Naxos is doing the
world a wonderful favor by recording
complete works of many composers in
multiple volumes. Their usual approach
is for each volume to be recorded in
a different location and by a different
musician. This allows the listener the
opportunity to compare and contrast
interpretations of often overlooked
works, in different venues and instruments.
Naxos also manages to make these albums
very accessible to the public with lots
of biographical information in the CD
booklet, and by keeping prices in check.
Volume 5, the latest in the volumes
of the organ music of Max Reger, does
all of this.
The selection of Fulda
Cathedral for recording Reger’s music
was a good one. It’s not a sound many
listeners are familiar with, especially
American listeners. It sad that the
idea of the "Romantic" organ
fell out of favor with so many 20th
century organists and builders. The
art of registration on such an instrument
is lost to many contemporary performers,
and the resulting sound is often unfamiliar.
The abundance of foundation tone in
the heavily leaded flues, upperwork
that merely shimmers not shines, and
reeds that can snarl their way through
the forest of 8 foot pitch is a combination
of sounds many organ builders have left
in the late 19th century.
This is a shame, as the music of Reger
and his contemporaries demands this
sound, and when properly executed, the
effect is quite moving..
The organist, Stefan
Frank, is a technical master, however
he takes time to warm to the music.
I don’t know the order in which these
tracks were recorded, but I could believe
he started from track 1 and worked his
way through in the order they are presented
on the CD. The opening few tracks, while
beautifully recorded and played with
technical perfection, are less than
stunning. It’s difficult to wrestle
the musical lines away from Reger’s
technical and harmonic grasp. With hands
spanning large gaps while realizing
surprising harmonies, Mr. Frank has
let some of the beauty of these works
slip away. Maybe, then, it is the organist’s
technical mastery that allows him to
make the most musical sense out of the
four fugues. Reger is often thought
of as the most important German composer
for organ since Bach, and I think his
fugues are one reason why. They are
technically challenging to play and
feature a much wider harmonic spectrum
than ever available to Bach. The opportunities
for pitfalls are great, but somehow
Mr. Frank makes his most beautiful music
on these works. The well-known and oft-recorded
Chorale Fantasia on ‘Wachet auf, ruft
uns die Stimme’ is by far the best performance
on the CD. I like to think the organist
was warmed up by this point and finally
gives us his best in this thrilling
work. His realization of the Fugue is
exciting, slowly building what should
be just a technical study for an organist
into a brilliant, emotional climax.
If only the entire album could have
the musicality and energy of the last
few tracks, it would be quite wonderful.
Brent Johnson
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Stefan Frank (organ)