Alan Cooper reviews: Dr Roger B Williams, organ
Music in the University in association with sound
TEXTURES AND RESONANCES
Roger B. Williams, Organ
A recital including new music for organ and electronics
King’s College Chapel, Aberdeen
Tuesday, 04 November 2014
Tuesday’s recital of new along with some old music for organ was the ninth such event for Aberdeen University Music with sound givenby Roger Williams M.B.E. As usual, Roger had chosen older works from the repertoire designed to complement the new works. These included two world premières as well as three first ever Scottish performances.
The rich dramatic chord that opened Johann Jakob Froberger’s Toccata no.1 (Libro Quarto 1656) could easily have been the start of some dramatic new piece and in its day, this work would have been exactly that. Froberger is remembered as a keyboard virtuoso, something that emerged clearly in the dizzying swirls of notes that rose above the sturdy held chords. The central section of the work was fugal in texture and Roger Williams proved himself to be in particularly fine fettle with his performance of this propulsive opening piece.
Glimmer by Richard Warp, born in Somerset but since 2006 working in the San Francisco Bay area in California certainly met all the requirements of the title of Tuesday’s recital: “Textures and Resonances”. Upper and lower registers of the Aubertin were conspicuously contrasted suggesting as the programme note said, “an exploration of light and dark”. In both registers, the harmonic clashes within held chords produced pulsing wave patterns that certainly suggested the idea contained within the title “Glimmer”.
The Sonatina in d minor by Christian Ritter featured rich chordal sequences, a fugal section and chiming runs that blossomed into a full carillon of notes brilliantly played by Roger Williams. Its title made it the perfect introduction to the first world première of the recital. Sonatina (2014) was the title of the new work by Peter Relph. Like Ritter’s piece, Peter Relph’s Sonatina also had rich chording, tonal yet not without moments of daring in its harmonic language. Melody also featured in this work and contributed powerfully to its overall shaping – a really well thought out and meaningfully constructed composition that was particularly well suited to the organ – not surprising since Peter Relph is himself an organist.
Epitaph (2014) by Philip Cooke was composed in memory of Sir John Tavener who died in November last year. Cooke’s music is not really like Tavener’s, he has developed what is very much his own musical language and yet was there not something of Tavener in the opening chord sequences and especially in the almost rumbling conclusion of the work? If Richard Warp’s piece was an essay in light and dark this was also true of Philip Cooke’s piece. The sombre opening chords were contrasted with the light of an upper flute melody and later bird-like utterances. What is a special feature of Cooke’s fresh approach to tonality is the way in which he makes strident chords melt beautifully into consonance so that the music has strength tempered with a sweetness that is always thoroughly tasteful.
Wonderfully sturdy pedal work was at the heart of Pachelbel’s Toccata in d minor as well as its running rising and falling sequences accomplished with magnificent aplomb by Roger Williams. The idea of Textures and Resonances is at the heart of most French organ music and it was there though in very different ways in the next two pieces: Tierce en Taille from the Messe pour les Paroisses by François Couperin and Jésus accepte la Souffrance by Olivier Messiaen. Flutes, tremulant and delicious ornaments marked the Couperin and in the Messiaen, pairs of chords dissonant then consonant marked the character of the music. Low and high registers and more than in any of the other pieces contrasting dynamics delivered the impact of Messiaen’s heartfelt music.
If the Couperin and Messiaen were both deeply religious music, the next piece quite deliberately eschewed that sound world. This was the first of the evening’s works to use electronics along with the live organ performance. Actually in the Chapel the electronic element was quite powerful and it was difficult to separate out the organ contribution from the bustling rhythmical backing track. That, of course, was possibly exactly what was intended and was a measure of the success of the performance. For a different sort of balance however you can go on Google. Type in Eduardo Costa Roldán: Argon – and you will hear a performance from Union Chapel, London where the organ is rather more prominent. The performer is none other than Roger B. Williams. If you are an organ enthusiast this is possibly the better version but if you want to follow Roldán’s intention of taking the organ “out of the church and into a club” Tuesday’s version with its throbbing Latin percussion is the one for you. I found both totally captivating and worth listening to.
The final piece was Wrangham by Claire Singer. It is a piece for Remembrance and is named after a tiny place not far from Insch. It began with a high pitched electronic note then developed chordal and melodic content soon blended subtly and deliciously with the organ. Here was another contemporary work that embraced tonality in a new way. It was a rather lovely piece with a powerful emotional charge to it – a moving conclusion to the recital.
This was by no means all however. There was a question and answer session after the performance which was very helpful – and ooh yes; there was some very nice cake too. Why was there cake? Well, there were two birthdays to celebrate. Both sound and the Aubertin organ are celebrating their tenth anniversaries this year – so very many happy returns to both!
© Alan Cooper, 2014
