Virgil Fox - Hour of Power (1979) - Garden Grove Church

[polgarfan]

what is he playing?

[acoustics101]

I was fortunate enough to hear Virgil play at the Ohio Theatre in Columbus at a concert during the late 1970s. I was blown away by his performances on both the Mighty Morton theatre pipe organ as well as his touring Rodgers. I remember him playing this very piece!!! The poor audio quality on this video doesn't do it justice.

[chrisverhaagh]

holy shit I love virgil i lost his music back in the 80's

[GJmusique]

Virgil gets away with this. :-)

[greenlok69]

Quite correct!! Virgil was the best!

[canonscottage]

This is one of the last recordings of Virgil Fox. He was dying painfully of prostate cancer at this point and would be dead within a year. When he set his mind to do something he always did it -- and with such a flair!

[Steve9819]

too bad this such a poor recording... Virgil was and is the best...

[Contrabass32]

It's nice to see that even Virgil Fox hits wrong notes, makes faces at himself, and continues on. 0:44 is about the time.

[NagarianT]

This is an absolutely magic performance!

The purists might not like Mr. Fox, but I think that he was able to truly able to make the spirit of the music come alive for his audience.

Bravo!

NT

[acoustics101]

@NagarianT

Connecting with the audience is what it's all about. Virgil had a talent for doing this and helped bring the organ out of the realm of only the purists and more into the mainstream for everyone to enjoy.

[polsterj]

Mit Abstand die schlechteste Version, die bis jetzt mein - auf die französische orgelmusik ausgerichtetes - gehör je gequält hat. Was kann man denn daran mögen? Da tun mir immer die Organisten leid, die sich mühe für richtig gute registrierungen und interpretationen geben, und von diesen amerikanischen amateur-organisten (und selbst das ist noch zu hoch bewertet) als schlechter beurteilt werden, als so ein Clown, der das ganze in einem fürchterlichen thempo im tutti runterrattert.

[MezzoDiva]

@polsterj Nobody answered this because they don't read German or perhaps they just didn't want to even acknowledge such mean nonsense...

[LJBSasha]

Thank you so very much for posting this, RonRizzy!

Often, even when a great artist isn't at his best, he'll still outrank anybody of lesser talent no matter how technically masterful the latter might be! This is most certainly the case - sure there are wrong notes indeed (once you listen carefully, they are quite audible!), but what spirit, what fire!!! And yes, this 'motum perpetuum' is NOT easy to play well - THIS is how it should sound. Somebody please upload one or both renderings of

[LJBSasha]

the same piece he did on his "Virgil Fox Encores" at Riverside Church in NYC and the Wanamaker/Macy's Department Store in Philadelphia (preferably both!! - then one can see how the two organs contrast yet why they're accounted as such great instruments in spite of their vastly different tonal æsthetics!!) - then you'll hear how it truly sounds!!!!

[1pianodude50]

I have those Crystal Clear direct-to-disc albums, and they are truly awesome recordings of an amazing instrument. I also have the CD version, but it still doesn't match that vinyl. I wish that I could have seen Virgil perform before he died; I think he is one of the greatest organists that ever lived.

[Diapason16ft]

One should hear the recordings Mr. Fox made in 1977 for Crystal Clear Records on this organ before judging the sound too harshly. It was two volumes direct-to-disc entitled "The Fox Touch". I believe the first digital recordings -ever- were made during these sessions as well. The Ruffatti as it was then, was perfection IMNSHO. I cannot agree that moving it to a greenhouse made any improvement to its tone. A less-known fact about this organ: it replaced a Wicks.

[cromorne]

I believe he was slowly dying of cancer at this point wasn't he? And still playing the organ.

[peewee2627]

I love his face at 48 seconds! Looks like he's having the big O!

[hubertjudge]

Great playing I reckon!

[19shea85]

It's remarkable how well he still played for his age and considering how sick he was.

What a terrible cacophony of an organ though. Sounds like 20 ranks of screaming mixtures, ten 32' stops and nothing in the middle. Not to mention just about the ugliest console ever built!

[pordzio]

What you write about (200 ranks of mixtures and 10 32' stops) is due to the recording quality. I personally wonder how was it even possible to preserve a VHS recording for so long.

[RonRizzy]

You must remember though, this is 1979, a mono audio feed piped through a TV signal, and then onto VHS. As not only a professional organist but someone who does audio work as well, I will tell you that multiple microphones (ESPECIALLY in bad placement) over a single mono feed will make ANY organ sound bad. This organ was actually VERY phenomenal in this church. Don't judge this organ by the audio on this video. As awesome as his playing is, even I admit the audio isn't the best.

[Shenandoah58]

@AllTheStopsJB Ruffatti? Isn't that the Aeolian-Skinner from the Lincoll Center turned up on end?

[AllTheStopsJB]

@Shenandoah58 Depends what stops he's using. The organ is everywhere. Both Skinner and Ruffatti. The Ruffatti is mainly at the alter. Skinner mainly at the gallery. But, if I remember correctly, the Skinners Swell is at the alter.

[Shenandoah58]

@AllTheStopsJB I gotta tell you, that IS one ugly console. A-S would have never made one like that.

[Shenandoah58]

@AllTheStopsJB I gotta tell you, that IS one ugly console.  A-S would have never made one like that.

Of this new organ he commented, "I like my organs upright." Funny.

[marchesano]

@AllTheStopsJB The garden Grove Community Church organ installation was a Ruffatti. The A-S from Lincoln Center was combined with it for the [then soon to be new] new Crystal Cathedral. The video & sound quality is poor, artifacts of VHS recording of TV broadcast, so the upper harmonics are distorted by wow and flutter. Unfortunately, though, if you look at the stop tabs, he had almost every stop and coupler on the organ on, a cacophony indeed. The Ruffatti had many high pitched mixtures.

[marchesano]

Of course, this was a signature piece of Virgil. Even at this age and health condition, he was amazing. The closeups of his face let you know he is working, though! I'm told he was never without pain while playing in the last years. He did more for the pipe organ than any of his imitators will ever do. He was a musician, and committed to the music firstly.

[CathedrlCarillonneur]

Awesome, thank you for posting. Rather than engaging in ridiculous and stupid commentary about how VF nuanced this performance (tempo, registration, etc), I'm going to sit back and enjoy an exciting piece of music presented by a master.

[metagicmos]

I agree. He is a bit choppy, "not sloppy," in the beginning, but cleans it up at the end.

[robertgift]

Awfully sloppy.

The tempo rocks.

But come-on, Virgil, you could have done much better.

[ronanmurray]

He was dying of cancer at the time. But I agree, he was far from his best. Even so, Virgil at his worst was better and more instinctively musical than many more accurate players.

[robertgift]

Oh.

I am so sorry.

Did not know.

I am so sorry Virgil did not diapason - he might have liked that idea.

Loved his humor and energy.

Bet that kept him alive longer.

Wish I could have been at his side comforting him and telling him how many loved him.

On Virgil's birthday, May 3rd, I should play his Now Thank We All Our God.

[advisorC101]

Your still the same coward Robert! This is the tenth arrogant comment I found of you in the last week go get a life! To be able to see Virgil playing in his final days is an honour even if its a video recording so if don't have anything nice to say then don't say anything at all!

[VirgilFoxMusic]

Quoting ronanmurry: "Even so, Virgil at his worst was better and more instinctively musical than many more accurate players." Soooooooo TRUE!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) That's what the purists just don't get!!!

[robertgift]

Nope.

[GJmusique]

Luckily God gave us all different talents - it would be so boring if we would all play the same.

Sure, he's not very 'precise' - but he doesn't seem to use sheet music, and I ADORE his way of staccato playing... =)

[robertgift]

Yes, all the same would be dreadful.

I like his staccato playing - the best way to play the manuals, though I do hang on some notes that may otherwise may be not be noticed.

I don't use sheet music, either.

This piece is best played from memory.

Wish he had cleaned it up.

Then it would be stunning!

[lipsbach]

I suppose we will be seeing your staccato version, from memory, and "hanging on some notes" uploaded soon....? What ridiculous comments you make.

[robertgift]

I have played both CC organs.

Part of clear and effective playing is staying on (hanging on) some notes which would otherwise be less noticed or overshadowed. Not playing them longer than their actual value, but not making them as short as all the other notes.

If you had this music memorized, you might detect notes which are not as well noticed.

So you compensate for the problem.

Sometimes, some pedal reeds are slow to speak.

The art of adjusting playing is not ridiculous at all.

[pordzio]

Another version, played when he was younger is recorded on the "Encores" CD. Someone here wrote, that he was in his final days. Fighting with unbearable pain and still playing like a virtuoso

[RonRizzy]

The original Garden Grove installation (pre-Crystal Cathedral) actually wasn't that bad as far as "mushy" acoustics. Remember - Virgil had a way of interpreting notes and note values, so you may be hearing some of "that", too.

I have, for years, stuck to one of Virgil's most famous remarks:

"Those who bitch about it...are the ones that can't do it!"

Amen.

[RonRizzy]

ALSO as a professional organist, I will say that Robert's comments are not all "that" far off. Even when playing a theatre organ in a VERY large room (i.e. Fox Theatre in Detroit...big mushy cavern acoustics) you need to hold some pedal notes a few milliseconds longer because they just won't "get out" as they might in a much smaller room, where the organ doesn't need as much time to "develop".

[profgyland]

There was no organist better in this world than Virgil Fox. It still drives tears into my eyes to hear and see such a wonderful person. What a shame that some useless people live and a person like Virgil Fox had to die.

[62748152]

A true master of the organ. I would love to play like him one day. (we can all dream)

[Lieder83]

Bravo!

[trippfan]

Whoever labeled this labeled the Compose of the piece wrong his last name is not a hair style of Mullet his last name is Mulet.

[Organsk8er]

It is truly amazing to me, even in the poor health he was in at the time, and in obvious pain, he was able to play these incredibly difficult pieces with relative ease. A master if there ever was/is one.

[enchammade16]

I will certainly say that the Rufatti sounds much better today with the Aeolian Skinner being combined in with it. This Rufatti by itself is not that great of an instrument, and the console looks like something from Star Trek.

[bradtaylor32]

Wow...I never knew what the original Ruffatti console looked like. It sure does sound like a Ruffatti there too back before they added all the other stuff.

[albinocortellazzi]

SUPERB!!!!!!!!!!!

[ShandyHall]

Thanks for adding this. It is wonderful to see.

[DesireeDeFete]

But he was still so Godfilled with joy and zest during his terminal illness.

If he had nto been ill, he would still be alive today playing

[AllenOrganCrazy]

I couldn't agree with you more! He is the reason I'm an organist today. His music influenced me in so many ways and I look up to him and just hope he is in heaven so when I get there myself I will get to see him!

[AllenOrganCrazy]

Its almost sad to watch him! He died less than a year later..look at how much pain he is in :(