The 20th Century Avant-Garde Organ Classics Thread!!*

[snyprrr]

*a very short thread

After listening to Xenakis' Gmeeoorgh for the first time, I am sitting here with a look on my face like someone farted. I had considered trying out a few post war organ classics, but now I am not so sure. I couldn't handle Messiaen. I probably will run screaming from anything that isn't musical (i.e. Gmeeoorgh). Perhaps Ligeti (yes, I know, that master of the organ!)?

I know there's a few cds out there with pieces by Berio, Jolas, Feldman, Scelsi, Rihm, and so forth (I'm not even goin' minimal, here, haha). So, can anyone stomach Modern Organ? Edumacate me.

[some guy]

I do know for sure that my stomach is a modern organ.

But yeah. Modern organ. Just like anything else, really. Some solo stuff (Ligeti's Volumina), some concertos (Chaynes), some in the mix (Szabelski's fifth symphony), some minimal (Welmers), some organ and electronics (Guionnet).

Just like everything else. It ain't no thang.

[snyprrr]

What Messiaen Organ Works have you heard? Just curious.

It was back in the day, when I couldn't handle anything. But, it was the Bate series, at the library.

[CRCulver]

Norgard's organ works are quite entertaining but get sadly little attention even among fans of the composer. There's a Kontrapunkt disc that has three fine works from different eras, the "Nordic" Partita concertante, the "hierarchical" Canon and the "multidimensional" Trepartita.

[petrarch]

Perhaps Ligeti (yes, I know, that master of the organ!)?

Try Ligeti's Coulée, it's like Continuum but for organ. And then there are the adaptations for barrel organ, which are quite worth a listen (although personally I think the sound of the piano is intrinsic to those works--e.g. Musica Ricercata).

[snyprrr]

Does anyone know the Focroulle disc, with Berio, Jolas, Boesmans, etc .?

Also, there doesn't seem to be a Gerd Zacher retrospective out there. Is there?