysięcznej widowni nieudolnie i z zamysłem by się wygłupić prezentuje jak kurewski taniec z kiepskiego wodewilu w stroju godnym klauna w tych okolicznościach przyrody.
jacekrz01 2 years ago
Comment removed
EP092005 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Wg mnie muzyka Bacha jest na tyle uniwersalna, że - podejrzewam - nawet w knajpie możnaby się dobrze przy niej bawić. Proszę zwrócić uwagę jaką ci ludzie na filmie mają radość z tej muzyki. Okazuje się, że do fugi Bacha można sobie nawet potańczyć:) A swoją drogą to chciałbym tak "nieudolnie" grać na organach.
EP092005 2 years ago
@LuKoN0988
Za każdym razem, jak oglądam jakikolwiek filmik, gdzie Virgil Fox gra na organach, to łapię się za głowę i mówię sobie "co za koleś!".
Zgadzam się z Tobą.
mlodyorganista 1 year ago
I was blessed enough to see him play in person, somewhere in San Diego, 74? I stood on the chair and whoooohood!
What an awesome experience I will never forget.
Also got to see Mighty Moe played by Regenald Fourte...oh those were the days. I took lessons at College Ave Babtist church, but it didn't come naturally to me, but I do appreatiate great talant. I loved my teacher, Lois Parsely...I hope to see him in the great beyond! He was most precious soul ever! I will never forget him!
ChryTears 2 years ago 2
@ChryTears
Must have been at the great Spreckles Organ, in Balboa Park. That was(is)
a great instrument built by Austin,and maintained still by devoted enthusiasts, to whom I say,,thank you.
Perhaps another possibility was our Heavy Organ performance,,which was done outdoors with David Snyders Revelation Lights
Blessings my friend for your kind thought of Virgil
DavidSnyderLumierist 1 year ago
How many organists does it take to screw in a lightbulb? Eleven. One to do it and 10 to say they could do it better.
Props to Mr. Fox. The entertainer, the musician, the church organist and the teacher.
He was tops at them all.
tremsup 2 years ago 2
how many organist does it take to screw in a light bulb? one to do it and another to complain that there's no thumb piston to do it
Thepianoorganist 2 years ago
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DavidSnyderLumierist 2 years ago
SUPERIOR!
Sesquiltera 2 years ago
I am listening to a Concert-Interview with Virgil on KUSC FM
dacatholicbandorgan 2 years ago
I saw the Heavy Organ concert at Winterland in 1971. It was fantastic and I've loved Virgil's music ever since.
MDJTexas 2 years ago
Virgil was a force of nature. Wonderful to see live....
markbrandus 2 years ago
Amari cani.
Werckstarck 2 years ago 2
Stavo pensando la stessa cosa.
GustavAdolphusRex 2 years ago
robertgift 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
This is atrocious. Imagine - sheople getting off on a psychopath's behavior that they don't even begin to understand.
organman52 2 years ago
To organman52: You're not about music. You're about hate and drinking your own vomit. Have a nice day.
Sesquiltera 2 years ago
Virgil Fox and Arthur Fiedler...Perfect Together!! A CLASS Act!
samueladams7 2 years ago 2
Thanks for posting! That was the year I fell in love with Bach, & I was dancing up & down during this Pops performance. I guess you have to be young & uninhibited to dance to it :-)
crreativeme 2 years ago
i love when he messes up at 3:08 and then yells "whoa, where we goin?" haha even when he screws up its still fun
vinniecaruso 2 years ago 3
I agree whole heartedly. It is good to have a performer who makes music like this fun. So what if he is a big showman. Some of the naysayers kill me with "clown this" and "clown that"! Come on people. Enjoy the music people!
passacaglia28 2 years ago
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mv2021nj 2 years ago
I met him when I was a little kid, My
father was friends with his fan club
president. He was a classical showman,
alot of the rock &roll kids at the time loved
to go see him.
mv2021nj 2 years ago
When he plays this Gigue at Wanamaker's it's absoutely fantastic.
ve2so 2 years ago
who cares if Virgil hit all the right notes. Thousands of people that night had the time of their lives. Would that we had someone like him today.
wurlitzer3 2 years ago
Amen!
passacaglia28 2 years ago
It would be nice if he occasionally would hit the right notes
NequamPravumStolidum 2 years ago
DAHNCE! I dare you! lol I love this clip... People really are enjoying themselves.
MTheChequeGuy 2 years ago
He's one great, crazy organist! lol Love him!
RobtheKappelmeister 2 years ago
Still the best in the world. Too bad he's gone.
ve2so 2 years ago 2
Ugh
VictorCharlie10 2 years ago
I saw Fox do this live, and I remember watching this Boston Pops show - This piece is one of THE most difficult organ works (ask someone you know who plays organ in any church if they'll play it for you... yeah, right). Yet he pulls it off like he was waiting for coffee to brew. An absolute genius, Fox was.
yttreblemaker 2 years ago 2
It's not the most difficult.
geheimnisvolle 2 years ago
P.S. I'm an organ student (8th grade)
geheimnisvolle 2 years ago
twat! im a piano student (6th grade)
manoskolam1 2 years ago
@manoskolam1 I got you beat. I'm a flutist (2nd grade)
pwnedbywaffle 2 years ago
Lionel Rogg said it was the most difficult.
eameece 2 years ago
Lionel Rogg doesn't seems to meet other composers or styles or even works by the same composer...
geheimnisvolle 2 years ago
@yttreblemaker
Quite a show,Virgil had a blast and so did Arthur. We do indeed miss them both.
I got up and danced the jig too!
Blessings
DavidSnyderLumierist 1 year ago 2
Arthur Fiedler and Virgil - amazing. Thanks for uploading this gem. And to the ignorant that think Sebastian Bach did NOT pen this work... well... God bless you and go back to your EZ listening records. If you can read, you might see if your library has a copy of Phillip Spitta's biography of Bach. Perhaps the nurses in the home will help you get a copy?
sina4 2 years ago
Saw this man in SPAC upstate NY in 1974. Miss him every day
Pickett
georgepickett 2 years ago
Certainly not composed by Johann Sebastian Bach.
lipsbach 2 years ago
What are you talking about, dumbass? How do you know that this fugue isn't written by Johann Sebastian Bach?
MYoung2010 2 years ago
He's from America.
Cindermakers 2 years ago
im from america lol i think its composed by bach hah i dont even think any other composer could have written a piece like this other than bach
vinniecaruso 2 years ago
Well since you started the abuse (typical of Virgil Fox fanatics), you are the "dumbass' as the fugue almost certainly isn't by Bach. That is why it was omitted from the New Bach edition.
MEPPO06 2 years ago
who is it composed by?
vinniecaruso 2 years ago
B-A-C-H
advisorC101 2 years ago
Sorry, MEP, but you are incorrect. Bach most certainly did compose the fugue, and it is clearly marked as Gigue in the tempo.
Not only have I studied organ, I also toured with Virgil for nearly a year, and he and I discussed the structure of the piece many times. If you check the catalog, it's not too hard to find it.
grandpoobah0913 2 years ago 2
I agree. I'm no scholar but I can tell that the construction piece is so ingenious that I can hardly believe anyone other than Bach wrote it.
Now unless we find the manuscripts then there is no way to actually know we can know for certain but this sounds like something Bach would definitely have done.
advisorC101 2 years ago
@MEPPO06 No.ne.lse was capable of writing this magnificent fugue. I wish another had written it. Buxtehude had the right idea but could not develop it as Bach did this fugue. So wonderful on so many levels.
robertgift 1 year ago
O M G...
He's talking during his interpretation. He's not even paying attention at what his playing!
geheimnisvolle 2 years ago
*He's not even paying attention at what he's playing!
geheimnisvolle 2 years ago
Just because you are talking does not mean you are not paying attention to what you are doing. It means he memorized the music. Another example of this, my piano teacher used to play at a piano bar...wheny ou play for 5 hours straight you learn to play attention to what youre doing while playing an instrument and be able to talk to people at the same time. Did it occur to you maybe he practiced talking during it before playing because he wanted to teach people about the music while he played.
akm5176 2 years ago
It doesn't seems to be the case...Especially during the episodes between the exposition of the theme in the development ! Articulation is the first thing which fails....And is a very important thing in a type of piece a fugue is !
geheimnisvolle 2 years ago
Does it matter that some don't agree with his style of playing? Look, there's an audience at the organ concert. He seemed to do anything to make people fall in love with the instrument and also with J.S. Bach.
omenschbewein07 3 years ago
I don't consider myself important enough to be judgmental about someone whose career in the art of playing the organ is indelible in the history of the instrument. In other words, Virgil Fox is beyond criticism. It doesn't matter what those bigots down there say. Anyway, Fox as a musician was greatly interactive with his audience, and that's what made accessible and not unreachable like other maestros. I think that's why he's so well remembered today, and will always be.& this is my fave version
pipeorganloverNJP 3 years ago
We can listen to some of those concerts that Virgil played for the hippies at the Fillmore in the late 60's at Wolfgangsvault which is Bill (Wolfgang) Graham's concert archives. A great website with some historic music from the 60's and 70's.
hbdavew 3 years ago
Fox can play this all day with authority and move the crowd like no other. It's a shame there isn't anyone like him playing the organ like this now. This is talent and showmanship, something not seen much today. It's also a shame people thinking Brittney Spears is the vioce of their generation.
maximusde34 3 years ago
All you organ purist snobs: I'll bet very few of you know that J. S. Bach once got into a sword fight for calling someone a "nanny goat bassoonist". That alone indicates a man with spirit! No doubt, were he alive today, he would yet create master works that would continue to live as his 18th century work does. And you can damned well bet that he would be an extremely prolific and versatile composer, not limiting himself to one genre or rigid style as you are so fond to believe he once did.
gingervytis 3 years ago 3
haha....it's funny how people are quick to state that oh no Bach couldn't have written this.... I guess ignorant people tend to forget that Bach, while being a sacred man, liked to relax with a few beers and remember popular secular music of the time as well. He was just like many of the other famous composers in that respect.... I'm sure Bach was one hell of a showman in his day as well, especially considering how he was friends with Frederick the Great and all.... :-)
ms103127 2 years ago 2
The fastest I've ever heard it. A little more volume from the pedals and a bit less noise from the audience and performer would have enhanced it, but, hey! he's a performer par excellence!
RevdRichard 3 years ago 2
i dont like fox's interpretations they are inaccurate and flashy beyond recognition BUT i do admire his ability to get the audience on his side and there is clearly great technical ability here.
organstudent 3 years ago 2
mai visto una cosa simile.Comunque divertente
Adrianomarino 3 years ago
What a blast!
So much fun and energy!
Wonder if I should risk this tempo.
Afraid I might hurt muself.
I want the wonderful pedal to be heard.
If too fast, one misses too much.
Should be played with those LED light-up sneakers.
robertgift 3 years ago
Haha! They would be flashing like crazy.
ns9987 3 years ago
Do LED sneakers come in size 8-1/2?
Years ago I arrived at a organ store wearing hiking boots.
They knew that I played the Gigue from memory and had me play it on a new Allen Organ which had just arrived.
I was amazed that it could be played in hiking boots.
So, LED sneakers should also work.
robertgift 3 years ago
@robertgift oh my, you DO make a lot of claims for yourself...let's hear some of your mordents and fancy hiking boots pedalwork here on youtube.
Obviously a complete fraud.
lipsbach 1 year ago
@lipsbach So funny. My girlfriend and I were wearing hiking boots. While driving we happened to discover an Allen Organ store and stopped in. (No longer there.)
Yes, I continue the mordents, grace notes and trills throughout. More difficult, but wortheffort. Does anyonelse? Under E. Power Biggs' recording, I list what ornaments, where.
My recordings are on cassette.
Too bad the crowd clapped - and out of time.
Wish we could hear Virgil better. Also wish he weren't so sloppy here.
robertgift 1 year ago
@robertgift I'm finished with this piece, and i usually add a trill at 3:18 which my teacher finds unusual but delightful nonetheless... I wonder if I could get a proper recording of me playing because I would certainly post it on youtube
RonaldJenkeesFAN63 1 year ago
@RonaldJenkeesFAN63 Just attach a camcorder to a tripod and do it!
Years ago I made camcorderecordings from three different views. Surprisingly, the tempo remained closenough that all three recordings could have been combined as though one recording session with three cameras! I did nothink I'd be consistant enough.
But I had no way to edithe recordings to appear as one. They are on 8mm stereo video.
robertgift 1 year ago
@robertgift yes, but I mean with decent sound quality... the organ I play on is in a cathedral and the pipes are almost directly behind the console.
RonaldJenkeesFAN63 1 year ago
@RonaldJenkeesFAN63 Wonderful sound in a live cathedral!
Have someone record from different places. Or set up and run to the console and record, run back and stop, move to another location, press record and run to the console, repeat. Good for theart and sweating is also good! My camcorder had no remote. Not sure if the remote's range would benough, anyway. But worth a try.
Continue all the ornaments athe beginning throughouthe work, even in the pedal. Find my notes in Biggs' video.
robertgift 1 year ago
@robertgift not sure If i could do any trills on the pedal yet, I mean, i can, but it would be plenty more practicing now that i've finished the piece... I wonder if you'd be surprised that this is the first song I've ever formally learned on organ... all others I've learned where hymns by ear.
RonaldJenkeesFAN63 1 year ago
@RonaldJenkeesFAN63 Wonderful!
This was also an early WORK in my repertoire because I love it so much. I learned a fewonderful hymns but most are boring.
You can do ALL the trills. I had to "Finger them out" to have fingers available.
Th.is best played fromemory. (All pieces are.)
Practice with a metronome at a very slow tempo to keep everything perfect, even and steady. Metronome is such a great coach! Don't leave some pedal notes too soon to geto others - play them full value.
robertgift 1 year ago
@robertgift yes, that's the exact reason I learned it so early as well. Before I picked it up for organ, I arranged it for piano by ear. If anything, I'll be looking for some constructive criticism if I DO manage to post it since my organ technique (due to being a born and raised classical pianist), is almost infantile at best! I'll have to find out the best way to record this on my own of course, and since my teacher made me a key to the cathedral and organ, I should have no problem time-wise!
RonaldJenkeesFAN63 1 year ago
Alra1975, you are a stuck-up snob and you probably don't play an instrument AT ALL, let alone well. If you have studied the lives of the great composers and knew ANYTHING, you would know that a composer's work only lives when it is played and listened to, not left to academics, who will never play as well as Fox did. He studied with Marcel Dupre, you ignoramus, and you ought to be able to tell that he has excellent technique, if you weren't such an idiot, musical illiterate that you are.
mburnhors 3 years ago 2
Thanks for making me laugh, you poor illiterate, ignorant, uncoltured redneck from McDonald's minded country.
Fox is no Art; Fox is only cheap entertainment, a buffoon for illiterate peasants like you.
alra1975 3 years ago
Yes, illiterate folks like me. Thanks for that. Educated and learned musician here that has read just about every Bach book I can get my hands on. He may not have been Mahler or Mozart or even Lasso, but he brought hundreds of new (mostly unmusical) folks to Bach and classical music. When you can do that, you'll be better than him.
jsbachman02 3 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Fox was an entertainer, a showman.
That was his choice, he abandoned the musician way for the entertaining one, for money, fame and success.
He was the Elvis of the organ.
He was like McDonald's, cheap food for cheap money.
Art is no cheap entertainment; when Art becomes fun-fair entertainment like a circus show, it is no more Art, it is a parody of Art, indicated for sub-cultural purposes, for uneducated masses of people, as Fox did.
alra1975 3 years ago
If he can bring thousands of people to know the name of Bach, then he's done nothing wrong in my book. There are thousands of "serious" conductors that have done WORSE in the name of showmanship than Fox ever did.
What is the musician way? Being so serious in your art that you forget to laugh or have a little fun? God help us then, because there were times when even Mozart wouldn't be a "musician." I'll agree, Fox isn't Wagner or Bach; but he serves a purpose in the musical world.
jsbachman02 3 years ago
Fox was an entertainer, not a composer; when on stage, he was not even a real musician.
He cannot be mentioned among composers.
Fox is in the Elvis and Liberace massive entertainer cathegory.
If considered as a "musician", Fox is inferior even to Wendy Carlos.
alra1975 3 years ago
Fox was a showman. Fox was an entertainer. Fox was also an organist, and a musician.
He was one of the few people who were able to prove that the four are not distinct, and I don't know if there will be any others like him, but there haven't been so far.
dittoheadAZ 2 years ago
Wow, I guess ignorance really is bliss..... for someone that was "like McDonald's," I guess the fact that he memorized ALL of Bach's organ works, played over 600 concerts while serving the United States in uniform (in addition to his numerous other tours), and was the first American allowed to play at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig really illustrates how "cheap" he is.
Dr. Fox was brilliant and yes risque at times, but ultimately he brought people from all walks of life to the organ.
ms103127 2 years ago
I don't know if alra1975 is just trying to wind people up or not. If he is being serious then he is in the running for stupidest YouTube poster of all time. Seriously, "uncoltured"?? People always complain about pointing out spelling mistakes in arguments but why is it that those who try to criticize the intellectual abilities of Americans usually tend to have the spelling ability of a chimp? Learn how to read and write before you criticize others, alra!
EchoCannon89 2 years ago
INSTANT FVORITE....Fox is my idol, i try to play like this, its amazing fun.
LONG LIVE THE PIPE ORGAN, KING OF INSTRUMENTS
Montefusco1 3 years ago 2
I do, too. love this version.
polgarfan 3 years ago 2
fox is brilliant, but that is absolute torture.
great video.
bastardtubeuser 3 years ago
This was, of course, recorded in the days before "whooping" and "howling" became de rigeur behaviour for American audiences. Imagine the holwing that would accompany this performance nowadays!
incongra 3 years ago 3
Saw/heard Virgil Fox in person over 30 years ago in Balto. He played this and "Now Thank we all our God" and I was hooked. He brought Bach to the masses. I wish he were still with us, but he's probably entertaining Him now.
PittBach 3 years ago
In Europe, Virgil Fox is completly unknown. If I understand, Fox liked to popularize organ music, and even for a Frenchman like me I think it was a very good idea. Anyway,he did not intend to be a success with musicians or people who already know this music. And too many organists betray JS Bach in playing his opus with boredom, or too mechanically. It is possible to criticize this kind of show, but at least I prefer this kind of enthusiastic organists to some boring guys !
organum74 3 years ago
He was indeed well known in Europe, particularly France where he studied for two years and concertized in the mid 20th century. He very much loved France.
organEd 3 years ago
I have a CD of VF, I think it was one of the first CD's made in US. I bought it long ago because it had some music I was interested in, but had never heard of Virgil, me being from Puerto Rico. I was astounded by his palying when I heard the CD. However, it's not until now I realize how great of a showman the man was. I always imagined him being an austere and humorless genius of the organ, Nothing fartehr from the truth, and I'm so glad it is so, This video has made me even more of a fan.
josesolismusic 3 years ago
I love the way he bounces his hands up and down, not exactly what most teachers would call 'good organ playing technique', but who cares? I bounce my hands around when practicing this too!
codeman2008 3 years ago
I am a serious musician, I play in orchestra still and this video is fantastic. To get people interested in Bach is not an easy task.Fox had a way of engaging people and it worked. Bach was not a stuffy old man, listen to the music, full of life and dance. Thinking Bach is stuffy is the kitsch.
trevjr 3 years ago
Though Fox is more than a bit flamboyant for my own taste (think the Liberace of the pipe organ), if in his lifetime he got some measure of the general public interested in and listening to Bach's music with a different ear than just as it's boring classical stuff, and in so doing actually piqued their interest enough to get them to try some of his other, more serious yet equally sublime works, Mr. Fox did his job well, albeit in his campy way :) The performance STILL is flawless!
melman74b 3 years ago
Fox was definitely campy, but, he was also a serious musician, let us not forget, he was a graduate of Peabody, with artist's Certificate, and became head of Peabody's organ dept. at an age when most people are just beginning their careers, or are still studying for a career. Fox was also organist at Riverside for a number of years, and Riverside, as everyone knows is "only" the second largest pipe organ in New York. Fox was very campy, but he got many to listen to Bach and as a whole organmusic
Fozzymaple 3 years ago
Orrido.
Povero J.S. Bach.....
giufighter 3 years ago 2
I always loved to hear Virgil Fox say the word ' daahnce ' when playing this piece. He truly loved what he did!
skyler6290 3 years ago
Virgil was under a strong "trip" of Kitsch-LSD...
He sounds like The Grateful Dead meet Bach on West Coast sound beach during the Summer of Love.
alra1975 3 years ago
Man, what is your problem? If you do not like Fox, then don't listen. I frankly love his interpretations of Bach, as well as the fact that he makes it accessable to people that might not otherwise ever listen to such music. Yes, I love E. Power Biggs; I also love death metal and music for string quartet. If I don't like something, I simply don't listen. I don't post nasty comments about others that have a musical skill far superior to mine.
Which begs the Q... where is your vid>
ADT
amourdutigre 3 years ago
I just love to give a chance to everybody, Fox included...
alra1975 3 years ago
Are you ready, are you ready??
And now clap your hands repeating all together "K-I-T-S-C-H" clap-clap "K-I-T-S-C-H" clap-clap "K-I-T-S-C-H"!!
Goooood, that's it!
Excellent McDonald's styled peasant performance.
alra1975 3 years ago
Your just jealous that Bach was brought to the real people and treated like real music! Fox knocked Bach off his pedistal!!
pipeup1 3 years ago
Yes, I am very very jealous of Fox charlatanerie, buffoonerie and McDonald's styled ridiculous, entertaining sub-cultural performances for illiterate peasants...
Don't make me laugh...
alra1975 3 years ago
But its music, its meant to entertain - its about people!! Of course theres a place for serious music (I spend my life attending serious organ recitals!), but at the end of the day, the organ is an instrument made by people for people, like a guitar, violin, etc.
U gotta lighten up!!
pipeup1 3 years ago
Life is not a simple penny arcade entertainment on a cheap electric organ-toy.
alra1975 3 years ago
Says who, why?? Such a glum view of life!! Take my advice, go drink a good bottle of Bordeaux or Rioja, then go play the organ. It'll be so much more fun, I guarentee it!! :-))
pipeup1 3 years ago 2
The organ he plays here is not electronic, it is the 75 rank Aeolian-Skinner Opus 1134. I can't fathom how you consider Virgil Fox's performances 'sub-cultural'; they were anything but sub-cultural, and I cannot figure how you could call the people he performed for 'illiterate peasants'. This is in my home city and I feel offended. He played a concert at the University where I live now; are the students 'illiterate peasants'? I know some very, very intelligent people who adore his playing.
codeman2008 3 years ago 2
Good for you if you like him.
This is not Art or Culture, this is only entertainment.
alra1975 3 years ago
I can't believe you referred to the audience as illiterate peasants, u r such a dousche.
gamergeek3000 3 years ago 2
I am sorry... I meant ignorant rednecks, my dear dork.
alra1975 3 years ago
Il trionfo del cattivo gusto attuato con una "buona" tecnica esecutiva.
ricetomare 3 years ago
Sono indeciso se sia più penosa l'esecuzione carica di errori di quel pagliaccio integrale di Fox o forse la massa di bifolchi che batte le mani facendo balletti...
Anzi, adesso che ci penso direi che trattasi di un connubio perfetto!
alra1975 3 years ago 3
there is no one man on the world who knows how bach intended his music, becaus he is dead since 1750........ he can't tell us....
paranormaalutrecht 3 years ago
that may be true, but he has a better understanding than most people claim. Virgil Fox knows how to use an organ, just how it was intended.
sirtalios 3 years ago
where´s this organ?
Principal16 3 years ago
Symphony Hall, Boston Mass. It has been somewhat altered since Fox gave this concert here, my understanding is that it was rebuilt and was given some new pipework, mostly principals, but is mostly the same as it was in 1949 when it was done by AEolian Skinner.
Fozzymaple 3 years ago 3
The specification was rearranged to be a large three-manual instrument, and its new console was built accordingly. Check out the Foley-Baker organ company's website for a full description of what was done...
posaune16 3 years ago
Virgil, The Great!
pieroLT 3 years ago
Wow! I play this piece and i cant imagine talking and pulling stops while playing it all at the same time! what an infectious rhythm he had! very sweet how he asks the great conductor Arthur Fiedler to "come on, give us a little twirl!" and then he does! what fun they all had that night.
hopefully people went home inspired to listen to more JS Bach! too bad organ concerts are usually SO boring now, suggesting that "fun" or flair is an effront to it or Bach. it's not ALWAYS IN the music!
organace 3 years ago 2
If you find that most Organ recitals are boring and you would prefer a concert such as this one, you are going for the wrong reason.
jas161 3 years ago