Perhaps the greatest joy that comes to the collector of mechanical
music is the moment when he or she is able to share the performance
of a freshly restored instrument with others.  For Paul Morris, that
moment is now manifest in a recently released CD that contains 22
tracks of his Aeolian Pipe Organ.  Previously, Paul's CD's were
recordings of a smaller instrument.  Now, seven years of detailed work
show off his recently completed Opus 1458, a 3-manual instrument
sporting over 2,000 pipes!

What is significant about Paul's installation is that he has stuffed
a fairly large instrument into a very tight space.   The reason I say
it is significant is that, for the most part, it is reflective of
Aeolian's attitude when they sold these instruments.  Yes, we are
aware of the grandiose mansions that housed the giant organs, but the
majority of the instruments were installed in very limited quarters.
Thus Aeolian showed great skill in making the instruments quite
compact.  Tuning Paul's organ requires dexterity combined with
alternately crawling and climbing.  The liner notes tell Paul's story,
so I'll talk about the CD.

The selections are mostly light, colorful music and the variety is very
easy to listen to.   While the compositions are not heavy classical,
they still are expert renditions of beautiful music.  Artists such as
Clarence Eddy, Uda Waldrop, Pietro Yon, and Edwin Lemare are a few of
the performers from a list of highly acclaimed organists that are heard.

One selection, "The Song Of the Basket Weaver", performed by the
composer, Alexander Russell, takes the listener on a journey through
many pipe voices.  Melodies on the famous Aeolian free reed clarinet
modulate and mix with flutes and suddenly give way to a full organ, and
just as suddenly, the Vox Humana quietly repeats the haunting melody.
When I first heard this piece, I imagined a trip to an Egyptian market,
but after a bit of research, I found I was thousands of miles off
course!  It seems that Russell did write about his travels, but the
fun is in the discovery of his destination, which I'll let the reader
research.

Opus 1458 employs a different mix of voices than many organs of equal
size.  The initial owner perhaps had a hand in the specification.
The normal redundancy of string voices is replaced by several Celeste
ranks.  The solo division is unique in that it has a second clarinet
rank.  The strength of the pedal division is obvious in the
recording, and the cramped quarters have no bearing its performance.

The rendition of Drdla's "Souvenir" performed by Emil Velasco hints
at early Theatre Organ technique.  This composition is in most piano
roll libraries, but Opus 1458 gives the selection new life as Velasco
uses the oboe to introduce the melody and much softer voices in an
echo-like response that repeats each phrase.  The Aeolian harp is
featured in each response and in the accompaniment.  Later, the
clarinets join the accompaniment as a gentle crescendo gives way to
the melody's return in the much softer Vox Humana with the responses
being offered by soft flutes.  Many new voices join in as Velasco
concludes the relaxing and light "Souvenir".

What the listener will hear is the total lack of room reverberation,
which is typical of home installations.  The expression rendered by the
fast acting swell shutters, brings forth meaningful contrasts that add
to the music.  The orchestral qualities of the organ mimic many
instruments.

This CD is recommended for all who enjoy organ music, and particularly
those who want to hear how a residence organ of the early 20th century
performed.  One track is Paul playing "Love Nest", to prove that the
organ is more than just a roll player.  Paul's web site will soon list
this CD.

  http://www.paulmorrismusic.co.uk/Cds.asp 

Bob Taylor