On Sat, 12 Aug 2017 19:41:09 +0100, tony sayer
wrote:

In article , Phil
Allison scribeth thus
Don Pearce wrote:

-------------------------



Try this. This me in my local church, which is closed for refurb. Just
a pair of mics stood in the nave. Sorry about the playing - I
completely screw the timing at one point (I blame Claire who was
turning pages for me).

Anyway, this is totally raw - no compression or anything.

https://soundcloud.com/donpearce/widor-toccata



** Wow - Don can really play !!!!

Plus a rather nice recoding of a sweet sounding instrument.

Please tell us something about it - Don.

The Bach T&F is well worth a listen too.

Talk about " hiding your light under a bushel " !!



Thanks...

Kind of a bog standard three manual church organ from the late
Victorian period. It had its manual bellows replaced by a motor in the
early fifties, so I never got to play it hand-cranked. But they did
know how to make nice instruments around the 1880s. I think it got
tuned up and serviced about five years ago.

Vox Humana and Diapason are its strong voices and I used both on these
recordings.


** Must sound spectacular live in the actual church.


The recording was made with a pair of Rode NT1-A cardioids in a rough
ORTF arrangement.



** Good Aussie built mics used cleverly !!

OFTF is a variation on the famous "Blumlein pair" method which gives natural
sounding ambience to a recording.

Even on my PC speakers, the "sound" of the church was obvious.

Nice going.



..... Phil


Couldn't agree more a very nice "light" sound to it and yes, those
simple mic arrangements sometimes cam be excellent, sounds fine here on
the Quads

Used to do this sort of thing many years ago wife was in the Long
Melford choral society, pub first practice or performance second! OK
there were a few errors but with simple mic arrangements was this very
real "there" sound, still got the tapes done on a high speed Revox.

As the Widor remember one day was at Ely Cathedral and there was an
excellent rendition of this work someone just having a practice in the
middle of the afternoon. Just after it fished there was a slip of a girl
can't have been much more that around 12 or so years old just asked her
was it you playing she nodded, seemed in a way that she was just too
young! but she was real fan of his and one of his French contemporaries
Henri Mulet who it seems still undiscovered a very talented girl and
knowledgeable too.

Every organist has to be able to play it virtually from memory -
weddings!

d

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On Friday, 11 August 2017 12:00:19 UTC+3, Don Pearce wrote:


Try this. This me in my local church, which is closed for refurb. Just
a pair of mics stood in the nave. Sorry about the playing - I
completely screw the timing at one point (I blame Claire who was
turning pages for me).

Anyway, this is totally raw - no compression or anything.

https://soundcloud.com/donpearce/widor-toccata

Most enjoyable Don. Many thanks.

I have another version from 1962, played on the organ at St Nicolas Parish Church, by my brother. I recorded it (in mono) with a single Film Industries M8 microphone on an EMI TR51, at 15ips. Saga Record (London)Ltd bought the
rights. I was still at school, and terribly excited to have made my first "pro" recording.

The definitive version has to be Peter Hurford (King's College Cambridge IIRC)
on Argo or Decca. His interpretation beats yours by a hair's breadth, probably because he did not have Claire turning pages for him:-)

Iain

On Sun, 13 Aug 2017 13:26:32 -0700 (PDT), Iain
wrote:

On Friday, 11 August 2017 12:00:19 UTC+3, Don Pearce wrote:


Try this. This me in my local church, which is closed for refurb. Just
a pair of mics stood in the nave. Sorry about the playing - I
completely screw the timing at one point (I blame Claire who was
turning pages for me).

Anyway, this is totally raw - no compression or anything.

https://soundcloud.com/donpearce/widor-toccata

Most enjoyable Don. Many thanks.

I have another version from 1962, played on the organ at St Nicolas Parish Church, by my brother. I recorded it (in mono) with a single Film Industries M8 microphone on an EMI TR51, at 15ips. Saga Record (London)Ltd bought the
rights. I was still at school, and terribly excited to have made my first "pro" recording.

The definitive version has to be Peter Hurford (King's College Cambridge IIRC)
on Argo or Decca. His interpretation beats yours by a hair's breadth, probably because he did not have Claire turning pages for him:-)

Iain

I shall tell she is responsible for the descent from perfection (I
wish!)

d

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On Sun, 13 Aug 2017 13:26:32 -0700 (PDT), Iain
wrote:

On Friday, 11 August 2017 12:00:19 UTC+3, Don Pearce wrote:


Try this. This me in my local church, which is closed for refurb. Just
a pair of mics stood in the nave. Sorry about the playing - I
completely screw the timing at one point (I blame Claire who was
turning pages for me).

Anyway, this is totally raw - no compression or anything.

https://soundcloud.com/donpearce/widor-toccata

Most enjoyable Don. Many thanks.

I have another version from 1962, played on the organ at St Nicolas Parish Church, by my brother. I recorded it (in mono) with a single Film Industries M8 microphone on an EMI TR51, at 15ips. Saga Record (London)Ltd bought the
rights. I was still at school, and terribly excited to have made my first "pro" recording.

The definitive version has to be Peter Hurford (King's College Cambridge IIRC)
on Argo or Decca. His interpretation beats yours by a hair's breadth, probably because he did not have Claire turning pages for him:-)

Iain

OK, Just listened to Hurford's version on Youtube. A little more than
a hair's breadth. And that organ at King's sounds amazing. Some of the
dirtiest pedals ever (real 16's?). And much wider dynamics than I
could get.

d

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On Sunday, 13 August 2017 23:51:59 UTC+3, Don Pearce wrote:

OK, Just listened to Hurford's version on Youtube. A little more than
a hair's breadth. And that organ at King's sounds amazing. Some of the
dirtiest pedals ever (real 16's?). And much wider dynamics than I
could get.


Yes. He was a remarkable player, and a very pleasant man to work with.
He is still going strong at 86 years.

Iain

On Saturday, 12 August 2017 21:43:36 UTC+3, tony sayer wrote:

Couldn't agree more a very nice "light" sound to it and yes, those
simple mic arrangements sometimes cam be excellent.

Indeed. Phil mention ORTF, which was at one time very widely used. Don mentioned the Jecklin disc - that was also very popular, and with two omnis, gave a wonderful open sound. XY and AB pairs seem to be the order of the day these days in most concert halls.

Iain

In article , Don Pearce
scribeth thus
On Sun, 13 Aug 2017 13:26:32 -0700 (PDT), Iain
wrote:

On Friday, 11 August 2017 12:00:19 UTC+3, Don Pearce wrote:


Try this. This me in my local church, which is closed for refurb. Just
a pair of mics stood in the nave. Sorry about the playing - I
completely screw the timing at one point (I blame Claire who was
turning pages for me).

Anyway, this is totally raw - no compression or anything.

https://soundcloud.com/donpearce/widor-toccata

Most enjoyable Don. Many thanks.

I have another version from 1962, played on the organ at St Nicolas Parish
Church, by my brother. I recorded it (in mono) with a single Film Industries M8
microphone on an EMI TR51, at 15ips. Saga Record (London)Ltd bought the
rights. I was still at school, and terribly excited to have made my first "pro"
recording.

The definitive version has to be Peter Hurford (King's College Cambridge IIRC)
on Argo or Decca. His interpretation beats yours by a hair's breadth, probably
because he did not have Claire turning pages for him:-)

Iain

OK, Just listened to Hurford's version on Youtube. A little more than
a hair's breadth. And that organ at King's sounds amazing. Some of the
dirtiest pedals ever (real 16's?). And much wider dynamics than I
could get.

d

Was the recording pre or post the recent restoration there Don?...

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--
Tony Sayer

On Tue, 15 Aug 2017 00:18:20 +0100, tony sayer
wrote:

OK, Just listened to Hurford's version on Youtube. A little more than
a hair's breadth. And that organ at King's sounds amazing. Some of the
dirtiest pedals ever (real 16's?). And much wider dynamics than I
could get.

d

Was the recording pre or post the recent restoration there Don?...

I have no idea. I just searched on Youtube.

d

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