No comments about Great Organ Transcriptions: 26 Works by Liszt, Saint-Saens, Bach and Others.

3 comments about Hymn Improvisation.

1. This book is a short treatise on a very limited area of liturgical hymn improvisation. It is best suited for use by skilled organists or perhaps pianists who for some reason never mastered work with basic intervalic changes. If you need to ask what I just said, you certainly will not be comfortable with this book. I could only give it three stars as the information given is limited (but accurate) .
   The data in this volume is also classically oriented and more useful in a church setting which regularly uses very traditional or "classical" music. I would not advise anyone who wants to get into purely Gospel or jazz to purchase the volume. Classical pianists-organists who are called upon to do some extra voicing in a liturgical church may find it has limited value. If you look at the pages Amazon has listed, on of the first examples begin with a section called "Bicinium", which will give you a hint of how the entire book is structured. Oh yes, you may wonder what that word means. You won't find the word "bicinium" in Webster's or Oxford dictionaries. It's an archaic term used in and 16th century German to describe a song sung by two voices (from the latin roots: bis=twice, canere = to sing). This term was sometimes also used in the 17th century to refer to any instrumental piece for two voices.



2. I'll keep this simple. This book is wonderful. It gives ample examples of all the various techniques used in improvisation. It is sequenced for success. The formula's are spot on. Any music major would find this text very accessible (and maybe very well trained dabblers).
   
   I have several books on improvisation and could have saved probably 50 bucs and just bought this one.



3. For me this is a very practical book with enouhg theory. I recommend this book to novice organists.

No comments about First Lady of the Organ, Diane Bish: A Biography.

No comments about All Best for Christmas Organ: A Treasury of Yuletide Favorites.

No comments about J.S. Bach's Great Eighteen Organ Chorales.

5 comments about Complete Preludes and Fugues for Organ.

1. As a young organ student, I enjoyed the basic challenge and ease of reading the clean print in this fine manuscript.



2. People below complained that BWV 552 "St Anne" does not appear in this book. BWV 552 is part of Clavier Uebung III, which includes more than a dozen other pieces (mostly chorale preludes). According to Clifford Bartlett, in actual practice, the prelude was played separately from the fugue; the rest of Clavier Uebung III was sandwiched between the prelude and fugue. Furthermore, often only pieces of the Clavier Uebung were played, rather than the whole thing. Hence, one might argue that BWV 552 stands in contrast to other pieces clearly marked "Prelude and Fugue."



3. As other reviewers have mentioned, the term "complete" does not mean that every prelude and fugue by Bach is contained. Here is a complete list of its contents:
   
   Prelude and Fugue, C Major (BWV 531; BG XV, 81)
   Prelude and Fugue, D Major (BWV 532; BG XV, 88)
   Prelude and Fugue, E Minor (BWV 533; BG XV, 100)
   Prelude and Fugue, F Minor (BWV 534; BG XV, 104)
   Prelude and Fugue, G Minor (BWV 535; BG XV, 112)
   Prelude and Fugue, A Major (BWV 536; BG XV, 120)
   Prelude and Fugue, D Minor (BWV 539; BG XV, 148)
   Prelude and Fugue, G Major (BWV 541; BG XV, 169)
   Prelude and Fugue, A Minor (BWV 543; BG XV, 189)
   Prelude and Fugue, B Minor (BWV 544; BG XV, 199)
   Prelude and Fugue, C Major (BWV 545; BG XV, 212)
   Prelude and Fugue, C Minor (BWV 546; BG XV, 218)
   Prelude and Fugue, C Major (BWV 547; BG XV, 228)
   Prelude and Fugue, E Minor (BWV 548; BG XV, 236)
   Prelude and Fugue, C Minor (BWV 549; BG XXXVIII, 3)
   Prelude and Fugue, G Major (BWV 550; BG XXXVIII, 9)
   Prelude and Fugue, A Minor (BWV 551; BG XXXVIII, 17)
   Eight Short Preludes and Fugues (possibly spurious)
   1. C Major (BWV 553; BG XXXVIII, 23)
   2. D Minor (BWV 554; BG XXXVIII, 27)
   3. E Minor (BWV 555; BG XXXVIII, 30)
   4. F Major (BWV 556; BG XXXVIII, 33)
   5. G Major (BWV 557; BG XXXVIII, 36)
   6. G Minor (BWV 558; BG XXXVIII, 39)
   7. A Minor (BWV 559; BG XXXVIII, 42)
   8. B-flat Major (BWV 560; BG XXXVIII, 45)



4. This book contains some of the most wonderful music ever composed, which are perfect in themselves, yet this book has several flaws in its presentation of them: You will find that the print is somewhat small in this book, which is good or bad, depending upon your eyesight. And the last major issue I found (besides the fact that the book doesn't contain "all" of the Preludes and Fugues) was that there were several page turns which were placed in rather undesirable places. But as the title of this review suggests, for such an inexpensive price, the book serves its basic duty.



5. Another steal! Beautifully reproduced at an attractive size (I could have liked it slightly larger) and lightish weight from the Bach-Gesellschaft authoritative edition that still hasn't been dethroned by the Neue-Bach-Ausgabe.
   
   Of course, those who insist on the "St.Anne" E-flat pair or the E-major (BWV566) Toccata will need to turn to the other two volumes published by Dover. [Personally I wouldn't have minded all three volumes published in one larger-sized book; however, those who don't wish to carry more weight around than necessary can then be happy with the 'status quo'.]
   
   Very warmly recommended - what lovely music here present like the great A-minor, B-minor, E-minor and 3 C-major pairs!!!

No comments about Organists and Organ Playing in Nineteenth-Century France and Belgium.

4 comments about Funky Organ Grooves Book with audio CD.

1. The book gives some musical excerpts in various styles. Most of them are pentatonic. I found them to be uninspiring and not particularly organ-like (see comments on CD below).
   
   The worst part of this book is that, beyond the bass pedal parts, it uterly fails to address the ingredients that make organ unique from other keyboard instruments. The book says nothing about drawbars, the expression pedal, tremelo, or Leslie speakers. I get the impression the author has never actually played a real Hammand B-3 organ in his life.
   
   The examples on the CD are *not* played on an organ, but rather an Emu clone, with sequenced drums and bass accompanyment. Everything is quantitized and sounds incredibly mechanical.
   
   I would recommend, the Hammond Organ Complete over this book. It gives a much more in depth treatment of this incredible instrument, and has excellent live session players playing on the CD - much more inspiring and soulful.
   
   I did get some value from this book as sight-reading practice, especially the complicated rhythms. Also, the discography in the back is a pretty good reasource for finding out about great B-3 players.



2. showed me exactly what I was looking for -- i've tried to take a lot of this stuff off c.d's and it's very time consuming. This book makes it unnecessary to go that route, and the grooves really cover all the territory you need for this instrument. Really good learning aid and it has helped me a great deal. Especially liked the section on reggae-nice addition.



3. I don't write too many reviews but felt this book was a very pleasant surprise so some positive feedback was in order.
   
   The author did an exceptional job of exposing me to a wide variety of contemporary organ styles. This book is chock full of creative riffs, rhythms, and grooves in the rock, R&B, jazz, blues, reggae, and Latin styles. The author never seems to run out of inspiring ideas. (And if you are an improviser like me you can use them as a launching pad for your own stuff.)
   
   I'm a weekend warrior musician whose playing had recently been stuck in a rut. Fortunately, after working through this book my playing has reached a new level of creativity and fun.
   
   The enclosed CD is well recorded and easy to follow.
   
   I can't understand one of the reviews below. I don't think the intent of this book was to concentrate specifically on the Hammond B-3; rather, I believe the author's intent was to show what kinds of styles and idioms the organ (in general) is capable of. In fact it might be kind of an advantage that drawbars and Leslie settings were not covered, because this book could be of great advantage to piano or synth players as well. True, there are some pentatonic-based riffs in the book, but that is exactly what I was looking for and very appropriate for the blues, rock, R&B, and other genres Mr. Gordon covers.
   
   If you are looking for some new creativity and inspiration in your organ or keyboard playing this would be a great place to start. Highly recommended!



4. I bought this book just getting into playing the organ. The level of difficulty on the exercises in this book cover a wide range. Stylistically there is a lot of stuff that is very useful. The CD included is great to use for practice. The only downside I found to it is most of the exercises in it are extremely cheesy, but even so it is a great segway into the bigger stuff. Check out the first couple pages that are free and give them a play, it's a good measure of the book.

No comments about An Organ Album for Manuals Only - Book 2.

1 comments about Louis Vierne: Organist of Notre Dame Cathedral (The Complete Organ Series Vol 3).

1. This is the most complete book on Vierne to date. Highly recommended. The majority of the book is Vierne's own Memoirs translated into english. The remainder constists of some analization of the organ works, textual corrections of the symphonies, improvisation themes written by Vierne, etc. Most complete, and a fanscinating read as well as being highly useful. No organist should be without a copy!