Nicolaus BRUHNS (1665-1697)
Complete Organ Music
Prelude in e minor (great) [7:47]
Prelude in e minor (little) [4:34]
Prelude in G [7:56]
Prelude in g minor [3:59]
Adagio in D [2:28]
Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, chorale fantasia [9:40]
Jan Pieterszoon SWEELINCK (1562-1621)
Fantasia chromatica (SwWV 258) [8:39]
Heinrich SCHEIDEMANN (1595-1663)
Galliarda ex D (WV 107) [4:18]
Samuel SCHEIDT (1587-1654)
Cantio Belgica: Ach du feiner Reiter (SSWV 111) [8:52]
Bergamasca (SSWV 560) [4:26]
Dieterich BUXTEHUDE (1637-1707)
Prelude in g minor (BuxWV 148) [7:05]
Adriano Falcioni (organ)
rec. 25-27 June 2013, Chiesa di San Giorgio, Ferrara, Italy. DDD
BRILLIANT CLASSICS 94447 [70:10]
Nicolaus Bruhns is one of the best-known representatives
of the North German organ school. Being a contemporary of Dieterich Buxtehude
he belongs to the last generation of that illustrious school. His father was
organist in Schwabstedt when Nicolaus was born. He learnt to play the organ
as well as string instruments. In the latter department his teacher was his
uncle Peter in Lübeck; here he also became the favourite pupil of Buxtehude.
Bruhns developed into a virtuoso on the violin and on the organ. The German
composer and theorist Johann Mattheson reported that Bruhns sometimes played
both instruments at the same time: while playing the violin he realized the
basso continuo part on the pedal of the organ. For some years he worked as
a composer and violinist at the court in Copenhagen. In 1689 he was appointed
organist of the Stadtkirche in Husum. It was stated that "never before
(...) [had] the city heard his like in composition and performance on all
manner of instruments". When the civic authorities in Kiel tried to make
him move to their town the authority raised his salary. He remained in Husum
until his death.
Partly due to his short life he left only a small oeuvre. The main part comprises
twelve sacred cantatas which very likely date from his time in Husum. They
show the influence of the modern Italian cantata and often include brilliant
violin parts. These are but poor compensation for the lack of violin music
from his pen. His organ oeuvre is very small; until recently we knew only
four preludes and one chorale fantasia. Only fairly recently a sixth piece
was discovered, the Adagio in D. It is part of the Husum Organ Book
of 1758 which was first published in 2001. Stylistically it is different from
the other pieces by Bruhns, but there seems to be no doubt about his authorship.
It could have been part of a larger composition.
The preludes show the features of the North German organ school. They are
written in the stylus phantasticus which has its origins in the seconda
prattica which emerged in the early decades of the 17th century in Italy.
They consist of various sections of contrasting character, largely following
the pattern of toccata - fugue - toccata - fugue - toccata. The toccata sections
have a strong improvisatory character. It should be taken into account that
all the organ works from this period and this region find their origin in
improvisation which was the main task of any organist. It explains that relatively
few organ works have been preserved. What has come down to us is mostly what
was written down by pupils or what an organist himself decided to put down
for pedagogical purposes. Another notable aspect of Bruhns' organ works
is the virtuosic treatment of the pedal part. The main organs in northern
Germany had an independent pedal board with a rich variety of pipes and a
large compass. This way they were well suited to the accompaniment of congregational
singing.
The chorale fantasia Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland is another typical
specimen of the North German organ school. The various lines of the chorale
are treated in different ways, and the chorale melody is heavily ornamented.
Here Bruhns also makes use of the echo technique which points to the influence
of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, the Amsterdam organist who was the teacher of
many German organists and can be considered one of the founding fathers of
the North German organ school.
From this angle it is appropriate that one of the latter's best-known
pieces is included here, the Fantasia chromatica - or, as its original
title says, Fantasia Crommatica. However, according to Sweelinck
scholar Pieter Dirksen, this is not an organ piece. "[The] Fantasia
Crommatica, with Sweelinck's emphatic use of the d#, which was
missing on his mean-tone organ, (...) was therefore conceived for harpsichord
(...)". This already indicates that the organ which Adriano Falcioni
plays is not in mean-tone temperament. The booklet mentions a temperament
according to Claudio Brizi but doesn't give any further details. This
results in an interpretation of this piece which is not totally convincing.
In a mean-tone temperament the pieces by Bruhns had also to be played in a
different key. That is not the case here.
Samuel Scheidt was one of Sweelinck's main pupils. The largest part
of his keyboard music has been preserved in three collections with the title
of Tabulatura Nova. Although one cannot exclude the possibility that
'secular' organ music was played on the organ it seems unlikely
that they were performed on the large organs in churches. The two pieces by
Scheidt recorded here are variations on a secular song and on a basso
ostinato respectively. They are conceived for the harpsichord in the
first place. The same goes for the dances from the pen of Heinrich Scheidemann,
generally considered the founder of the North German organ school. He composed
quite a number of dances, mostly with variations. The Galliarda ex D
is one of them.
The disc closes with one of the many preludes by Dieterich Buxtehude. The
Prelude in g minor (BuxWV 148) includes a fugue but as at the time
this was not clearly separated from the prelude - as is the case in the works
of later composers such as Bach - it is not mentioned specifically.
I have already referred to the organ Adriano Falcioni plays. It was built
by the Italian organ firm Pinchi but we are not told when it was constructed.
It is modelled after German instruments: the disposition in the booklet mentions
the model for every stop of the organ. For instance, the Prinzipal 16'
of the Hauptwerk is a copy of the same stop from the organ of St Jacobi in
Hamburg and the Schalmei 4' from the Oberwerck is modelled after the
Stellwagen organ of St Jacobi in Lübeck. Most stops are copies of registers
in the organ of St Peter und Paul in Cappel. That makes this organ well suited
for the repertoire played here. However, the lack of a more appropriate tuning
is a serious blot on this production. That is not the only reason this recital
doesn't fully satisfy. Falcioni plays well and has certainly a good
feeling for the idiom of the North German organ school, but often I find his
playing a little stiff. In the fugue from Buxtehude's Prelude in
g minor, for instance, the repeated notes are played exactly the same
and staccato. There is no indication for a staccato, and a differentiation
between the notes of the theme would lend it some vitality which is lacking
here. The same goes for the preludes by Bruhns which include many passages
with brilliant figuration, and these should be played in a more improvisatory
manner.
In short, these performances are pretty good but most pieces in the programme
are available in better recordings.
A word about the booklet: although it is indicated that the liner-notes are
written by Falcioni, in fact they are taken from New Grove. Using
single phrases is one thing but lifting a nearly complete article another.
This explains why the Adagio in G by Bruhns is not mentioned as it
was not known when the article was written. The most odd part of the liner-notes
is that even those paragraphs from New Grove are quoted which deal
with his vocal works. I don't know who is responsible for this - Falcioni
or Brilliant Classics - but I find this unacceptable.
Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
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