Category: Organ / Sacred Music
The first performance of this Sixth Organ Symphony was given by Jürgen Geiger on 14th September 2008 in the church of St. Florian in Austria, above the tomb of Anton Bruckner (1824-1896). This is very much in the spirit of the composition, which was inspired by Anton Bruckner's most immediately assertive work, his grandiose TE DEum, written in 1881-1884. The division into five movements and the names of these movements are taken directly from Bruckner's score, with the new life breathed into them.
Movements: 1: TE DEUM ? Allegro. Celebratory with energy
2: TE ERGO - Preghiera
3: AETERNA FAC - Perpetuum Mobile
4: SALVUM FAC - Basso ostinato
5: IN TE, DOMINE SPERAVI - Toccata
Duration: 28 Minutes
Publisher of notes/sheet music: Schott Music GmbH Mainz , 2008
Instrumentation: Large organ with at least 3 manuals
Solo instruments: Orgel
Introduction: The first performance of this Sixth Organ Symphony was given by Jürgen Geiger on 14th September 2008 in the church of St. Florian in Austria, above the tomb of Anton Bruckner (1824-1896). This is very much in the spirit of the composition, which was inspired by Anton Bruckner's most immediately assertive work, his grandiose TE DEum, written in 1881-1884. The division into five movements and the names of these movements are taken directly from Bruckner's score, with the new life breathed into them:
The TE DEUM forms the first movement of the organ symphony, bringing the central Gregorian melody together with Bruckner's insistant quaver figures (built in fifths and fourths). Te Ergo becomes a preghiera, a melodiously beseeching aria of supplication and entreaty. Behind Aeterna fac lurks a restless perpetuum mobile whose unceasing movement evokes the word 'aeterna'. A similar allusion to 'eternity' appears in Salvum fac with its basso ostinato, though here at a slow tempo. A special feature here is the twittering birdsong characteristic of Bruckers's unaffected fondness for nature and his humble manner, which seemed foolish to his comtemporaries. Everything culminates in a weighty Toccata In Te, Domine, Speravi, where the Gregorian chorale and various quotations from Bruckner's original Te Deum are brought together in a rush of sound.
I hope that listening to this Sixth Organ Symphony will evoke the kind of imagery which Hans Ferdinand Redlich (1903-1968) used in describing Bruckner's work: "Bruckner's TE DEUM is filled with an almost pagan feeling of triumph, an almost barbaric delight in harsh sound effects, a naive pleasure in a noisy veneration of God. It radiated a faith at once childish and knowing, burning and rock-solid, a faith that can move mountains"
Dedication: Dedicated to Jürgen Gieger
World premiere: 10.09.2008, Church of St. Florian / Austria
Performers at world premiere: Jürgen Geiger, as part of the Bavarian organ summer 2008
Records: ambiente audio Sacred Music Series Volume 4 ACD 3009, 2009
Performers on recording: Jürgen Geiger playing the Bruckner organ St. Florian
