Organ Music from Chicago

LEO SOWERBY (1895-1968): Symphony in G, Comes Autumn Time, Pageant, Toccata, March from Suite for Organ, FRANK FERKO (b.1950): Music for Elizabeth Chapel, Variations on “Veni Creator Spiritus”, Angels, Symphonie brève, Communion from Missa O Ecclesia, Variations on a Hungarian Folk Tune, Tired Old Nun, Mass for Dedication.

Description: Four of Sowerby’s “greatest hits” for organ, including the monumental Symphony in G major, are paired with first recordings of Ferko’s: the intimate Music for Elizabeth Chapel is performed on the organ it was written for: the 19-rank Jaeckel, Opus 41. Variations on a Hungarian Folk Tune, also written for the textures and colors of a small instrument, is heard on an authentic Romantic-era French organ, with 13 ranks, built by Joseph Merklin in 1878 for a church in southern France. Ferko compositions performed on the 97-rank C.B. Fisk Opus 78 (1979) include Variations on “Veni Creator Spiritus,” based on a ninth-century plainsong hymn; Angels — Chaconne for Organ, Missa O Ecclesia: Communion, and Mass for Dedication, all based on chants by 12th-century abbess, composer, and Christian mystic Hildegard von Bingen; Symphonie brève, dedicated to the performer here; and Tired Old Nun, a novelty piece scored for pedals alone, with waltz, slow blues, and boogie variations. 2 CDs. David Schrader (three organs at the House of Hope Presbyterian Church, St. Paul, Minnesota).