Although superficially similar, these two discs are in fact
complementary. Either would be a suitable addition to the collection
of anyone
who simply wants a collection of short or shortish items played
on the organ, even if they were not necessarily originally intended
for the instrument. Each disc however has its own individual
characteristics and these may well determine which, if either,
of the two you might want.
Jonathan Scott is a relatively young musician who has previously
made recordings both on his own and with his brother Tom. I was
very impressed with their recent disc of music for harmonium
and piano, and looked forward to a similar combination of flair,
virtuosity and interesting choice of programme. The first two
are certainly there, even if the programme is for the most part
familiar or even over-familiar. There is no impression here of,
in Adelaide Proctor’s immortal words, the organist’s “fingers
wandering idly over the noisy keys”. On the contrary, his
fingerwork is immaculate and purposeful, and the recording although
apparently close does not catch any mechanical noise. The absence
of a cathedral acoustic may trouble some people but it does mean
that you can hear all the notes and appreciate the textures rather
than just enjoy a mighty roar. In any event few of these pieces
were intended for a church organ. Most are arrangements, mainly
by the organist himself, and for the most part very skilfully
done. Indeed the arrangement of Debussy’s “La fille
aux cheveux de lin” is of very considerable beauty and
effectiveness, especially as played on the flute stops of this
instrument, and the Suppé is exciting and amusing in turns.
I was not so convinced by the Walton, Massenet or Paradis. The
Elgar frankly loses all its meaning when taken out of context
and played on the organ. On the other hand Lemare’s selection
from “Carmen”, which is effectively what his Fantasia
is, is well chosen and one of the highlights of the disc. Marcel
Laquetuit was a pupil of Marcel Dupré and later the organist
at Rouen Cathedral. His Toccata, just about his only piece surviving
in the repertoire, is virtually an entertaining copy of the Widor
Toccata. It was wise to place the two well apart on the disc.
The discs have two pieces in common - Yon’s amusing Toccatina
and that inevitable Widor Toccata. Whilst there are differences
between the performances they are probably mainly due to differences
between the three organs involved, and I enjoyed all of these
performances. The main value of the Regis disc is in its historic
interest in presenting a group of wonderfully assured and stylish
performances by organists no longer active, on a selection of
Cathedral organs. These recordings were all made by Brian Culverhouse,
but unfortunately no information is given about the circumstances
under which they were made. He had been responsible for an earlier
series of EMI recordings of British Cathedral Organs but I am
unclear as to whether or not these were a continuation of that
series. What is entirely clear, however, is that he understood
how best to capture the particular character of each organ and
Cathedral. He even managed to tame the notorious acoustic of
St Paul’s Cathedral. The recording of the Bridgewater Hall
organ on Jonathan Scott’s disc is very lifelike and clear.
The recordings on the Regis disc are very different, necessarily
as the acoustic of each Cathedral differs. They are however by
no means noticeably inferior and many listeners will get an especial
pleasure from what is in effect a tour of some of England’s
best cathedrals. What the disc does lack is the detail about
the instruments that is given on Scott’s disc. This is
a pity as it can add to the listener’s enjoyment, and would
be of particular interest where later changes have been made
to any of the instruments. Nonetheless I would doubt whether
this is likely to be sufficient to put anyone off buying the
disc.
The most enjoyable track by far was Barry Rose’s playing
of Franck’s Chorale No. 3. In the hands of some players
this can seem very episodic, and however enjoyable the sections
are they may not seem to hang together. Here, however, the music
is driven onwards and even in the slower and quieter sections
there is a real sense of the inner propulsion of the music. Similar
comments might be made about the Toccatas by Reger and Boëllmann,
or the exuberant Alain Litanies. I would however want to draw
a veil over the arrangements of the Berenice Minuet and the Londonderry
Air, where the sound of the organ seems to fight against the
character of the music. This is even more the case with the Sousa
which starts with as unpleasant and raw sound as I have ever
heard from an organ. Given that Noel Rawsthorne’s performances
earlier of Yon and Reger on the mighty beast at Liverpool Anglican
Cathedral are amongst the best on the disc it is probably fair
to attribute the relative coarseness of the Sousa to the Coventry
Cathedral organ. The Wagner is better in this respect although
it is not a piece that I would want to hear too often on the
organ.
As I said at the start, both discs have distinct virtues, and
overall both are very successful. Jonathan Scott’s “Spectacular” certainly
lives up to its name, and its panache, musicianship and clear
recording should appeal to anyone attracted to the programme
and the very able player. Great Cathedral Organs may appeal more
to those interested in the particular players and instruments,
although it too has an attractive programme. I am very glad to
have heard them both - choose between them if you must but perhaps
it is better to buy both.
John Sheppard
Track Details
Spectacular - the Organ of Bridgewater Hall
Franz von Suppé (1819-1895) Overture to “Poet and
Peasant” arr. Scott [10:20]
Claude Debussy (1862-1918) “La fille aux cheveux de lin” arr.
Scott [3:05]
Pietro Alessandro Yon (1886-1943) Humoresque “L’organo
primitive” - Toccatina for Flute [2:23]
Sir William Walton (1902-1983) Crown Imperial arr. Murrill [10:06]
Jules Massenet (1842-1912) Méditation from “Thaïs” arr.
Scott [6:03]
Marcel Lanquit (1894-1985) Toccata in D [4:39]
Tomaso Albinoni (1671-1751)/Remo Giazotto Adagio in G minor [9:43]
George Frederick Handel (1685-1759) Hormpipe from Water Music
arr. Scott [3:40]
Maria-Theresia von Paradis (1759-1824) Sicilienne arr. Goss-Custard
[3:30]
Edwin Lemare (1866-1934) Fantasia on themes from Bizet’s
Carmen [12:49]
Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934) Nimrod from Enigma Variations Op
36 arr. W H Harris [5:03]
Charles Marie Widor (1844-1937) Toccata from Symphony No 5 Op
42/1 [6:11]
Great Cathedral Organs of England Volume II
(Allan Wicks at Canterbury Cathedral - 1975)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) Toccata and Fugue in D minor
(“Dorian”) [12:55]
César Franck (1822-1890) Pastorale [9:12]
(Francis Jackson at York Minster - 1974)
Jehan Alain (b1911) Litanies (5:07)
Léon Boëllman (1862-1897) Toccata from Suite Gothique
Op 25 (4:10)
(Noel Rawsthorne at Liverpool Anglican Cathedral - 1976)
Pietro Alessandro Yon (1886-1943) Humoresque “L’organo
primitive” - Toccatina for Flute [2:40]
Max Reger (1873-1916) Toccata in D minor [3:45]
(Christopher Dearnley at St Paul’s Cathedral - 1974)
George Frederick Handel (1685-1759) Minuet from “Berenice” arr.
Dearnley [4:02]
Traditional arr. Dearnley (1930-2000) Londonderry Air [4:29]
(Noel Rawsthorne at Coventry Cathedral - 1985)
John Philip Sousa (1854-1932) Stars and Stripes Forever arr.
Rawsthorne [3:44]
Richard Wagner (1813-1883) The Ride of the Valkyries from “Die
Walküre” arr. Rawsthorne [6:15]
(Barry Rose at Guildford Cathedral - 1974)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) Jesu, joy of man’s desiring
[3:10]
Charles Marie Widor (1844-1937) Toccata from Symphony No 5 Op
42/1 [5:14]
rec. 1974-1985 
