Carillon de Westminster, Opus 54, No. 6, is a piece written for organ by Louis Vierne. It constitutes the sixth piece in the third suite of Vierne's four-suite set 24 pieces de fantaisie, first published in 1927. Carillon de Westminster is in the key of D major, and is in compoundtriple time.
As indicated by the title, Carillon de Westminster is a fantasia on the Westminster chimes, played from the Clock Tower, Palace of Westminster, since 1858. The chimes play four notes in the key of E major, G♯, F♯, E, and B in various patterns every fifteen minutes. The Westminster chimes are in 5 4 time, whereas Vierne's piece is in triple time.
Vierne's friend Henry Willis hummed the tune for the composer upon Vierne's request; possibly, either Willis hummed the tune incorrectly or Vierne misheard his friend upon transcription. Vierne misquoted the second quarter of the chimes. Instead of jumping up a third from the tonic, dropping down a whole step, and landing on the fifth, Vierne's version moves up in whole steps to the third before moving down to the fifth. Vierne then stays on the fifth, leaps to the second, then third note of the scale and ends on the tonic. There is debate among musicologists as to whether or not this rumor is true, or if Vierne altered the melody to suit his own purpose.[1] However, at some points in the piece, Vierne uses this second phrase in its correct "Westminster" version.
Performance
Vierne first performed Carillon de Westminster at Notre Dame, Paris on 29 November 1929 for the ending of Forty Hours at the cathedral. The piece was an instant success. Vierne's student, Henri Doyen, observed that "Everyone […] waited quietly until the end, and a number of people improvised a little ovation for the maître when he came down from the tribune."[2]
Carillon de Westminster from 24 Pièces de fantaisie
When playing the piece today, the organist should keep in mind a number of guidelines typical to a Vierne performance. Registration is not inflexible, and Vierne noted this in his introduction to 24 pieces de fantaisie: "It [registration] is an indication for the general colorings […] that can be modified according to the possibilities offered by the instruments on which they [the pieces] are to be performed." Vierne indicates Fonds et anches for the Récit expressif manual, and Fonds et anches, et principals for the Positif, Grand, and Pédale manuals. The Westminster tune within the piece is played on the Positif and Récit coupled, so as to give the theme substantial prominence over the pedal and harmony lines. The supporting secondary theme (rapid eighth and sixteenth note groupings against the dotted-quarter note primary theme) opening the piece is given less registration and seems to bubble along, weaving in and out of its strong namesake theme. Stops are added little by little throughout the piece, gradually building up to the climax using full organ and a fully open swell box (precise stops to be determined by performer and his or her organ).
Vierne understood similar flexibility with regards to how fast the piece should be played, articulation, and phrasing. Vierne never wrote metronome markings on his manuscripts; he knew that a piece played in a small drawing room could not be played at the same tempo in a cavernous stone cathedral. Whatever tempo chosen should be strictly adhered to throughout the entire piece.
Articulation between phrases is also determined by the venue. For performance of Carillon de Westminster at Notre Dame, breath between phrases would have to be longer in order to remain clear than in a smaller setting. The French-Romantic tradition emphasizes legato playing. The right-hand is split into one-bar phrases but it is not clear whether this was intended by Vierne (his manuscripts are notoriously difficult to read due to his sight).
The same clarity pertains to the rest of the piece, especially the chord progressions at the end after the climax. Such thick chords can sound muddy if not played with precise, even attack and release. In some venues it would be wise to shorten the value of each chord slightly, and insert a 32nd rest between each one.
Media
Carillon de Westminster, op. 54
Matthias Flierl plays the organ of St. Jakob, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany ( Rieger/Austria, IV/69
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Carillon de Westminster Opus 54 No 6 is a piece written for organ by Louis Vierne It constitutes the sixth piece in the third suite of Vierne s four suite set 24 pieces de fantaisie first published in 1927 Carillon de Westminster is in the key of D major and is in compound triple time Carillon de WestminsterOrgan music by Louis VierneThe composer in 1930KeyD majorOpus54 No 6Performed29 November 1929 1929 11 29 PremiereLocationNotre Dame Paris Contents 1 Origin and Inspiration 2 Performance 3 Media 4 References 5 External linksOrigin and Inspiration EditAs indicated by the title Carillon de Westminster is a fantasia on the Westminster chimes played from the Clock Tower Palace of Westminster since 1858 The chimes play four notes in the key of E major G F E and B in various patterns every fifteen minutes The Westminster chimes are in 54 time whereas Vierne s piece is in triple time Vierne s friend Henry Willis hummed the tune for the composer upon Vierne s request possibly either Willis hummed the tune incorrectly or Vierne misheard his friend upon transcription Vierne misquoted the second quarter of the chimes Instead of jumping up a third from the tonic dropping down a whole step and landing on the fifth Vierne s version moves up in whole steps to the third before moving down to the fifth Vierne then stays on the fifth leaps to the second then third note of the scale and ends on the tonic There is debate among musicologists as to whether or not this rumor is true or if Vierne altered the melody to suit his own purpose 1 However at some points in the piece Vierne uses this second phrase in its correct Westminster version Performance EditVierne first performed Carillon de Westminster at Notre Dame Paris on 29 November 1929 for the ending of Forty Hours at the cathedral The piece was an instant success Vierne s student Henri Doyen observed that Everyone waited quietly until the end and a number of people improvised a little ovation for the maitre when he came down from the tribune 2 Carillon de Westminster from 24 Pieces de fantaisie When playing the piece today the organist should keep in mind a number of guidelines typical to a Vierne performance Registration is not inflexible and Vierne noted this in his introduction to 24 pieces de fantaisie It registration is an indication for the general colorings that can be modified according to the possibilities offered by the instruments on which they the pieces are to be performed Vierne indicates Fonds et anches for the Recit expressif manual and Fonds et anches et principals for the Positif Grand and Pedale manuals The Westminster tune within the piece is played on the Positif and Recit coupled so as to give the theme substantial prominence over the pedal and harmony lines The supporting secondary theme rapid eighth and sixteenth note groupings against the dotted quarter note primary theme opening the piece is given less registration and seems to bubble along weaving in and out of its strong namesake theme Stops are added little by little throughout the piece gradually building up to the climax using full organ and a fully open swell box precise stops to be determined by performer and his or her organ Vierne understood similar flexibility with regards to how fast the piece should be played articulation and phrasing Vierne never wrote metronome markings on his manuscripts he knew that a piece played in a small drawing room could not be played at the same tempo in a cavernous stone cathedral Whatever tempo chosen should be strictly adhered to throughout the entire piece Articulation between phrases is also determined by the venue For performance of Carillon de Westminster at Notre Dame breath between phrases would have to be longer in order to remain clear than in a smaller setting The French Romantic tradition emphasizes legato playing The right hand is split into one bar phrases but it is not clear whether this was intended by Vierne his manuscripts are notoriously difficult to read due to his sight The same clarity pertains to the rest of the piece especially the chord progressions at the end after the climax Such thick chords can sound muddy if not played with precise even attack and release In some venues it would be wise to shorten the value of each chord slightly and insert a 32nd rest between each one Media Edit Carillon de Westminster op 54 source source Matthias Flierl plays the organ of St Jakob Rothenburg ob der Tauber Germany Rieger Austria IV 69 Problems playing this file See media help References EditNotes Smith 1999 p 559 Smith 1999 p 555 SourcesSmith Rollin 1999 Louis Vierne Organist of Notre Dame Cathedral Pendragon Press ISBN 1 57647 004 0 External links EditLouis Vierne Carillon de Westminster op 54 6 17 April 2020 St Bonifatius Wiesbaden Gabriel Dessauer on YouTube Portals Classical Music France Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Carillon de Westminster amp oldid 1142134895, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
