Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-03-20
Turntobie Talk
Pipe Organs Of Europe
Sampled on LIP Tour
Turntobie Talk
By. James G. Deone

BY jam
e. Power Biggs. the Back
Bay organist. recently took o
sort of Cooks Concert Tour Of
Europe's more noteworthy
churches. Some fascinating
old organs were among those
those that sounded to his
touch. such as q famous one in
the Royal palace Of Frederiks-
borg in Hillerod, Denmark.
built in 1912 and still intact,
even to its wooden pipes.
Recording technicians went
along. too. and Columbia has
put together a pair of LIP discs
giving o sampling Of the tour.
It is quite.a noble sound. this
music, as indeed one would ex-
pect. for the pipe organ has
yet to be surpassed for creating
stirring vibrations In ones
hearing apparatus land,
when it comes to the pulsa-
tons from a 32-foot pipe, in
ones entire France.
Some New Instruments Used
New, as well as old. organs
are represented in the collec-
ton. one Of the former being
the year-old one In London's
Royal Festival Hall, on which
Biggs plays the Bach D minor
toccata tthe only Bach In the
set. II Is the old ones that
are most interesting. however,
for they prove Just how endur-
ing is the master organ
builders art. There is quaint
ness, Of course. in hearing the
mechanical clanking and oc-
casional out-of-tuneness Of
such an ancient instrument
as the one at Frederiksborg OF
the century-newer one at
Leufsta Bruk, Sweden. But
there is also an indelible print
of timelessness and of the spir-
itual aspiration to which the
organ-maker's genius for CEN
turtles has helped give wing.
The music ON these discs,
chiefly by Buxtehude, Pachel-
bel and Sweelinck. is as re-
freShlng as the sound Of the
fine instruments on which it is
performed. The little jig fugue
Of Buxtehude, strikingly like
one Of Bach's, is a delight to
hear on the 1880 Cahman
organ at Drottningholm Castle
In Sweden. So is Sweelinck's
set Of variations on "Unter
der Linden gruene" on the 1851
Flentrop at the modern Kruis-
kerk in Hollands Amstelveen.
And it's fun to hear stirring
Purcell fanfare on pipes the
composer himself once played
at Westminster Abbey. This is
merely to single out a little of
the contents.
Such Works For Too Rore
Good organ records are still
all too rare, and this set Is
therefore particularly well
come. One could wish that
the sole Bach item. which is
too close to the center, were
better reproduced-a wish also
applicable in a few other
pieces. But on the whole the
standard, both musical and
acoustical. is high.
What presume is the same
fine new organ in the Danish
State Radio building in Copen-
hagen on which Biggs plays a
Buxtehude fugue is featured in
a work by the late Danish
composer Carl Nielsen on a
new London disc. This is a
lengthy piece, with its roots in
early polyphony, called Com
motto" and 1t testifies quite
impressively both to Nielsen's
respect for Bach and his COM
mand Of the requirements of
writing for organ, a command
not many modern composers
possess. Georg Fjelrad, the
organist, seems to be a highly
capable one. and the reproduc-
ton Is splendid. On the other
side are three interesting
Nielsen motets. a conscious
tribute to Palestrina. sung by