MONTHLY MUSICAL OFFERING: PICARDY

TIPS & TRICKS DOWNLOAD MP3 DOWNLOAD MUSIC

As the season of Lent begins in February, musicians turn to music that is both introspective and time-efficient so that added practice time can be given to the quickly approaching Easter.

Rodgers presents this simple, yet beautiful, setting of the tune Picardy, often sung with the lyrics “Let all mortal flesh keep silence”. This organ solo edition can be used as a prelude, organ voluntary, or short concert piece during Lent.

Given the piece’s minor key, regular rhythms, and simple structure, it’s easy for the music to start to sound like a funeral march instead of a poetic interlude.

Here are three quick tips for bringing this music to life:

1. Be expressive! Use what expression or crescendo pedals you have available on your organ. Follow the hairpin dynamics in the score but listen to how the organ responds in your space and use them as a guide for your expression.
2. Make contrasts – vary the timbre of the melody versus the harmony and across different divisions. Make dynamic contrasts to draw in the audience to the quieter sections, and remember to make room for brief silences between phrases.
3. Don’t drag! Choose a tempo slightly faster than you might initially think for this piece. This helps give shape to the phrasing and allows for more natural breaths. It also keeps the music from sounding monotonous or funerary.

BONUS TIP: Utilize stops from the Rodgers Organ Library to help create the sound of an early 20th century organ, perfect for the music of Henry Coleman. This recording features an added Aeoline in the Swell, Harmonic Flute in the Great, and Dulciana 16 in the pedal.

The composer, Henry Coleman, is best known as a dedicated organist and composer of many approachable and colorful compositions for organ.