It is with little less than profound
dismay that I attempt to review this
disc. How such a respected British church
music label as Lammas should produce
a recording of such irrelevance is no
less than disturbing. Indeed, I would
go as far as to say that this CD represents
a new low-point in commercial British
organ recording.
The first element of
the disc which is so distressing is
the instrument. Why would any label
in a country such as Britain, where
there are still many interesting instruments,
(often far more interesting than we
as organists appreciate), choose to
record an electronic organ? Even if
it is a custom-built Copeman Hart electronic
organ, it is still an electronic organ
which sounds like an electronic organ.
It is completely beyond my comprehension
how Lammas could consider this instrument
worthy of commercial recording. As if
to add insult to injury, we are told
that the church houses a 1772 seven
stop chamber organ by one Jonas Ley,
of which we hear nothing.
The quality of playing
on the CD though is in a sense more
disturbing than the quality of the instrument.
Peter St. John Stokes, organist of St
Silas is a one-time student of Francis
Jackson. "For years later he went to
London to study at Trinity College of
Music" we are mysteriously told. I am
quite sure that Mr St. John Stokes is
committed to enhancing the liturgy at
St Silas, and that his efforts are very
much appreciated by the parishioners
there. However, he should not be making
commercial recordings. Unfortunately
his playing features many note-inaccuracies,
rhythmic instability and inaccuracy,
an inability to play in a single tempo
(especially in the Bach Fugue), clipped
phrasing in the Dandrieu and Beauvarlet-Charpentier
and lack of controlled legato in the
Franck. His programme notes show that
he is an intelligent musical commentator,
but his playing is not at a similar
level.
So, Lammas have made
a CD of a flawed player playing an electronic
organ. In the case of no other musical
instrument would such inadequacy be
featured on a commercial recording.
Why is it that such organ recordings
are allowed to be made and sold to the
general public? A couple of years ago
I met, by accident, one of Britain's
very leading organist/teachers in Westminster
Cathedral. I asked him what, if any,
recording projects he was planning at
that time. His reply shocked me. He
said "I will probably never make a recording
again. It used to be that making a recording
meant that you had achieved something.
Now anybody can make one, it doesn't
mean anything any more." The present
recording makes it hard to argue with
those thoughts.
I hope that for Lammas,
and for British organ recording in general,
this CD represents no more than an blip,
albeit of astonishing proportions.
Chris Bragg
Peter St. John Stokes, organ 
