Simon Preston Alleluyas

In 1998, at the age of 21, I had this idea of creating a CD of organ music, not realising then just how hard it is to do when everything needs to be note perfect and accurate. In the end I finished up with a Demo CD of about 9 tracks of which this is the 5th. Going through my CD collection only yesterday (12 years later) I came across this same CD and decided to have a listen. Either my sense of what is accurate and note perfect enough is a lot more finely tuned at 33, or else I'm just a lot more fussy. Either way, this piece of the contemporary organist, Simon Preston was probably the only one just about good enough to stick on youtube. So, here it is! It is only an audio track, so I have added the music for decoration, and towards the end of the piece, you will find some photos taken of the organ console in question. The church where this was recorded is situated very close to the Manchester United football stadium.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Simon Preston
• Alleluyas
• Anthony Hunt
• classical
• modern organ music

[ianr473]

Thanks for sharing this! I spent some time learning this piece as a teenager, but never got it to a standard where I felt comfortable performing it. Since then (I am the same age as you), my organ playing has gone through ups and downs, though I've continued with other music. Now, I have more of an opportunity to practice again, and this piece is on my list to look at again. I really appreciated hearing your performance - and feeling the warm glow of my own nostalgia...

[zippylad77]

@ianr473 Thanks very much. I was not long out of my teens when I recorded this back in 1998 I think! I think we all have our ups and downs with organ playing. I have had the odd moment of giving up..although that isn't an option as it's my main source of income :)

[zippylad77]

Thanks for the positive feedback. Yes, the reverb was artificially added on a mixing desk, but I couldn't give any further information on it as I don't know too much about that side of things! Christopher Herrick's interpretation on Organ fireworks is in fact the one I based on mine on..though I admit he did a much better job :-)

[MelosAntropon]

Compliments to Mr. Hunt. You gave a splendid performance of this little firecracker! But I am sold on Christopher Herrick's interpretation, though this is an excellent and thoughtful "alternate take". But . . .the unmistakable sound of "digital echo" is there, too. Did you add that? It sounds like typical Lexis reverb. Nonetheless, I am delighted you posted it. This work should be better known as a mainstream piece, but I suspect it isn't because of how much it owes to Messiaen.

[zippylad77]

@MelosAntropon Thanks for your comment. Yes the Christopher Herrick was the first recording of this I heard. I don't know of any others. And you're correct about the digital reverb being added artificially afterwards. It was necessary because the recording equipment was practically inside the organ itself and it would have sounded deadpan otherwise. I couldn't tell you if it was Lexis or not, but you could indeed be right

[rjspantikow]

Ah one of my favorite pieces to play in recital

[bonnehumeur09]

This was played as the voluntary at my Parish for the Feast of Epiphany a couple of years back. The sanctuary was still filled with incense, and the music and the smoke evoked an image of the Magi's caravan coming from the East. Truly magical...