By Arrangement: Organ: Instrumental Work

Variations for Piano Op.27 arranged for OrganIt may come as a surprise to learn that Anton Webern?s delicate refined and intimate music can be transferred to the organ. Xavier Darasse (1934-1992) a pupil of Duruflé and Messiaen has produced an organ adaptation of the famous three-movement Piano Variations Op.27 (1936) a groundbreaking composition in serial music. His arrangement is accompanied by judicious registration marks and division of the manuals. The result is fully convincing making this late work with its chamber-like atmosphere attractive to organists.Darasse?s adaptation is now presented to the public for the first time. His pupil BernhardHaas an organ professor in Munich has prefixed his teacher?s manuscript with a foreword containing important suggestions regarding the work?s performance.A première publicationPerformance suggestions from Bernhard Haas

The Ode For St. Cecilia's Day is a cantata written in 1739 by G F Handel. The March was the sixth of its twelve movements. Originally scored for chamber orchestra it has been arranged here for Organ by Martin Hawkes and makes the perfect March for a Wedding.G F Handel (1685-1759) was a German-born British composer and organist who spent his life working in London. In addition to his well-known large-scale works like the Water Music and Music for the Royal Fireworks he is credited with popularising opera in Britain both importing Italian works and composing his own.

Six Short Chorale Preludes-Six well-known works by JS Bach arranged for organ with easy pedal parts. Ideal for pianist who are required to perform on church organs.

Albert W Ketèlbey's most popular works appear to have been a series of Orchestral tone poems like In a Persian Market that incorporate exoticism and demonstrate the high quality of his Orchestration. The Orchestral version of this piece included a Vocal line of male Voices calling for baksheesh which is absent from the Organ arrangement.Composer and arranger Albert W Ketèlbey is now almost unknown except for his work Bells Across the Meadows but until the time of the Second World War he strode the country’s musical stage like a giant of light musical entertainment. In 1929 he was declared ‘Britain’s greatest composer’ according to the number of performances of his works. Over the course of his career he was a church Organist musical director at London’s Vaudeville Theatre editor to several music publishing firms and Music Director of the Columbia Gramophone Company.

Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992) is known for his unique composition style. Incorporating complex rhythms harmony and melodies  L'Ascension for Organ is no exception to the composer's popular distinctive style. L'Ascension was originally composed for orchestra by Messiaen in 1932-1933. The composer described the work as Four Symphonic Meditations and the sections are; 1) Majesty of Christ praying that His Father should glorify Him 2) Serene Alleluias from a soul longing for Heaven 3) Alleluia on the Trumpet Alleluia on the Cymbal and 4) Prayer from Christ ascending towards HisFather. Messiaen arranged L'Ascensionfor solo Organ a year later. The first second and fourth movements are arrangements of the orchestral version however the composer created a new third movement; Outburst of joy from a soul before the Glory of Christ which is its own glory. L'Ascension is essential to all advanced organists seeking to expand and vary their repertoire.

The reputation of the Bohemian composer Zdenek Fibich (1850-1900) has always been somewhat overshadowed by that of Bedrich Smetana and Anton n Dvorák. This is a pity for Fibich though he died young made an equally important contribution to the emerging Czech national styl with his wide range of compositions. After starting piano lessons with his mother as his first teacher the boy went on to music school in Prague and then to the Leipzig Conservatoire where he learned his craft as a composer. He spent a few months teaching piano in Paris and then continued his studies with Vinzenz Lachner in Mannheim. Prague was eventually to become the centre for Fibich'smusical activities: as his dream of a post at the Conservatoire remained unfulfilled his main employment was giving private music lessons and as a composer Zdenek Fibich wrote works for many musical genres: vocal and chamber music piano pieces and orchestral works operas stage music and melodramas literary recitals with orchestral accompaniment to which he gave a new lease of life. There are biographical traces to be found in the 376 piano pieces of the collection 'Moods Impressions and Reminiscences' Op. 41 written in 1892-98: this tells of his love for his pupil Anezka Schulzová in the form of a 'piano diary'. Its four volumes were frequently a source of material for other works such as the symphonic poem 'In the Evening' Op. 39 (also known as 'A Summer's Evening' and 'At Twilight') written in 1893. For his second subject in this 'Idyll' Fibich used the minature no. 139 entitled 'Lento' from his collection of piano pieces. The violinst Jan Kubel k played the melody from 1908 onwards with the title 'Poème' and the work is still known today under this title: its easy charm has made it a favourite tune in the classical repertoire. This arrangement is based on the orchestral version from which other material was adapted for the Prelude.

for Organ-Handel's Music For The Royal Fireworks arranged for Organ by John Arkell.

4 Interludes-The music of small forms was what the French composer Gabriel Fauré (1845 1924) focused on. In 1874 after many years spent in the 'provinces' the teacher of Camille Saint-Saëns took the position of organist in Paris; later he not only worked as a church musician but also as a teacher.In the summer of 1887 Fauré wrote his Pavane Op. 50 originally intended for a concert providing light entertainment which soon gained wide popularity as an orchestral setting with and without the chorus added by Fauré. The romantic slightly melancholic melody is a catchy tune which thanks to the present arrangement can now also be performed soloistically with piano accompaniment.