Pipe Organ - "A Joyous Procession", Richard Purvis

"A Joyous Procession"
by Richard Purvis (1913-1994)
Prelude 01 June 2008

Purvis is best remembered for his 24 years (1947-1971) as Organist/ChoirMaster at Grace Episcopal Cathedral, San Francisco. Purvis studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia - organ with Alexander McCurdy and conducting with Fritz Reiner. Further studies were with Josef Levine in New York, Edward Bairstow in England, Marcel Dupré in Paris and, after his graduation from Curtis in 1940, with Charles Courboin (Saint Patrick's Cathedral, NYC, 1943-1973) and Charles Heinroth.

The pipe organ is J.W. Steere, Opus 701, built and installed in the Church of the Redeemeer, Morristown, NJ, USA in 1918.

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For anyone interested in what we're doing at Church of the Redeemer, check out our website: www.RedeemerMorristown.org

J. W. Steere & Son Organ Co., Opus 701, 1918, originally 4/40 drawknob console

Church of the Redeemer
Morristown, NJ, USA
as it exists 2008; 3/49:
Manuals (61 notes), Pedal (32 notes), six divisions

Austin stop tab Console, 1962
Church Organ Company, Cantilevered Great, 1979
New Century Products, Zimbelstern, 2005

Great Organ I, Unenclosed, Manual II, Cantilevered
8' Principal (61 pipes)
8' Rohr Flöte (61 pipes)
4' Octave (61 pipes)
4' Rohr Flöte (12 pipes)
2' Block Flöte (61 pipes)
Fourniture IV (244 pipes)
8' Trompette (61 pipes)
4' Clarion (12 pipes)
Zimbelstern 9 bells

Great Organ II, Unenclosed, Manual II
16' Bourdon (61 pipes)
8' Open Diapason (61 pipes)
8' Gross Flute (61 pipes)
8' Gemshorn (61 pipes)
4' Octave (61 pipes)
4' Harmonic Flute (61 pipes)
8' Trumpet (61 pipes)

Gt. to Gt. 16'
Gt. Unison Off
Gt. to Gt. 4'
Sw. to Gt. 16'
Sw. to Gt. 8'
Sw. to Gt. 4'
Ch. to Gt. 16'
Ch. to Gt. 8'
Ch. to Gt. 4'
Echo to Gt. 8'
Echo to Gt. 4'

Swell Organ, Expressive, Manual III
16' Bourdon (73 pipes)
8' Diapason (73 pipes)
8' Gedeckt (73 pipes)
8' Salicional (73 pipes)
8' Voix Celeste (61 pipes)
8' Aeoline (73 pipes)
4' Flauto Traverso (Harmonic) (73 pipes)
2' Piccolo (61 pipes)
Mixture III Ranks (12th, 15th, 17th) - (183 pipes)
16' Pousaune (61 pipes)
8' Cornopean (73 pipes)
8' Oboe (73 pipes)
Tremolo
Sw. to Sw. 16'
Sw. Unison Off
Sw. to Sw. 4'
Ch. to Sw. 8'

Choir Organ, Expressive, Manual I
16' Contra Gamba (73 pipes)
8' Diapason (73 pipes)
8' Concert Flute (73 pipes)
8' Flute Celeste (TC) - (61 pipes)
8' Quintadena (73 pipes)
8' Dulciana (73 pipes)
4' Flute d'Amour (73 pipes)
8' Clarinet (73 pipes)
8' Orchestral Oboe (73 pipes)
Tremolo
Celesta 49 bars
Ch. to Ch. 16'
Ch. Unison Off
Ch. to Ch. 4'
Sw. to Ch. 16'
Sw. to Ch. 8'
Sw. to Ch. 4'
Echo to Ch. 8'
Echo to Ch. 4'

Echo Organ, Expressive, Floating
(North Clerestory, 4th bay)
8' Fern Flute (73 pipes)
8' Muted Viole (73 pipes)
8' Viole Celeste (73 pipes)
4' Flute a Cheminee (Harmonic) (73 pipes)
8' Vox Humana (73 pipes)
Tremolo
Chimes (Degan) 20 tubes

Pedal Organ
32' Resultant (32 notes)
16' Diapason (32 pipes)
16' Gamba (Choir) (32 notes)
16' Bourdon (shared with Great) (32 notes)
16' Gedeckt (Swell) (32 notes)
8' Diapason (from Steere Great Processional) (32 pipes)
8' Flute (Great II) (32 notes)
8' Violoncello (Choir) (32 notes)
4' Octave (from Steere Great Processional) (12 pipes)
4' Flute (Great II) (32 notes)
2' Octave (from Steere Great Processional) (12 pipes)
Mixture II (Church Organ Company) (64 pipes)
16' Trombone (shared with Swell) (32 notes)
8' Trompette (Great I) (32 notes)
4' Clarion (Great I) (32 notes)
Gt. to Ped. 8'
Gt. to Ped. 4'
Sw. to Ped. 8'
Sw. to Ped. 4'
Ch. to Ped. 8'
Ch. to Ped. 4'
Echo to Ped. 8'

Pistons:
10 General Pistons and Toe Studs
8 Swell Pistons
8 Great Pistons
8 Choir Pistons
3 Echo Pistons
6 Pedal Toe Studs
Swell to Pedal 8' Reversible Piston
Great to Pedal 8' Reversible Piston and Toe Stud
Choir to Pedal 8' Reversible Piston
Tutti Reversible Piston and Toe Stud
General Cancel Piston
Zimbelstern On/Off Buttons

Balanced Echo, Choir and Swell Pedals
Balanced Crescendo Pedal

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Joyous
• Procession
• Purvis
• Pipe
• Organ
• Prelude
• Postlude
• Redeemer
• Episcopal
• Historic
• Church
• Morristown
• NJ
• Orgue
• Orgel

[MrBooker39]

This is a very fine performance...you have a wonderful rhythmic drive, without being metronomic. Which of your trumpets is featured as a solo stop?

Thanks for posting this!

[joenwayne]

@MrBooker39

Thanks for your kind comments and for viewing.

The two Great Trumpets (Trompette and Trumpet) are used together here for the solo trumpet.

Regards,

Wayne

[wurlitzer3]

How nice to see a full specification.

[joenwayne]

@wurlitzer3

Thanks for your comment and for viewing. Greetings from NJ.

Cheers,

Wayne

[Organgrinder010]

At first glance I thought that was the organ at Spreckels Pavilion. This is a fantastic performance.

[Repmanly]

Thanks for the Purvis performance. My childhood choirmaster, who studied at Penn and Harvard, was a protégé of Richard Purvis as a student of his at Episcopal Academy in Philadelphia, in the years just prior to Purvis appointment at Grace Cathedral. His service playing was noticeably influenced by Purvis as there was a Purvis style. Our Men & Boys Choir did one of the earliest performances of Purvis cantata, Ballad of Judas Iscariot (cir. 1968) at Church of the Good Samaritan in Paoli, PA.

[dmh3707]

@Repmanly Ah, Bill Dickey. I miss him. I wasn't yet in the choir for that first performance, but I was for the second. What a wonderful choirmaster, organist and composer he was. All these years later, I can still recreate "Te Summa Deus" and "Out of the Deep" almost entirely from memory. Thank you for bringing him to mind.

[Doug19752533]

@Repmanly Same here, i attended a very large church in Flint Michigan, and our choirmaster William Rennecker was a graduate of Wesminster Choir College. he knew Richard Purvis and would often include his music in many of the services and choir festivals we had. hearing this music brings back alot of memories

[joenwayne]

Thanks for your comments and for viewing.

[SuperElBorba]

I was honored to have had Richard as my only organ teacher . .

Nicely played . .

[joenwayne]

Thanks for viewing and your comments. I am wearing my OrganMaster organ shoes.

[4902STEVEN]

I love the economy of movement of the feet on the pedal board. It does not look like organ shoes....or the heel is deep enough...however it does not seem to hurt this performance at all. A lot can be said for being familiar with the particular organ.