Issue 5 - Palm Sunday and Maundy Thursday

We will arrive at Holy Week on Sunday... and so ends our five-week journey through the organ works of Johannes Brahms. This Sunday, Palm Sunday, don't expect an organ prelude! Hopefully you will be outside participating in the palm processional. The postlude is Emma Lou Diemer's Festival Flourish on "All Glory, Laud and Honor". Also, looking ahead to Holy Week, we will explore Maundy Thursday's prelude music: J. S. Bach's Lamb of God, Most Holy.

Emma Lou Diemer was born in 1927 in Kansas City, MO. At the young age of 13, Diemer began playing organ and soon after decided to be a composer. She received both her Bachelor and Master of Music from Yale University and studied composition in Brussels on Fulbright Scholarship. In 1960, she received her Ph.D. in composition from the Eastman School of Music (my alma mater!). Currently, she is serving as a professor emerita at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her compositional output is vast and her music puts a fresh harmonic spin on traditional forms (such as the chorale prelude). The Festival Flourish on "All Glory, Laud and Honor" is a bold interpretation of the famous Palm Sunday hymn. You will hear the opening section repeated as a ritornello (literally meaning "to return") throughout the piece after three compositional sections serve as "verses". First, a dancing procession of crunchy chords portrays the hymn text "The company of angels are praising you on high". Second, a more sedate and lyrical meditation on the hymn text, "The multitude of pilgrims with palms before you went". Third and finally, a bold and obvious harmonization of the hymn's last verse, "Their praises you accepted: Accept the prayers we bring, great author of all goodness, O good and gracious king."

The prelude for Maundy Thursday is from J. S. Bach's Leipzig Chorales (so named because he was at Thomaskirche in Leipzig when he composed them). The Leipzig Chorales are the most advanced and profound of all of Bach's chorale preludes. Lamb of God, Most Holy is number 111 in your LBW so you can follow the hymn tune. The text goes beautifully with St. John's Lutheran Church's theme for Holy Week: "Behold the Lamb of God". Mirroring the hymn, the chorale prelude is in 3 verses. In the first verse, you will hear the cantus firmus (meaning fixed song or melody) stated very simply in the soprano voice. During the second verse, it may be harder to hear the cantus firmus because it is woven into the music and hiding in the alto voice. For the final verse, you will hear the cantus firmus plainly stated in the pedal – you won’t miss it because the pedal does not play on the first two verses. Surprisingly, the composition does not end with the sadness of a Holy Week hymn; instead, the effortless runs create an uplifting air of peacefulness, painting the final text, "Your peace be with us, Jesus!".

(Image: Emma Lou Diemer)

Issue 4 - Brahms as influenced by Bach

I'm publishing this week's issue a little late --- sorry! I did, however, want to make sure to write about this because several people have commented to me about how they heard a little bit of Bach in Brahms' organ music. The prelude this week is another chorale prelude: Herzlich tut mich erfreuen (My heart is filled with comfort). It is my favorite of all the Elf Choralvorspiel. The postlude is the Prelude in G Minor, which of Brahms' free works, is also my favorite. I heard classmates at Eastman play these pieces, but I've only had the opportunity to learn them just now --- it's been SO worth the wait!

So, why is it that we can hear Bach's influence in Brahms' organ works? Briefly, I'll give 3 ideas...

1.) Conservativism... Brahms was not a radical composer of the Romantic Era. He was a conservative, much like Mendelssohn was. It was during the Romantic Era that musicians began to take a scholarly interest in music of the past. This meant that many works of Bach were finally being published for the first time. For composers like Brahms, using "ancient" forms of composition such as the chorale-prelude was a way of paying great respect to the past while bringing their own romantic style to the form.

2.) Registration... Brahms did not compose for the "romantic" organ like his contemporary French composers such as César Franck and Charles-Marie Widor. The orchestral organ of France (the Cavaillé-Coll) inspired the French-Romantic organ school to compose music in an orchestral fashion that was a complete departure from the past. In Germany, the organ was not at that stage while Brahms was composing. Therefore, the colors I choose on the organ reflect a sound that you may associate with earlier Baroque music, such as that of Bach.

3.) Scholarly Findings... Ian Mills, in his online review of The Reception of Bach's organ works from Mendelssohn to Brahms by Russell Stinson, writes: "Following an overview of Brahms’ relationship with the organ music of Bach, Stinson begins a detailed study of ‘Brahms as a scholar of Bach’s works’. By considering the markings in his personal scores, Stinson attempts to assemble – for the first time – a picture of how Brahms extracted fragments of Bach’s works to use as a stimulus for own compositions. Brahms’ annotations include the highlighting of themes, form, rhythmic and harmonic irregularities, ornamentation and fingerings. The chapter reaches a powerful and convincing conclusion by suggesting how Brahms used the knowledge which he gleaned from this study to compose his own Eleven Chorale Preludes op.122."

(Image: Johannes Brahms)

Issue 3 - Brahms' "Herzlich tut mich verlangen"

This week... more Brahms! The prelude and postlude are both chorale preludes on the hymn Herzlich tut mich verlangen (My Heart is Filled with Longing). In the Lutheran Book of Worship (the green hymnal), you will find this hymn at number 116. While the tune is that of number 116, the text in the hymnal (O Sacred Head, Now Wounded) does not correspond to the text which Brahms set (My Heart is Filled with Longing). This is the full text that corresponds with the hymn:

My heart is filled with longing to pass away in peace;
For woes are 'round me thronging and trials will not cease.
Oh fain would I be hasting, from thee, dark world of gloom,
To gladness everlasting.O Jesus! quickly come.

The prelude, which is Op. 122, No. 10, places the melody of the chorale in the pedal on a "principal" stop. The manuals (or keyboards) play the accompaniment to the tune on flute and string stops, thus making the accompaniment considerably softer than the pedal tune. I would describe the accompaniment in the manuals as both restless and peaceful --- two words that aren't exactly synonyms! Depending on my disposition, I can honestly hear it both ways. Throughout the piece, there is a steady, repeating eighth note in the bass line of the manuals - perhaps it is the heartbeat... "my heart is filled with longing".

The postlude, which is Op. 122, No. 9, is a much bolder setting of the chorale; Brahms gives the dynamic marking forte (an Italian word that means "strong" and can also be interpreted as "loud"). The melody is placed in the top (or soprano) voice but may not be immediately recognizable because it is ornamented - this means that extra notes have been added between the melodic notes. The ornamentation doesn't just disguise the melody, it actually becomes a compositional tool that Brahms uses to create constant movement and to provide a means for adding in some of the rich chromatic harmonies for which Brahms is so well-known. The ornamentation creates a constant churning which I believe accurately depicts the second line of the chorale text: "For woes are 'round me thronging and trials will not cease." It is the pedal that drives this turbulence forward --- listen for its rising half step that underscores the 2nd and 4th beat!

(Image: Brahms' gravesite in Austria at the Central Cemetery of Vienna)

Issue 2 - So, what exactly is a Chorale Prelude?

This week's postlude, the Prelude in A Minor by Brahms, is actually a repeat. I played it on February 25th as a postlude. However, that was the weekend of our big snow. I think only a total of 60 people attended services that weekend. So, I've decided to play it again so more of you could hear it. When I was practicing this piece on the piano, my husband stopped me and said, "Bach?" To which I was pleased to respond, "No. Brahms!" We'll talk more in a couple weeks about why you might mistake some of Brahms' organ works for those of Bach. It's an interesting topic.

As we continue our Lenten journey with Brahms, I thought it might be useful to talk a little bit about the Chorale Prelude. It is a term that is used often in talking about organ music. This week's organ prelude is another chorale prelude from Brahms' 11 Eleven Chorale Preludes that were published posthumously (after his death). The chorale that the piece is based upon is O wie selig seid ihr doch, ihr Frommen (O how blessed, faith souls, are ye). Its meter is a slow 12/8 which gives it a pastoral feel.

So, what exactly is a Chorale Prelude? Well, it's exactly what it says it is... a chorale is a hymn and a prelude is a piece of music that precedes something else. In this case - it precedes a chorale. In its most literal sense, a chorale prelude is a prelude to a chorale --- in other words... an introduction to a hymn! Certainly, some of the earliest chorale preludes that we know from composers a generation or two earlier than Bach used their chorale preludes as a way to introduce a hymn. Back then, chorale preludes were an obvious "arrangement" of the hymn. So obvious, that it was a perfect introduction to the chorale... maybe it just had a trill here or there, or a running bass line that "dressed up" the hymn.

By the time we get to J.S. Bach (1685-1750) and most certainly by the time we get to Brahms (1833-1897), these pieces have evolved into something else - a work that can stand alone; it was not necessarily meant to be an introduction to a hymn but as a meditation on the hymn tune upon which it based. In this week's chorale prelude, the melody is very simply and slowly stated in the top voice, with the gentle-movement of the 12/8 meter underneath it. While this hymn is no longer in our current Lutheran worship hymnals, future chorale preludes I will play will be in our hymn books and I will let you know the hymnal number so you can follow along and challenge yourself to pick out the hymn melody!

(Image: Brahms' manuscript "O wüsst ich doch den Weg zurück" op. 63, no. 8 (1874))

Issue 1 - Why an all-Brahms Lent?

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) composed so little for the organ - the handful that exists is a great treasure for organists. Of a total of fifteen short compositions for the organ, Brahms wrote his Elf Choralvorspiel (Eleven Chorale-Preludes) all in the last year of his life. The death of his dear friend Clara Schumann prompted the composition of the first seven chorale preludes and the remaining four were written in the midst of his battle with cancer that he lost soon after the completion of his organ works.

In looking at the chorales (hymns) on which Brahms chose to base these compositions, it’s easy to see why scholars agree that he was contemplating death. Some of these hymns include the passion-chorale Herzlich tut mich verlangen (My Heart is Filled with Longing), the Good Friday hymn Herzliebster Jesu (Ah, Holy Jesus) and O Welt, ich muss dich lassen (O World, I now must leave thee).

So, why choose the season of Lent to highlight the handful of Brahms’ organ works? After all, Lent should not be a season of sadness during which we constantly contemplate death. Instead, we are called to spring into a season of growth as we contemplate our lives as baptized disciples.

Well, one reason is that, as organist, it’s nice to take a break from the brightly colored Epiphany postludes and have some more contemplative and grave postludes. It provides quite a contrast to the joyful postludes to come during Eastertide.

But the second reason is that the chorale preludes you will hear do not sound sorrowful at all. Brahms transforms these sorrow-filled hymn texts into works that instead communicate sometimes peacefulness and, at other times, triumph. I, personally, like these pieces for Lent because their beauty helps me contemplate these traditional Lenten hymns in a new and fresh way, thus helping my growth during the Lenten season. I hope that as you hear them while preparing for worship and while leaving worship to go out into the world, it will help your growth, too!

(Image: Johannes Brahms, portrait)

2007-2008 Engagements

September 22 & 23, during weekend worship services
St. John's Lutheran Church, 600 - 6th Ave, Des Moines, IA
"Autumn" from Antonio Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons"
transcribed for organ by Sarah Garner

October 14, 4 p.m.
St. John's Lutheran Church, 600 - 6th Ave, Des Moines, IA
Don't miss hearing Garner in her debut recital as St. John's organist
playing music of Bach, Mozart, Schumann, Vierne & Dupré all in one fiery hour!

December 6th, 12:10 p.m.
St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral, 815 High St, Des Moines, IA
Advent music of Buxtehude, Bach, Brahms and others!

January 12 & 13, during weekend worship services
St. John's Lutheran Church, 600 - 6th Ave, Des Moines, IA
"Winter" from Antonio Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons"
transcribed for organ by Sarah Garner

April 12 & 13, during weekend worship services
St. John's Lutheran Church, 600 - 6th Ave, Des Moines, IA
"Spring" from Antonio Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons"
transcribed for organ by Sarah Garner

June 21 & 22, during weekend worship services
St. John's Lutheran Church, 600 - 6th Ave, Des Moines, IA
"Summer" from Antonio Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons"
transcribed for organ by Sarah Garner

About the Organist

Newly installed in 2007 as organist at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Des Moines, Sarah Garner leads congregational singing and worship from the fifty-four rank Schlicker Organ (1997). As director of the Evangel Choir (girls choir grades 3-6) at St. John’s, she aims to instill in the girl choristers a love for liturgy, singing and the Lutheran church.

A baptized and confirmed Lutheran, Sarah grew up as a daughter of Normandale Lutheran Church in Edina, MN. There, Sarah was given the opportunity to begin accompanying choirs at age 13. After taking a beginning organ class at Interlochen Music Camp at age 16, Sarah began studying organ as a high school student with Dean Billmeyer at the University of Minnesota. She could see that her love of music and church could develop into a life career.

Sarah studied organ with Robert Anderson at Southern Methodist University where she received her Master of Music in Organ Performance. She graduated with High Honors in Organ Performance (Bachelor of Music) from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. While studying in New York, Sarah was under the tutelage of three of America’s leading organists: David Higgs, the late Michael Farris, and Gerre Hancock.

Garner placed first in the Twin Cities’ American Guild of Organists’ Scholarship Competition and continued on to win first prize in the AGOs’ Regional Competition for Young Organists in 1995. Other competitions allowed her to study in masterclass with Gillian Weir, one of the world’s most highly sought after organ performers, and Christoph Wolff, the world’s foremost scholar on the music of Johann Sebastian Bach.

Prior to moving to Des Moines, Sarah was Associate Director of Music/Organist at the First United Methodist Church in Lubbock, Texas. There, she performed the Handel Fourth Organ Concerto with the Lubbock Symphony. Her broad range of experience includes having been Music Director for Guys & Dolls and Joseph & The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Lubbock Civic Center Theatre.

It was in Lubbock where Sarah met her husband, Mark, a noted baritone and Texas Boy Choir alumnus. They have a daughter, Katie, who Sarah stays home with during the day. Previously, Sarah was affiliate organ faculty at Simpson College.