Welcome to Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast No. 759! Today we will discuss the topic of what do we do with toxic comments. Hope you will enjoy the conversation!Here you will find all my scores: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/en/category/arrangeme/?q=Secrets+of+Organ+Playing&aff_id=454957Secrets of Organ Playing Mug: https://www.zazzle.co.uk/z/ywbhd071?rf=238366920809443329You can support this channel by becoming a member here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO4K3_6QVJI_HlI5PCFQqtg/joinIf you like what I do, you can buy me some coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/organduoPayPal: https://PayPal.Me/VPinkeviciusWe support Ukraine: https://www.blue-yellow.lt/enMy Hauptwerk setup: https://www.organduo.lt/tools.htmlTotal Organist - the most comprehensive organ training program online: https://www.organduo.lt/total-organistSecrets of Organ Playing - When You Practice, Miracles Happen! https://organduo.ltListen to my organ playing on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0ckKPIvTWucoN3CZwGodCO?si=YWy7_0HqRvaZwBcovL-RKg#secretsoforganplaying #vidaspinkevicius #ausramotuzaite

Welcome to Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast No. 758! This question was sent by Patrick and he writes:"Thank you for your podcast, recordings, and tips. They are a great encouragement to me to persevere in my studies. Presently I’m struggling getting to the keyboard, but this has been the best or most productive year I've had so far. I've been bad about sitting down and focusing on just one or two pieces or parts of pieces (instead of spending most of my time sightreading new simple rep). While this improves my sight-reading ability, I do not have a chance to improve/develop better fingering and note accuracy, to make no mention of expression. Thanks again!"Here you will find all my scores: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/en/category/arrangeme/?q=Secrets+of+Organ+Playing&aff_id=454957Secrets of Organ Playing Mug: https://www.zazzle.co.uk/z/ywbhd071?rf=238366920809443329You can support this channel by becoming a member here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO4K3_6QVJI_HlI5PCFQqtg/joinIf you like what I do, you can buy me some coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/organduoPayPal: https://PayPal.Me/VPinkeviciusWe support Ukraine: https://www.blue-yellow.lt/enMy Hauptwerk setup: https://www.organduo.lt/tools.htmlTotal Organist - the most comprehensive organ training program online: https://www.organduo.lt/total-organistSecrets of Organ Playing - When You Practice, Miracles Happen! https://organduo.ltListen to my organ playing on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0ckKPIvTWucoN3CZwGodCO?si=YWy7_0HqRvaZwBcovL-RKg#relaxingpianomusic #pianomeditation #relaxingpiano#secretsoforganplaying #vidaspinkevicius #ausramotuzaite

Welcome to Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast episode 748! Today's question was sent by our friend Rien Schalkwijk and he writes:How do you choose your keys for your recent piece for instance. And how do you choose the modulations in a piece? Next to that I’m intrigued by the style from Ausra where she uses a different key every few bars but it still sounds so smooth.Here you will find all my scores: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/en/category/arrangeme/?q=Secrets+of+Organ+Playing&aff_id=454957Secrets of Organ Playing Mug: https://www.zazzle.co.uk/z/abykn9us?rf=238366920809443329You can support this channel by becoming a member here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO4K3_6QVJI_HlI5PCFQqtg/joinIf you like what I do, you can buy me some coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/organduoPayPal: https://PayPal.Me/VPinkeviciusWe support Ukraine: https://www.blue-yellow.lt/enMy Hauptwerk setup: https://www.organduo.lt/tools.htmlTotal Organist - the most comprehensive organ training program online: https://www.organduo.lt/total-organistSecrets of Organ Playing - When You Practice, Miracles Happen! https://organduo.ltListen to my organ playing on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0ckKPIvTWucoN3CZwGodCO?si=YWy7_0HqRvaZwBcovL-RKg#secretsoforganplaying #vidaspinkevicius #ausramotuzaite

This question was sent by Jeremy.  He’s our member of Total Organist Community, and helps us with fingering and pedaling scores.  And he writes,

Today I did a variety of different things on the organ.  The past couple of weeks I have been working through the New Oxford Organ Method just to see what it did (I really am enjoying it).  It acts kind of like an organ teacher for those who have basic piano skills.  It walks you through how to break the piece down into technical and musical bits.  So I recorded the last piece in the "ordinary touch" section of the book today--Rising Passacaglia by Frederick Stocken, and practiced the next piece in the book (which is evading my memory at the moment).  I began week three of the Pedal Virtuoso course and was inspired by Vidas to start the first Trio of J.S. Bach (learned four measures of the notes).  Then I started working on Walther’s Komm Der Heilige Geist and made sure Buxtehude's Lobt Gott ihr Christen Allzugleich was still in my fingers.  Practiced BWV 536 (which is Prelude and Fugue in A Major) for Sunday's service and worked on Hindemith second sonata, first movement.  Here's the Stocken:
https://youtu.be/eJYeQ-BJh_k

This question was sent by Jay, and he writes:

“Vidas:
I think I’ve seen that you use ForScore on an iPad for reading music.  I was wondering what size iPad do you use?  Have you had experience with more than the one size you use regularly?  I’d really like to do that but I’m not sure which size would work best for me.  I think the iPad 12.9” is likely optimal but so expensive.  Perhaps the 11” model would be adequate, being a bit less expensive.
Any thoughts you would care to share here or on your podcasts would be helpful.
Thank you!
Jay”

This question was sent by Eduardo, and he writes,

Greetings,

Recently I found about historical improvisation and I stumbled upon your dissertation "Improvisation of keyboard preludes in the style of JS Bach: A practical method comprising techniques derived from selected keyboard works" And it looks exactly what i'm looking for at the moment, but I can't find a complete version of it, I just found the index. Is there a way I can get the complete one?

Also , In your webpage you mention a Keyboard Prelude Improvisation Mini Course but the link is dead. Can I still join the Course?

Looking forward to hearing from you,

Eduardo Villalobos

This question was sent by John, and he writes,

Dear Vidas, wow this is so beautiful! I hear from respected organists that these trio sonatas are some of the most difficult music to play, and you executed it perfectly!  Thank you for such an enjoyable experience, and also for setting such a great example for me, your student!
Take care, John

This question was sent by Joe, and he writes:

“Vidas,

Hope all is well with you. I am making much headway on Widor's Toccata, even though I have had limited time to practice.

The score that I purchased from you certainly has helped expedite the learning process - MUCH THANKS!

Since the score did not include registration suggestions, I was curious if you know of scores that do include registration.

My organ has the following Stops:”

Pedal Organ
Diapason 16'
Bourdon 16'
Quintaten (Sw) 16'
Octave 8'
Gedackt 8'
Choralbass 4'
Mixture iii
Posaune 16'
Trompette (SW) 8'

Swell Organ
Quintaten 16'
Gedackt 8'
Violas II 8'
Spitzprinzipal 4'
Koppelflote 4'
Nasat 2-2/3'
Blockflote 2'
Terz 1-3/5'
Mixture III
Basson 16'
Trompette 8'
Clairon 4'

Great Organ
Quintaten (Sw) 16'
Principal 8'
Rohrflote 8'
Violas II (Sw) 8'
Octave 4'
Spitzflote 4'
super Octave 2'
Waldflote 2'
Mixture IV
Krummhorn 8'

Vidas: He has three divisions: Pedal, Swell, and Great, and each has around 10 stops, maybe more. He writes further:

“I also have a Floating Division that can be applied to Pedal, Swell, and Great. This includes over 100 stops but cannot be mixed (i.e. only one per Pedal, one for Swell, one for Great).

Please let me know if you have any suggestions for registration based on my Stops List.  If you believe something is missing that is critical, I may have it in my Floating Division.

Your expertise would be greatly appreciated.

Much Thanks,
Joe Mark”

Vidas: Here’s what I wrote to him:

“Thanks Joe!

Unfortunately all Widor marks on the score is FFF, FF, F etc. As I haven't made a video of this piece I can't really demonstrate it for you right now. Since you have only 2 manual instrument, try to experiment with adding or omitting the reeds on both divisions one by one. FFF would be Tutti. FF would be without Clairon, F - without Basson, MF - without Trompette, PP - without Krummhorn. Manuals coupled. Pedals need to be reduced accordingly too.

Hope this helps for now (until I prepare a proper video course).

Vidas”

This question was sent by Ausra, and she writes,

"This week I’m struggling with sitting down on the organ bench. At first I didn’t have time and now I don’t have motivation to practice."

This question was sent by Manfred, and he writes:

Hi Vidas,
I was playing the organ in the church for services only. The requirements are low. Therefore I could train the Pedal in ‘wild’ and fairly uncontrolled way.
Because of Corona the congregation must not sing. The organist is asked to prepare a few pieces as a solo. So I started to look for organ pieces that are a little more demanding.
Then I was facing severe difficulties with easy or low-medium pieces for organ. Thanks to Youtube I watched the pedaling of good organ players. My style is way off!
This led me to you. You have a method, you want to teach it in an internet-based style – so, I gave it a try.
Man! The first week told me I was not using certain muscles in the ankle area, I had muscle sore. Now, I see a much higher flexibility in my ankles.
I was playing with a sort of tennis shoes. No way! Yesterday I started with organ shoes (dancing shoes actually). Now I can feel the pedal keys and can slide on them. Wonderful!

After this first week I do not detect better accuracy. But my feet want to adopt the new pedaling style when playing my organ pieces. This is sometimes confusing, but I am sure in 2-3 weeks the new techniques will make my feet more ‘relaxed’ as they become friends of the pedal.
I am eagerly looking forward to the next few weeks!
Best regards,
Manfred

This question was sent by Doug, and he answered my question, What is your goal in organ playing, and what are some challenges that he faces when he tries to reach this goal.  So the goal is to become a church organist, and basically advanced in hymn playing.  And the challenges are three:

1. Pedal techniques.
2. Taking a hymnal with one line and converting it to swell, great and pedals on the fly.
3. Grand Orgue or Hauptwerk conversion for home organ to practice on.

This question was sent by Bob, and he’s taking our Melodic Dictation Course Level 1.  He writes,

"Vidas,
I have a question about 4 kl. 280 in Melodic Dictation Week 9.
I thought that if there is a pickup measure in a song that the last measure of the song and the first measure should add up to one measure. But in this case there is a rest contained in the last measure, so the two measures do not add up to one measure. How do I decide whether I should add the rest or not? Or is it one of those times that it does not matter?
Thanks.
Bob"

This question was sent by Paje, and this is the answer to my question, “What is the goal in organ playing, and what are some challenges that get in the way of this goal. So:

“1. Dream to serve as an organist and lead the choir in my Church Organisation.
2. Lack of consistent mentorship, lack of accountability, lack of clarity on what to focus on first as a beginner.”

Welcome to Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast episode 747! Today's question was sent by Guilhermeand he writes:Hi Vidas,I probably won't be able to properly answer these questions, so I apologise in advance for a possibly long email which might not have much use. It's also a bit to help me organise my thoughts.I'm from Portugal (a village close to Porto). I played the organ in church when I was a teenager and into my early 20s. But, like many things I did back then, I wasn't taking it seriously. A few years earlier I started by learning a bit of the piano, and then switched to the organ. But ultimately the only thing I was doing was playing the melody with the right hand and the chords with the left hand, and I never cared at all about the pedals. So I never really evolved from that basic level, until eventually I left the country.After living in a few countries in Europe, I'm currently living in Kraków, Poland. Perhaps it's the midlife crisis, but I recently became interested in piano and organ again, and eventually bumped into your website and podcast, which I found inspiring.I live in a small apartment and started looking at the possibilities for an organ setup. There are many examples I could find online, including your previous Hauptwerk setup, which I could realistically use (although the pedals always cause a space problem). However, one of my problems is my interest in too many things. Piano, classic organ, Hammond organ, etc.As contradictory as it seems, I chose the piano for the moment and got a digital piano. Now, I do understand that there's a world of difference between piano and organ - and even between classic and Hammond organ.I don't intend to be a virtuoso in any of these instruments, but I still think the piano can help me a bit. In spite of having different technique and a totally different key action, the main thing I want for now is to improve my hand coordination, and I think I can get there with the piano. Also I'll be fine for a while with a single manual.Another thing that made me go for it is the amount of available learning apps for piano, as opposed to organ. And in this case I'm not talking about courses with videos, but rather an app which I can use to follow along some piece of music, plug my keyboard to the computer/tablet (USB/MIDI) and get immediate feedback on what I'm playing (at least if I'm playing the right keys at the right time). At the beginner level I am right now, I think this is really useful, even though it can be complemented with other courses, and even with face-to-face lessons.Ultimately I don't know what my dream is yet. I'd like to get to a decent level (I know this is not very precise), but I don't think I'll ever be aiming to be a serious organist, also because of my current lack of interest in religion. This religious part might actually hold me back from playing in a real organ, although it doesn't have to make it impossible.With the piano I feel that I'm getting motivated and putting in the time and commitment. I intend to spend maybe a year (or more, we'll see) in this and then get back to the organ. Whatever my dream will be then, taking the time to practice might make the most difference - as you say numerous times in your podcast.Best regards,GuilhermeHere you will find all my scores: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/en/category/arrangeme/?q=Secrets+of+Organ+Playing&aff_id=454957Secrets of Organ Playing Mug: https://www.zazzle.co.uk/z/abykn9us?rf=238366920809443329You can support this channel by becoming a member here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO4K3_6QVJI_HlI5PCFQqtg/joinIf you like what I do, you can buy me some coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/organduoPayPal: https://PayPal.Me/VPinkeviciusWe support Ukraine: https://www.blue-yellow.lt/enMy Hauptwerk setup: https://www.organduo.lt/tools.htmlTotal Organist - the most comprehensive organ training program online: https://www.organduo.lt/total-organist

This question was sent by Nabil, and he writes,

1) My dream is to be a great concert Organist, and to be one of the most significant Organ performers in this century. Because I believe I have something new to bring.
Also to be the first Organist in a Cathedral (good organs usually are in big churches), to push the people in the church with me looking towards heaven in their prayers by making great music…

V:  This was his dream.  Number 2, it’s obviously the challenge, and it is

2) * Not having Organ or even Classical Music atmosphere around me.

V:  He lives in Israel.  Also

* Planning to study Organ and Church Music in Europe (it's very hard and complicated plan)

* I need support in social media to get known

Love you and Ausra!!!

his question was sent by Katrine, and she writes,

Thanks for asking about this Vidas.

1. To be as fluent and reliable at organ playing as I am at the piano (professional accompanist/repetiteur by background)
2. Getting the set-up right for feet and being confident that I am practising in a way that will lead to accuracy - not sure if stool height is correct, shoes are perhaps too wide etc. Unclear on where feet should be able to reach (get pain in legs if I stretch too far and have hurt knee trying to insist with my right leg that it can reach the bottom notes!) and not sure how best to practise pedal scales (have seen varying advice on toe/heel use).

Many thanks!

Katrine

This question was sent by Rosemary, and she writes,:

“Happy New Year greetings to you all. This day dawned breathtakingly beautiful and we will all be glad of the shade in the garden as the heat rises. A new year ahead in which our prayers and hopes are with those frontline workers caring for victims of Covid 19, and discoveries for containment. May you all and your families stay safe. Your comments, goals and plans are incredibly inspirational for me, with renewed energy I have heaped my attention on BWV 529, and various choral preludes, BWV 604 a favourite. Studying your improvisation and trying out some variations. Thanks to you all and the very best of good wishes for a happy and productive year ahead sharing your wonderful talents.

Rosemary”

This question was sent by Pieter, and he writes,:

“Dear Vidas,

Thank you for sending me the extra exercise supplementary to the sight reading course. I appreciate that very much. Firstly let me apologise for my late response after finishing the course. It has been rather busy with various things.

You may recall that when I first approached you asking your advice my goal to improve my sightreading skills was very much focussed on obtaining the CRCO (Colleague of the Royal College of Organists) diploma. I had already achieved credits for the paperwork and repertoire but not the musicianship tests. I am pleased to tell you that I achieved the last part of the qualification in the summer session and I therefore now have my CRCO qualification! I was really delighted to achieve this as it was a real challenge for me but after a lot of work, my efforts paid off!

There can be no doubt that the sightreading course helped me particularly with issues of rhythm which I always found a weak point so I am grateful for that indeed. Although transposition was something I found slightly less challenging, this is also a sort of sightreading so I am sure the course helped me there too!

I think I am done with organ diplomas so I will concentrate on learning repertoire now and just enjoying playing the instrument that I love but I have to say that my all round musicianship skills have improved through the experience of preparing for a challenging qualification and that has to help my playing in the general sense.This question was sent by Pieter, and he writes,:

“Dear Vidas,

Thank you for sending me the extra exercise supplementary to the sight reading course. I appreciate that very much. Firstly let me apologise for my late response after finishing the course. It has been rather busy with various things.

You may recall that when I first approached you asking your advice my goal to improve my sightreading skills was very much focussed on obtaining the CRCO (Colleague of the Royal College of Organists) diploma. I had already achieved credits for the paperwork and repertoire but not the musicianship tests. I am pleased to tell you that I achieved the last part of the qualification in the summer session and I therefore now have my CRCO qualification! I was really delighted to achieve this as it was a real challenge for me but after a lot of work, my efforts paid off!

There can be no doubt that the sightreading course helped me particularly with issues of rhythm which I always found a weak point so I am grateful for that indeed. Although transposition was something I found slightly less challenging, this is also a sort of sightreading so I am sure the course helped me there too!

I think I am done with organ diplomas so I will concentrate on learning repertoire now and just enjoying playing the instrument that I love but I have to say that my all round musicianship skills have improved through the experience of preparing for a challenging qualification and that has to help my playing in the general sense.

This question was sent by Whitney, and she writes,

My challenge is with getting enough courage to play hymns with pedals. I can do it fine when practicing, but I get way too nervous when I’m playing at Mass.

This question was sent by Graham, and he comments on my recording of the practice session of his Idyll. So he writes,:

“Wonderful, Vidas! It was written in the summer of 2020 during the first lockdown of the Covid pandemic. I saw a competition advertised for a meditative piece for organ and this composition appeared nearly instantly! I do love Erik Satie's 'Gymnopedies' (I have heard you play No 2 on the organ!) and there is a strong French impressionist influence in this piece. It came together remarkably quickly from an initial improvisation to the finished composition as I was very near the deadline for submitting for the competition. As you know, I am not 'original' in my writing as I recognize everything I create is derivative - a fusion of everything I have ever heard or played. I love the music of Cole Porter and George Gershwin and Irving Berlin . . . so there is a trace of those songsters deep inside the piece as well. It sounds gorgeous on the Salisbury Willis - a sound I never expected to hear. THANK YOU!”

This question was sent by Steven, and he writes:

“Hi Vidas. Organ playing is going okay, thank you for asking. These days I am making more time for practice, which is key. I still feel like I am a slow learner, but I know how to pull apart a new piece and start making it work. Pedal work continues to improve, with the biggest aspect I'm noticing is my accuracy. The right foot position (like keeping toes touching the "black" pedals) seems to be super helpful. I have a teacher, and we have lessons every other week for one hour. I typically work up a couple hymns out of the ELW, sometimes an introduction or related piece with those hymns. Then I have several other pieces in various states of progress.”

This question was sent by Andrew, and he writes:

“I just wanted to say thank you for your "Mastering" series on YouTube.

I am a percussionist turned organist, and every time I'm struggling to learn a new piece, it really helps to watch your videos. Even though I'm not learning the same music as you, the same principles of practicing apply, and I learn so much better when I remind myself to take things in small parts in repetition.

You are doing a wonderful job of producing great content to help people like me.

Right now, I'm working on "In dulci jubilo" by JM Bach, "Nun danket" by Karg-Elert, and "I Love Thee, My Lord" by Shearing, as well as some other long term Franck pieces that will be taking me a while to finish learning.

The most challenging thing for me in playing organ is developing my kinesthetic sense between hands and feet, so I don't have to look away from the music and lose my place. I'm not a keyboard player by training, so I'm trying to take things slowly and learn from my mistakes as they happen, instead of just getting frustrated. Once the pandemic hit hard, I decided it was time to get an organ for my house so I could practice whenever it would be convenient for me. I also have a 2 year old son, so it's hard to get away from home for a long time to practice at church. I bought a nice custom package from Content Organs that I enjoy, but I also really like your creative setup and what you were able to put together from online stores.

Looking forward to seeing more videos from you soon!

Thanks!
Andrew Fuhrman
Austin, Texas, USA

PS I will support you on Patreon!”

This question was sent by John, and he writes,

Dear Ausra, thanks so much for this superb recital! Sorry I couldn't join it live, I've been very busy traveling and catching up with family, Covid restrictions are returning in Australia so I am cherishing every moment with family.

Well done on the Bach, it sounded great, your articulation was so clear! How do you decide on a tempo for these Prelude & Fugues, do we have any historical indications or is it more based on how it sounds in the acoustic you play in?

And please thank Vidas from me for his lovely contributions also! I am so lucky to know you both as friends and my teacher, you are so inspirational!

Happy New Year to you and your family! Please stay safe and well!
Take care, John

This question was sent by Diana, and she wants to know:

“Is there a reason for avoiding parallel 5ths?”

Welcome to Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast episode 746! Today Ausra and I will talk about how to avoid mistakes in organ practice. Hope you will enjoy it!Here you will find all my scores: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/en/category/arrangeme/?q=Secrets+of+Organ+Playing&aff_id=454957Secrets of Organ Playing Mug: https://www.zazzle.co.uk/z/abykn9us?rf=238366920809443329You can support this channel by becoming a member here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO4K3_6QVJI_HlI5PCFQqtg/joinIf you like what I do, you can buy me some coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/organduoPayPal: https://PayPal.Me/VPinkeviciusWe support Ukraine: https://www.blue-yellow.lt/enMy Hauptwerk setup: https://www.organduo.lt/tools.htmlTotal Organist - the most comprehensive organ training program online: https://www.organduo.lt/total-organistSecrets of Organ Playing - When You Practice, Miracles Happen! https://organduo.ltListen to my organ playing on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0ckKPIvTWucoN3CZwGodCO?si=YWy7_0HqRvaZwBcovL-RKg#secretsoforganplaying #vidaspinkevicius #ausramotuzaite

This question was sent by Sally, and she writes,

"Do you have a secret to playing melody in the left hand and harmonies in RH?  I have a hard time with that. My brain doesn’t want to allow LH to take the melody, at least not for long."

This question was sent by Rosemary, and she writes,

Hello Vidas
Firstly can I thank you for the wonderfully informative emails you have sent during the last week, To date I have found them very helpful and thought provoking.  A good beginning to the information I need to develop my study for the next 12 months.

In reply to your first question. My goal for this coming year is a 30 minute lunchtime recital on 8 October 2021.

My practice situation is a small instrument, one manual with a full pedal board and 5 stops in our local church  (country town). The recital is on an instrument 8 times this size
in a provincial city 45 km away.

Aug 2019 I was included in the programme and played an all Bach programme  (BWV 554, BWV 555,  BWV 604, BWV 536 and BWV 570 )  I lacked confidence and found it a rather tough experience and have resolved to better the experience.

Important aspects to address. Developing a plan for the year's study.  Developing the programme. (Bach again as his music is a passion of mine, or a European tour,
(Boellmann, Faure..Italian school, and Bach )

The learning of a piece, bringing it up to concert standard and maintaining the standard for the recital date.

Work on analysing the piece, Your email of Dec 1st has been a great catalyst. Maybe this is one of the secrets to understanding the piece and gaining confidence in performance.

Additionally, I have shortened the length of the fragments I learn at a time and have resolved to trial your suggestions.

The content of the material you've sent seems like a good foundation. I need all these tips and more. I have had no formal lessons on the instrument, gathering knowledge through reading, listening and suggestions from colleagues in recent years.  More information on ornaments, (BWV 555 do you include the marked trill on the resolution of the prelude.)  The French Noels how do you fit in the mordants and how are they played,

Currently I am learning Priere a Notre-Dame  L Boellmann your copy with fingering and pedaling,
Sicilienne OP.78  G Faure
Sonata 5 BWV 529 Bach third movement

I am particularly interested in your copy of Ich ruf' zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ  BWV 639  where you have written out the interpretation of the ornaments and how they fit in.More on this please.

Time I stopped, I have gained regular access to the organ for the recital determined to be more familiar with the instrument, I have considerable support and assistance from the regular organists especially with choice of registration.  A big learning curve.

Hopefully this finds you and yours well, a strange year with so many new challenges. Every good wish for this festive Christmas season.

kind regards
Rosemary

This question was sent by Andrei, and he writes:

“Hi Vidas and Ausra!

I have a question for you:

If in a church there is a need for an organist, and the only two keyboardists are a professional concert pianist and a mediocre/intermediate organist, who do you think would be better to play on the organ?”

This question was sent by Stephen, and he writes:

“At 72 years of age my goal is to play some of Bach's organ music with musicality and appropriate style...i.e. registration ...trills ..phrasing. I have explored the "Little preludes and Fugues"  using Soderlund's book on authentic technique for that period.   To be able to continue to practice.  (I own an Viscount Digital Organ with appropriate AGO standards. I also studied formally with an organist for 2 years)

To be able to improve my pedal technique. I have used your Pedal Mastery Course to help in that regard. I purchased it when you first offered it to us.  I would like to know other sources of exercises that might help in improving.

To be able to memorize even at my age....I find that practicing the organ and piano HELP keep my mind sharp ...Excellent therapy...

Stephen”

This question was sent by Scott, and he writes,

Hi Vidas. I'm new to organ playing and came across your site. Do you have a course that goes in order from kind of the beginning? I'm an intermediate piano player who doesn't read well yet. I also don't have pedals nor multiple manuals right now. Just using a midi controller with organ presets. Can a membership on your site help me where I'm at now with organ?

This question was sent by André, and he writes,

Hello dear Vidas, I received the statement from Patreon about your support. I am extremely honored and grateful for your help, which means a lot to me. First, because I’ve been following your channel for many years, long before you started using Hauptwerk. In fact, many years ago you recorded a video about possible works to study with only a manual, which was a starting point for me in the organ. And finally, I printed the paper pedal board that you made available on your website! Anyway, receiving your support means a lot because you have always been a person who inspired me! Here in Brazil things are scarce in relation to the practice of the organ, but I was never discouraged, I was always positive. And now with Hauptwerk, and with my future equipment, I will be able to study this instrument that I love so much more!

Thank you very much, affectionately,
André Barbosa

This question was sent by Mario, and he writes:

“Hello Vidas, my name is Mario I am a 25 year old musician from Panamá.

My dream is to become Panamá's first organist, we have two pipe organs in the country and lucky for me I have access to both.

One is Spanish pipe organ with 2 manuals and 30 note straight pedalboard and 51 keys on each manual.

Second is a Renaissance pipe organ built in 2019 by a Polish organ company, it has 3 manuals with 51 keys also and a 27 note pedalboard.

I am very interested in developing my sight reading abilities to a high level, where I could Just grab any composition and play it at tempo, and I mean piano or organ composition. I am wondering if your sight reading course would be good for me.

I am comfortable sight reading hymns, but I don't have knowledge on pipe organ repertoire, only Bach.

I practice on a digital Piano a Yamaha p155. I bought an AGO pedalboard and it should arrive in 2 weeks.

Let me know if you can help me become a master at sight reading.”

This question was sent by Diana, who transcribes fingering and pedaling from our videos, and she writes that:

“Sometimes I read a treble clef like a bass clef...”

This question was sent by Keith, and he writes in response to my letter asking what are his goals and challenges in organ playing.  He writes,

Vidas,

Thank you for sharing your knowledge and love of organ playing.

My dream for organ playing is to facilitate the expression of worship in music, with the language of harmony.

What things are holding me back from my dream?
1. My ignorance/lack of skill.
- In February I dusted off my marginal four years of grade school piano lessons, after 34 years.

2. Realizing what good technique is - what such technique should feel like when I practice and play.

3. Practice method/discipline - What is a minimum of major/minor scales, vs Hanon finger exercises, vs practicing a piece.
- I practice about an hour a day, some days twice that. Wish I could practice more.

The mini-course emails have been very helpful to me.  I let them queue up behind each other, until I have a chance to fully consider each one.

Regards,
Keith

This question was sent by James, and he writes,

Thanks Vidas for acknowledging my donation.  With lockdown and retirement I have a bit more time to work at learning the organ.  I am now 73 so things are a bit slower for me.

I have an old analog Viscount organ but I have found that my new iPad can produce even better and authentic sound. Favourite at the moment is Pipe Organ and St Just. So I have brought out my old Casio keyboard which has a MIDI possibility and bought the necessary connectors and connected it to my old stereo system, it really can sound amazing and have to keep the volume down. Love the “pedal notes”.

Over the winter I shall follow your example and buy new keyboards, I think it will be better than only one.

Music wise I continue to work away at hymns and have started flowkey. I bought your Prière à Notre-Dame as it is just about my level though hard work with all the accidentals. So I would appreciate you doing more of the simpler stuff, I am not quite ready for the toccata.  The likes of simpler advent music and Rhoysymedre like what you are beginning to play with fingering would be really useful. It helps build confidence and speeds the process up if an expert such as yourself does the ground work.

So thank you for all you do, all you online organists are amazing at this time and offer so much to those of us who feel safer not going to church, a real godsend indeed.

So you keep safe and bless you,
Jim (James)

Welcome to Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast episode 745! This question was sent by Dawn who is our Total Organist program member and she wants to know how can she improve fingering in general without using annotated scores?Here you will find all my scores: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/en/category/arrangeme/?q=Secrets+of+Organ+Playing&aff_id=454957You can support this channel by becoming a member here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO4K3_6QVJI_HlI5PCFQqtg/joinIf you like what I do, you can buy me some coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/organduoPayPal: https://PayPal.Me/VPinkeviciusWe support Ukraine: https://www.blue-yellow.lt/enMy Hauptwerk setup: https://www.organduo.lt/tools.htmlTotal Organist - the most comprehensive organ training program online: https://www.organduo.lt/total-organistSecrets of Organ Playing - When You Practice, Miracles Happen! https://organduo.ltListen to my organ playing on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0ckKPIvTWucoN3CZwGodCO?si=YWy7_0HqRvaZwBcovL-RKg#secretsoforganplaying #vidaspinkevicius #ausramotuzaite

This question was sent by Abe, and he writes,

I had a stroke which hit my left hand very hard.  It is slow and lazy.  Any suggestions?

This question was sent by Brigitte, and she writes:

“Thanks Vidas for the complete pedaling and instructions. It has created a great opportunity for me to focus on the pedal technique for early music beyond toes only.”

This question was sent by Luis Garcia, and he writes,

Dear friends: I live in Spain and here there are few organ teachers.  Pedal Technique is a mystery here.  I need to learn how to play pedals without looking at the pedalboard and with a mind strategy.  Some teachers recommend to slide the foot counting the intervals. I think that it may well be in some times but not all the time.  Others recommend memorizing the gaps in the pedalboard.  And the worst teachers don't recommend anything. Even it is very difficult to see organists with organ shoes.  Spain is a bad country to learn how to play the pipe organ.

Remember that I am interested in a romantic technique.  I know that you like Baroque music.

Please, try to help me.  Thank you.
Luis García

This question was sent by James, and he writes about my piece called “Nassat, from the Organ ABC”:

“The speed of this piece and transparency of registration made me appreciate how generous the acoustic is at your church. I’m still stuck on Krummhorn and Larigot”.

This question was sent by Robert, and he writes,

Dear Vidas,
I completed your Pedal Virtuoso Master Course in late August and upon your request, below you will find my feedback.

Without a doubt, I am very happy to have taken your course!  I discovered it online at the beginning of June after searching for ways to improve my pedal technique which was holding my organ playing back.  My goals consisted of learning how to sit comfortably on the organ bench so that I could play the pedals and maintain my balance, discover for myself how to develop more flexibility in my ankles, and learn how to use my feet more efficiently in order to play more advanced passages as well as reduce strains put on my foot muscles and joints (i.e., prevent future injuries).

After spending twelve weeks working on the given assignment for the day, to my surprise, each goal saw improvement and not just a slight improvement!  Although I often needed more than fifteen minutes to work on a given assignment, my feet now know where to go and my hips and body now support my balance and the ability to play a passage legato while avoiding foot strain.  One thing I did that helped solidify what I had learned in previous weeks, was to review previous assignments in addition to the daily assignment.  Currently I am reviewing the course by playing every scale and arpeggio from a given tonality three times a day for one week (this is my fourth week, so I am reviewing scales and arpeggios in E minor which is Day 1, No. 4 from each of the twelve weeks).

This question was sent by William, and he writes,

Vidas,

Thank you for putting together this course. My sight reading of notes and rhythms both improved significantly from 9 months ago. It also improved my sight reading of dense passages of music. The areas that gave me a little trouble (that I need to continue working on) are the counting of 32nd notes and irregular rhythms (triplets against 2 eighth notes / 4 sixteenth notes / dotted eighth note and a sixteenth note).  Regards, Bill

This question was sent by Brigitte, and she writes:

“Hi Vidas and Ausra,
The more complicated rhythms are my favorites for sight-reading. Also I have been listening to recordings from Art of the fugue and did some research as I was wondering about the meaning of the different parts.
There must be so much more that can be learned from the Art of the fugue.

The variations of the Genevan Psalms are of interest to me too. Can I find them somewhere together to come back to them?
Enjoy following you and learning from you.
Regards,
Brigitte”

This question was sent by Brigitte, and she writes, The variations of the Genevan Psalms are of interest to me. Can I find them somewhere together to come back to them? I enjoy following you and learning from you. Regards, Brigitte

This question was sent by Markus, and he writes: “At the moment I started to play hymns. Some time in the future I want to do church service. And I want to improvise hymns over modern pop and musical music just by hearing the song in the radio. A really high challenging goal for a late-beginner, I know. :) Therefore I really appreciate your melodic dictation course. Thanks, Markus”

This question was sent by David, and he writes, "I didn't see this video when it was posted because I was buried with work at the time. Thank you for posting it and this podcast. This week, I am experiencing the same thing, but with a simple hymn that I should have no trouble with, but one measure is just not coming, and I, too, felt like hitting the (imitation) organ as I was practicing... (but I didn't do it... it already doesn't fully function properly on Sunday mornings). This made me realize that sometimes this is a normal thing to experience."

Welcome to Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast episode 744! This question was sent by our good friend James Flores from Australia and who shared some of his feedback on our recent episode talking how much to practice on the organ per day. He writes:"This was a very insightful podcast. For me it's also about deadlines. I think I may have covered this in a video of my own in the past too. The challenge I'm facing now is not about how much to practice, but about how to find joy and motivation in organ playing again."Here you will find all my scores: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/en/category/arrangeme/?q=Secrets+of+Organ+Playing&aff_id=454957You can support this channel by becoming a member here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO4K3_6QVJI_HlI5PCFQqtg/joinIf you like what I do, you can buy me some coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/organduoPayPal: https://PayPal.Me/VPinkeviciusWe support Ukraine: https://www.blue-yellow.lt/enMy Hauptwerk setup: https://www.organduo.lt/tools.htmlTotal Organist - the most comprehensive organ training program online: https://www.organduo.lt/total-organistSecrets of Organ Playing - When You Practice, Miracles Happen! https://organduo.ltListen to my organ playing on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0ckKPIvTWucoN3CZwGodCO?si=YWy7_0HqRvaZwBcovL-RKg#secretsoforganplaying #vidaspinkevicius #ausramotuzaite

This question was sent by Graham, and he writes about the video where I introduce my Hauptwerk set-up on YouTube. Hauptwerk set-up and streaming set-up, to be precise. He writes, As others have already commented, Vidas, a really useful and helpful upload explaining how you produce such wonderful recordings - though as amazing as all this technology is, it would mean nothing if it was not for your truly fabulous playing and teaching! As you know, I am a big fan of James. He recently played some Clementi on the organ and I commented with a reference to the contest between Mozart and Clementi in 1781. So I am going to make the same judgement as Emperor Joseph II, who diplomatically declared a draw between those two great composers. I declare a draw between the massive amount of wiring and equipment both you and James have. Just looking at all those 'tripping hazards' gives me palpitations. At least my humble Viscount Chorum just plugs in and plays . . . but of course, does not give me access to some of the greatest organs in the world! Thank you, Vidas.

This question was sent by Ian, and he writes: “The organ world needs more videos like this - however experienced and skilled you are, practice is sometimes slow, difficult and/or frustrating. It helps everyone if we're open about it. Thanks for sharing!”

This question was sent by Robert, and he is a student of Pedal Virtuoso Master Course. And he has a question which sounds like this, Dear Vidas, I just finished the tenth week of your Pedal Virtuoso Master Class. Unlike previous weeks when I come to the last day, I still have issues maintaining a proper sense of balance while seated on the organ bench. This affects my accuracy (I either hit an extra pedal in one foot, miss a pedal, or slide off the correct pedal and into a non chord tone), playing legato (sometimes a major third in one foot is not possible to connect), and playing the pedals silently (as opposed to making a too much noise). Regarding balance, I found in all the previous weeks that I could sit quietly on the bench and avoid having to pull myself back to my normal seated position by shifting my weight from one hip and buttocks to the other. This week, perhaps due to the fact that an octave arpeggio in octaves covers too much space on the pedals in such a short amount of time as well as the fact that two feet moving at the same time reduces the body’s range of motion, playing an arpeggio this week with confidence was not possible. My appearance on the bench was too active as I had to keep adjusting myself when my body would move closer and closer to the console as a result of twisting my body in order to reach pedals. For some of the arpeggios, like B Minor, E Major, and D Minor, not moving on the bench put too much of a strain on my legs and feet that in the end did not enable me to reach the desired pedal in one foot (and occasionally pedals in both feet) with confidence. My remedy this week has been to shift my weight a little bit, however, a precise note to shift on (unlike scales and all previous arpeggios) or even which direction to shift into (left or right side) has not been possible for me to determine. These problems occur when I am playing very slowly in rhythm. Faster tempos are not possible this week. Feel free to contact me. Thank you for your time and thank you very much for designing a wonderful course as well as sharing your knowledge with me and every other organist. Sincerely, Robert