 The American musician Luther Noss reviewed the piece upon its publication by Boosey & Hawkes in 1952, stating that it was "well written for the organ" and "remarkably free" of some of the problems found in other modern organ music. He thought that it gave the impression of having been written with the organ in mind rather adapted from a piece intended for another instrument, unlike some other contemporary organ works. However, he commented that the theme provided little melodic or rhythmic interest and Britten used it, he thought, "not without a suggestion of monotony." Although the theme is "not the stuff of which great music is made", Noss remarked on the "exciting" pedal flourish at the opening of the piece, the attractive use of melody and harmony, and "grand crescendos and lingering diminuendos" to keep the listener interested. Another early reviewer described it as "spacious", with a "by no means academic" fugue and a style that "suggests a modern romantic composer's appreciation of the more austere aspects of the classical organ school." The review also noted that many of the accents marked in the piece "seem incapable of realization by any of the usual methods of suggesting accentuation of the organ."
