21May21: it’s the hands and feet in a fury…

Andy likes the fury of hands and feet when “hoomins” play the organ. It’s either that or I have me a little J.S. Bach fan on my hand.

20 thoughts on “21May21: it’s the hands and feet in a fury…

    • That’s my impression. The videographer of this particular organist and his performances does a super job of making exciting visuals, with lots of close ups of flying fingers and prancing feet.

    • …an organista, a cat cabal destined to take over the earth, dogs included! (That is to d=say, he’s willing to join with dogs since you guys can provide the muscle!)

  1. Andy, you have excellent taste in music! Though I always find the rapid hand and foot movements of professional organists a little alarming. My church had an excellent organist, trained at Juilliard, but while in the throes of playing Bach’s fugues, he looked like he was about to fly off the keyboard. He had to retire due to carpal tunnel pain in his wrists, which was very sad but not surprising, given that I acquired carpal tunnel syndrome just banging on a computer keyboard all day at work. I didn’t get to make beautiful music, however!

    • Yes, it is alarming to see the flurry of fingers and feet when an organist plays the Bach pieces. I share Andy’s fascination with the process of organ playing and those people clever enough to become proficient at it!

      I did notice in the video the organist playing in the cathedral in Berlin had to deal with a long sound decay because of the volume of the room, which allowed him some small pauses till he could play again without the whole thing become a jumble.

      Not related, just a fond memory from my past, I got to see the great E. Power Biggs play Bach on a church pipe organ in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1969. Gad! the power of the music rattling through one’s body can’t be match on a recording, and he was so cute – a little white-haired elf wrestling the huge, huge machine and making it sing beautiful music! Here’s a delightful piece played by him just for you!

      https://youtu.be/kZLN46TY_qM

      • I miss live music, sigh. I was listening to a classical guitarist on public radio earlier in the week, and the sound of his fingers sliding on the strings gave me goosebumps. You’re right, the vibrations of an organ hitting bass notes can’t be replicated anywhere else but during a live performance, preferably with a Wurlitzer. Nobody needs an amplifier for those shows!

        • Recorded performances kind of create expectations of perfection, but you’re right, live performances have a charm that can’t be matched any other way.

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