KARG-ELERT: Improvisation, played on Mason & Hamlin chapel organ

Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877-1933) was one of Germany’s most prolific and enthusiastic composers for harmonium. He wrote for both the European harmonium and the American-style reed organ. He composed in many different styles, showcasing the instrument within most established musical forms. Here, I believe Karg-Elert gives the last word on the 19th-century Romantic fascination with musical “thunderstorms,” wherein an organist would improvise a series of musical vignettes in order to describe a dramatic natural occurrence. This “Improvisation uber den englischen Choral ‘Naher, mein Gott, zu dir!’” was published in Germany in 1912, in versions for pipe organ, piano and for harmonium. The composer’s introduction: “On 15 April 1912, the great British steamship "Titanic" came across the Atlantic Ocean amidst floating icebergs. About 1,600 people thus came to death. As the ship sank, the band played ‘Nearer, my God, to Thee.’” On the first page, we have a solemn opening statement of the hymn, nevertheless infused with Karg-Elert’s lush and surprising harmonies, played on his signature combination of 16’ and 4’ stops. The second page showcases the 2’ bass Eolian Harp stop alone, then joined by the 4’ Viola Dolce. Hidden dangers become apparent on the third page: a starry night, icebergs glimmering in the arctic moonlight…I believe the first alarm is sounded at 4:06, supplanted briefly by evening prayers. But rising bass octaves show the fatal gash in the ship’s hull. Two cries of “Lord, hear my prayer!” (printed in the score at 4:36) are followed by growing chaos on deck. Full-throttle sirens at 5:05, heralding the rise and fall of every cherished hope. The grand full-organ re-statement of the chorale speaks of the triumph of all noble striving and unsinkable faith. (I love the crunchy German Sixth chord at 6:33!) The calm final verse (“Then when Death calleth me, take Thou my soul to Thee, father, to Thee!”) is sung on the 8’ Voix Celeste, with the bass sinking inexorably. Above the beginning of the Epilog (“ad astra” or “to the stars”) are printed the words Kyrie eleison (Lord, have mercy), evoking the prayers of those in the lifeboats and in the water. I think the three very strange compressing chords at 8:08 must be the final disappearance of the sinking ship, followed by the souls of many rising past the stars to heaven. Karg-Elert was a very thorough and precise composer; all the changes in registration and mood are printed in the score. (Many thanks to my friend Christopher Shayne [Chris S here on YouTube] for alerting me to this score’s availability on IMSLP.org; it is surely a remarkable concert piece for the reed organ.) For this piece, Karg-Elert indicates an instrument with a full-compass 16’ rank, two treble 8’ ranks, the 2’ bass Eolian Harp, Vox Humana, and an upward Octave Coupler. These requirements are almost perfectly met by this Mason & Hamlin chapel-model reed organ, built in Boston in 1915. The instrument was their Style 93BF, No. 239146, #4874 in the Reed Organ Society database. The black walnut cabinet contains five ranks of reeds throughout, plus a one-octave 16’ SubBase. Our friend Casey Pratt restored this instrument; see his website masonhamlinorgans.com. Performed here by Michael Hendron; recorded in concert at Grace Cathedral, San Francisco, 9 July 2017.