Stockholm City Hall Organ - Alfred Hollins - Concert Ouverture in C minor

[@MrPeter3011]

what a beautiful and fantastic instrument with a mighty sound.....

[@pcnd5584]

Thank you for posting this, Steff. It is good to see a close-up view of the new Harrison & Harrison console. The instrument sounds good, too. I have not heard the recording by Richard Hills; however, I suspect that I should not like that by Wayne Marshall. Notwithstanding his prodigious technique, I dislike any music played too fast, simply because a performer can do so.

[@dominicaliztorre7459]

so beautiful ... hope someday i'll be there

[@Steff2929again]

@peteacher52 The capacity for dinner seating is 1300 guests. When the annual Nobel banquet is televised, and the organ is used for the entrance of the royal family and the laureates, it seems to fill the space just fine. Difficult to know how it would sound in a more regular concert setting.

[@cornwall59]

What a fantastic organ & organist ! lets hope all this red tape business goes away & soon, to get this wonderful instrument back playing again !

[@Steff2929again]

@AnOrganCornucopia The present conservative majority of the city council wants to encourage "private initiatives". They allow concerts, but only if the arranger pays full rent for the hall. The sum is so substantial that it is very difficult for anyone to take on that kind of arrangement.

[@AnOrganCornucopia]

I find it interesting to compare this recording with Richard Hills' one at Southampton Guildhall (a very large Compton organ, also installed in roof chambers like this Walcker). There are some similarities in the bright choruses and high-pressure English Tuba, but, albeit in a less reverberant and more focussed acoustic, Hills chooses a rather faster tempo, which makes this feel a little flat by comparison. Google "Grand Variety" and click the top link to hear a sample.

[@mattbod]

AnOrganCornucopia The Marshall recording is great. I did not buy the Hills recording on principle. He was involved I think with a botched rebuild of the Southampton Guildhall organ by a bunch of cowboy unknowns who have since disappeared. I think the organ is in a parlous state again. I went to school with Hills: he is brilliant but a rather arrogant and aloof individual. I was at his "re-launch" of the Southampton organ back in 2007 after the rebuild in a joint concert with the late Carlo Curley. Carlo told me afterwards that the organ was playing up during the recital. As for Hills he did not make an appearance to talk to the concert goers afterwards like Carlo. As for this re-built Walcker, well it sounds sublime. I will search out the CD. Harrison's have obviously left things well alone tonally as it sounds very German Romantic. It is a shame the feuding prevents concerts: all that money for nothing :(

[@BRIRICO]

Exactly my view, often too fast now days.

[@andrewwilder613]

Please - put the name of the player in the title, not halfway down the comments - is this Richard Hills or what?

[@Steff2929again]

Can't make the title much longer. It will get clipped. The players name is in the description, and it's clearly displayed in the title sheet of the slide show. You have to settle with that. Anyway, his name was Per Thunarf (1941-2014). He was the organist of Klara Church in Stockholm for many years. The church is well known for it's exquisite late romantic organ. Thurnarf didn't allow any alterations or modernisations of the instrument, during a time when the ideals of the Organ reform movement swept away many instruments of great importance. He is famous for his interpretations of late romantic Swedish organ music.

[@Offshoreorganbuilder]

Excellent, even though the reverberation is chopped off at the end - shame.

[@Steff2929again]

My mistake. Sorry about that.

[@AnOrganCornucopia]

So what 'politics' are we talking about? Who could possibly object to more use being made of this magnificent instrument, especially since so much public money has been spent on it?

[@AnOrganCornucopia]

@Steff2929again - but don't they see that they simply won't get any concerts of any kind, so won't make the money? Maybe you and your friends in the Stockholm organ community need to stand for the city council on a cultural ticket!

[@peteacher52]

No regular concerts because of politics?!! God help us! What a waste of a wonderful sounding instrument in a cavernous acoustic that sounds more cathedral-like than a concert hall. Perhaps if there were 1500 bums on seats it would sound different, but H&H will have taken that into account and voiced accordingly. Let's hope that common sense wins over in Sweden.

[@SirReginaldBlomfield1234]

I know the score says add Tuba at the end but it really is better without the addition of a loud farty PHWAAAAAAHRPP, not aurally appealing. 🙉🙉🙉