Before his untimely passing in August of 2015, John Scott often spoke of his desire to perform a cycle of the complete organ works of J.S. Bach on the gallery organ at Saint Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue. As a tribute to their mentor and to celebrate the completion of the Taylor and Boody organ, Stephen Buzard and Benjamin Sheen are undertaking this project in a monthly recital series beginning March 5, 2016.
Opening Performance of the Complete Bach Organ Series 2016-2017
Inaugural performance on the expanded Loening-Hancock Organ
Admission to this recital is free, but a free-will offering will be taken to benefit the Miller-Scott Organ Fund.
Stephen Buzard and Benjamin Sheen
March 5, 2016: 2pm
Program
Stephen Buzard plays
- Fantasia super Komm, Heiliger Geist, BWV 651
- Sonata VI in G major, BWV 530
- Ich ruf zu dir, BWV 639
- Wo soll lich fliehen hin, BWV 646
- Wer nur den lieben Gott, BWV 657
Benjamin Sheen plays
- Toccata in F, BWV 540
- Ach bleib bei uns, Herr Jesu Christ, BWV 649
- O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig, BWV 618
- Kommst du nun, Jesu, vom Himmel herunter auf Erden, BWV 650
- Passacaglia in c, BWV 582
Saint Thomas’s beautiful gallery organ was built by the Virginia organ company Taylor and Boody in 1996. Originally conceived as a three-manual organ in the North German baroque style, funds could only be found for two manuals and 21 stops. After twenty years, the organ is finally complete with three manuals, 31 stops, and 44 ranks of pipes.
The most noticeable addition to the organ is the third manual, the Brustwerk, containing six new stops. The three-rank Cimbel, 8’ Krummhorn, and 4’ Schalmei provide the organist with interesting and useful new solo colors, while the flute chorus lends itself well to accompaniment or echo effects.
The Oberwerk (second manual) now features a beautiful, earthy-sounding Quintadena, an 8’ flute stop that speaks with a strong fifth in its harmonic makeup. This versatile stop is useful as a solo color, a special effect, or as an accompaniment to other solo colors. This division also contains a new 2’ principal, completing its principal chorus and generally filling out the sound of the division.
A 2 2/3’ Quinte stop has been added to the Hauptwerk (first manual). This rank strengthens the sound of the organo pleno, the fundamental sound of this division, by amplifying one of the crucial harmonic partials. This stop also provides an interesting solo effect when combined with the flutes or principals of this division.
Finally, the Pedal is now undergirded with a 10 2/3’ Quintbass, a stop that lends extra gravity to the full organ sound. A Brustwerk to Pedal coupler has also been added, allowing some of the new solo colors of the third manual to be played by the feet.
Our March 5 Bach program is designed to highlight each of these new stops, showing off the features of the completed Taylor and Boody organ. For those who cannot attend, the program will be webcast live and on-demand via the Saint Thomas website.
