I have idolised this man all my musical life, his attitude towards the music that he plays makes it more appealing not to just himself but the listener. The people on here who have put him down clearly do not see music the way he did, and therefore I feel sorry for you. Because he is one of the most amazing musicians I have ever heard. I really do wish there were more musicians like Virgil Fox.
I knew Virgil Fox well, myself. He was quite a showman, but I loved hearing him tell his stories, and I also enjoyed taking lessons from him, on the fly, whenever our paths crossed. I was trained to be a cathedral organist by a student of the late Dr. Clarence Dickerson, fondly known as Dr. D, by his students; who taught my last professor of sacred music at Union Theological.
@jill506 I just discovered Virgil Fox on a clip from The Crystal Cathedral. I agree with you. He was genius. I don't find his focus to be on himself. When you watch his face he wants people to experience the beauty of the music. Plus, he was giving a concert! Of course he is going to be the center of attention! The people came to hear HIM play. I wish I could have heard him live.
This chap certainly has 10 very nimble fingers, but he is a fun fair perfomer, not a musician. Can anyone imagine him playing at a service in a church, -where the focus is not in him and only him ???
@Blightyish a "fun fair performer" (what does that even mean?) and not a musician? actually, he was the organist at riverside church in new york city from 1946 to 1965. he told me that the HYMNS were the most important part of any church service, because they involved the participation of the congregation. he also told me that, on sunday morning, he would arrive early and practice the hymns FIRST, before any prelude, postlude or other solo piece. what do you think, NOW?
@Blightyish i try my best to avoid confrontation here, but, how dare you say that he is NOT a musician!! please review his biography wherever you can find it.
@jgraif How do I dare? -I dare because this man in only interested in bringing himself into focus so he can light and shine, ...... not being humble enough to let the making of music be his business, but of course, -he i s American.
@Blightyish with all due respect, please respond to the facts i offered in response to your challenge for anyone to "imagine him playing at a service in a church, - where the focus is not on him and only him". actually, he did just that until he was in his mid-50's, when he directed all of his efforts to solo performance. now, on THAT subject, do you feel that itzhak perlman (i was very careful to choose a non-american) should have played in an orchestra instead of being a soloist?
It always cracks me up the number of armchair organists with the audacity to criticize a great like Virgil Fox. Every player makes mistakes. I'd like to see any one of the naysayers here do a better job. No? Thought so.
Too many mistakes. Not the best from Virgil. But he was already old when this was recorded. He could perform much better then this when he was younger.
No disrespect, virgil fox is a great organist but his style of playing is terrible. I know this is a jig but it still is a tad overdone. The same when he plays his rendition on star spangled banner his races through the piece with the Tutti button all through.
To those who think this was played too fast, nuts. It is a JIG. It is a lively dance involving lots of jumping and other movement. Jigs are a well-known dance form from before the time of Bach's youth. You can bet Virgil was playing it at the right tempo. Entirely too many people want to play fugues too slowly. (OK, I'm not saying play it at breakneck speed... but this recording FEELS like it is the right speed to play the piece.)
@aal49 i play a mechanical action organ every week at the church where i am employed. yes, i can imagine playing it that fast!! the fact is, the MODERN organ is no longer "mechanical" and is capable of being played at the same, INSANE tempi that we accept for ALL OTHER art music today. please tell me i am wrong. why can't the organ be allowed to evolve like EVERY OTHER INSTRUMENT??? i have yet to be offered a plausible explanation.
Oh, and the last time I saw him in concert, before he died, he was in his nineties and did this piece including "in the feet" has he has said. AWESOME!!!
@Blightyish To answer you. Virgil was born 1912 and WOULD HAVE BEEN had he lived 100 years old next year.. not 90 when he was playing this piece. He died at age 68 of prostate cancer... I knew him practically all my life as he lived in Englewood N.J. as did he.
The clapping of the audience to the pedal addition is tradition, as is the standing of the audience during the 'Hallelujah Chorus" in "Messiah". The addition of the 2 measures at the end is also Mr. Fox's "signature". It has been played everytime I have seen him in concert (3) and on all the recordings I have of his (5) of this piece.
Virgil Fox is Virgil Fox. he is a man and a definition. He will play at whatever tempo he feel is correct for the piece. That is his interpretation. Yours may perhaps be different. What makes a conductor great? The way he interprets the piece at hand, and the popularity on which his interpretation is accepted. What makes a pianist great? It is not on technique, which even I could manage to get through on most pieces. It is the interpretation, the pathos, the soul. This is Mr. Fox's soul.
@organum74 Everyone has there own style of playing Bach. And I can understand that he made mistakes throughout this piece, we all make mistakes! And the two bars at the end was again his own style.
@organum74 oh,...about 10 mistakes? please post your performance free of error. why did he reprise the last two bars? would you ask the same question of joshua bell or evgeny kissin? of course not. they are permitted to possess a "personality" and a connection with their audience, but organists are not. playing too fast? please provide a link to ANY recent performance of ANY orchestral or chamber work that is NOT taken at break-neck speed. organists must be kept in their place, right?
@Blightyish ok...then ask bell to perform the bach solo partitas on a baroque violin and ask kissin to perform brahms or chopin on a 19th century piano. of course, neither of them would stoop so low, but organists are required to do the same.
I have idolised this man all my musical life, his attitude towards the music that he plays makes it more appealing not to just himself but the listener. The people on here who have put him down clearly do not see music the way he did, and therefore I feel sorry for you. Because he is one of the most amazing musicians I have ever heard. I really do wish there were more musicians like Virgil Fox.
muzicmanj 2 weeks ago 3
Bah, che porcheria... ma si suona così?
ArteRuffini 3 weeks ago
@sunshine34
You are a complete brain dead idiot, do you wear baggy trousers and a base ball cap and shades? what a moron
TheCinemasound 1 month ago
I knew Virgil Fox well, myself. He was quite a showman, but I loved hearing him tell his stories, and I also enjoyed taking lessons from him, on the fly, whenever our paths crossed. I was trained to be a cathedral organist by a student of the late Dr. Clarence Dickerson, fondly known as Dr. D, by his students; who taught my last professor of sacred music at Union Theological.
JustfineinChicago 1 month ago
@JustfineinChicago I envy you the privilege of having known Mr. Fox. Such a gifted man, and I can just imagine the stories he had to tell.
davewvu1 4 weeks ago
WOW
Swing it out baby!!!!!!!!!!
aalbert2603 1 month ago
@blightyish you don't even deserve to hear this genius and I won't bother to say anything else to you.
jill506 1 month ago
@jill506 I just discovered Virgil Fox on a clip from The Crystal Cathedral. I agree with you. He was genius. I don't find his focus to be on himself. When you watch his face he wants people to experience the beauty of the music. Plus, he was giving a concert! Of course he is going to be the center of attention! The people came to hear HIM play. I wish I could have heard him live.
ElderPinkerton 1 month ago
@sunshine34ification. you don't deserve to even hear this genius. go RAP yourself in the stupid head of yours
jill506 1 month ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
this guy is a faggot, I like rap music beter
sunshine34ification 1 month ago
Thank you for posting this video. Virgil Fox: a life well lived.
PRACTICEPIANO 1 month ago in playlist BAROQUE
..........on him.
Blightyish 2 months ago
This chap certainly has 10 very nimble fingers, but he is a fun fair perfomer, not a musician. Can anyone imagine him playing at a service in a church, -where the focus is not in him and only him ???
Blightyish 2 months ago
@Blightyish a "fun fair performer" (what does that even mean?) and not a musician? actually, he was the organist at riverside church in new york city from 1946 to 1965. he told me that the HYMNS were the most important part of any church service, because they involved the participation of the congregation. he also told me that, on sunday morning, he would arrive early and practice the hymns FIRST, before any prelude, postlude or other solo piece. what do you think, NOW?
jgraif 2 months ago
@Blightyish i try my best to avoid confrontation here, but, how dare you say that he is NOT a musician!! please review his biography wherever you can find it.
jgraif 2 months ago
@jgraif How do I dare? -I dare because this man in only interested in bringing himself into focus so he can light and shine, ...... not being humble enough to let the making of music be his business, but of course, -he i s American.
Blightyish 2 months ago
@Blightyish with all due respect, please respond to the facts i offered in response to your challenge for anyone to "imagine him playing at a service in a church, - where the focus is not on him and only him". actually, he did just that until he was in his mid-50's, when he directed all of his efforts to solo performance. now, on THAT subject, do you feel that itzhak perlman (i was very careful to choose a non-american) should have played in an orchestra instead of being a soloist?
jgraif 2 months ago
Excellent performane. Truly Fox was a virtuoso!!
Richard Pervis
USAFsarge 2 months ago
Bravo! Virgil.
So fun. The mistakes are inconsequential in such a lively performed work.
But I really like Biggs recording on the Flentrop organ much better.
When I play this I must look athe pedals. But I also continue the mordents, grace notes and trills throughouthis joyous work.
robertgift 2 months ago
is this an electronic organ sounds like it to me
Errol9232 2 months ago
Sounds like a purist to me.....
sbruveris 3 months ago
It always cracks me up the number of armchair organists with the audacity to criticize a great like Virgil Fox. Every player makes mistakes. I'd like to see any one of the naysayers here do a better job. No? Thought so.
Sfrussell1963 3 months ago
Too many mistakes. Not the best from Virgil. But he was already old when this was recorded. He could perform much better then this when he was younger.
AlainHubert 3 months ago
No disrespect, virgil fox is a great organist but his style of playing is terrible. I know this is a jig but it still is a tad overdone. The same when he plays his rendition on star spangled banner his races through the piece with the Tutti button all through.
tombarloworganist 4 months ago
Comment removed
tombarloworganist 4 months ago
To those who think this was played too fast, nuts. It is a JIG. It is a lively dance involving lots of jumping and other movement. Jigs are a well-known dance form from before the time of Bach's youth. You can bet Virgil was playing it at the right tempo. Entirely too many people want to play fugues too slowly. (OK, I'm not saying play it at breakneck speed... but this recording FEELS like it is the right speed to play the piece.)
kegginstructure 4 months ago
@kegginstructure Can you imagine playing it that fast on a tracker action? That might give a clue as to the proper tempo.
aal49 2 months ago
@aal49 i play a mechanical action organ every week at the church where i am employed. yes, i can imagine playing it that fast!! the fact is, the MODERN organ is no longer "mechanical" and is capable of being played at the same, INSANE tempi that we accept for ALL OTHER art music today. please tell me i am wrong. why can't the organ be allowed to evolve like EVERY OTHER INSTRUMENT??? i have yet to be offered a plausible explanation.
jgraif 2 months ago
What a load of rubbish. "the modern organ is no longer mechanical?? What is that supposed to mean ?
Blightyish 2 months ago
Excuse me, but Virgil was only 68 years old when he died October 25, 1980.
GlamRockCowboy 4 months ago
@benk314...that is exactly what Mr. Fox used to say!!! Word for word. You must be a fan as am I. Nice doing business with you.
ljceder 4 months ago
Oh, and the last time I saw him in concert, before he died, he was in his nineties and did this piece including "in the feet" has he has said. AWESOME!!!
ljceder 4 months ago
@ljceder he was only 68 when he died.
jgraif 2 months ago
@ljceder Please explain: When Fox was born in 1912 and died in 1980 -how can he have been in his "nineties" ???
Blightyish 2 months ago
@Blightyish To answer you. Virgil was born 1912 and WOULD HAVE BEEN had he lived 100 years old next year.. not 90 when he was playing this piece. He died at age 68 of prostate cancer... I knew him practically all my life as he lived in Englewood N.J. as did he.
mountainsong100 2 months ago
The clapping of the audience to the pedal addition is tradition, as is the standing of the audience during the 'Hallelujah Chorus" in "Messiah". The addition of the 2 measures at the end is also Mr. Fox's "signature". It has been played everytime I have seen him in concert (3) and on all the recordings I have of his (5) of this piece.
ljceder 4 months ago
Virgil Fox is Virgil Fox. he is a man and a definition. He will play at whatever tempo he feel is correct for the piece. That is his interpretation. Yours may perhaps be different. What makes a conductor great? The way he interprets the piece at hand, and the popularity on which his interpretation is accepted. What makes a pianist great? It is not on technique, which even I could manage to get through on most pieces. It is the interpretation, the pathos, the soul. This is Mr. Fox's soul.
ljceder 4 months ago
About 10 mistakes...
Why did he play two bars after performance ? Ridiculous.
A bit too fast too, like every time, I don't understand why american organists play the most fasly than they can. Is it a competition ?
organum74 5 months ago
@organum74 Everyone has there own style of playing Bach. And I can understand that he made mistakes throughout this piece, we all make mistakes! And the two bars at the end was again his own style.
NSProductions1432 5 months ago
@organum74 oh,...about 10 mistakes? please post your performance free of error. why did he reprise the last two bars? would you ask the same question of joshua bell or evgeny kissin? of course not. they are permitted to possess a "personality" and a connection with their audience, but organists are not. playing too fast? please provide a link to ANY recent performance of ANY orchestral or chamber work that is NOT taken at break-neck speed. organists must be kept in their place, right?
jgraif 2 months ago
@jgraif Of course one would not ask that question of Joshua Bell of Evgeny Kissin
...for the simple reason that neither of them would, of course, stoop so low.
Blightyish 2 months ago
@Blightyish ok...then ask bell to perform the bach solo partitas on a baroque violin and ask kissin to perform brahms or chopin on a 19th century piano. of course, neither of them would stoop so low, but organists are required to do the same.
jgraif 2 months ago
@jgraif -sorry, I don't get your drift.
Blightyish 2 months ago
@organum74 Why ? ...because American organists are Americans
Blightyish 2 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@organum74 Why ? ...because American organists are Americans
Blightyish 2 months ago
It's like he's having a party, and we're all invited.
benk314 6 months ago
meraviglioso! tecnica perfetta e suona tutto a memoria! geniale!
AndreIsoirFansClub 7 months ago
Always enjoy his performance of the Gigue; but it is strange not to 'hear' the audience clapping when he introduces the Pedal theme.
The Japanese are a very respectful group.
cowboypainthorse 10 months ago
@cowboypainthorse Why should they clap by introducing the pedal theme?
KORNMUSIKde 5 months ago