The Organs in Leipsic Churches--Bach’s Method of Accompanying--The
Pitch of Organs.
[Sidenote: Thomas Church Organ]
There were two organs in the Thomas Church, the larger of which dated
from 1525. In 1721 it was enlarged by Scheibe, a builder of whom Bach
had a very good opinion. In 1730 it was again improved, by giving the
choir organ a keyboard of its own, instead of its being acted on by the
great key-board as was formerly the case.
The organ contained:--
GREAT
1. Principal (open diapason), 16 ft.
2. Principal (open diapason), 8 „
3. Quintadena, 16 „
4. Octave (our principal), 4 „
5. Quinta, 3 „
6. Superoctava (our fifteenth), 2 „
7. Spiel-Pfeiffe, 8 „
8. Sesquialtera gedoppelt,
9. Mixture, 6, 8 and 10 ranks.
BRUSTWERK[80]
1. Grobgedackt, 8 ft.
2. Principal (open diapason), 4 „
3. Nachthorn, 4 ft.
4. Nasal, 3 „
5. Gemshorn, 2 „
6. Cymbal, 2 ranks.
7. Sesquialtera,
8. Regal, 8 ft.
9. Geigenregal, 4 „
RÜCKPOSITIV[81]
1. Principal, 8 ft.
2. Quintadena 8 „
3. Lieblich Gedacktes, 8 „
4. Klein Gedacktes, 4 „
5. Traversa, 4 „
6. Violino, 2 „
7. Raschquint gedoppelt,
8. Mixtur, 4 ranks.
9. Sesquialtera,
10. Spitzflöt, 4 ft.
11. Schallflöt, 1 „
12. Krumbhorn, 16 „
13. Trommet, 8 „
PEDAL
1. Sub-bass von Metall, 16 ft.
2. Posaune Bass, 16 „
3. Trommeten Bass, 8 „
4. Schalmeyen Bass, 4 „
5. Cornet, 3 „
There were also Tremulant, Vogelgesang, Zimbelstern-Ventils and ten
bellows. The organ loft has been twice enlarged, first in 1802, and
afterwards in 1823. It now accommodates the whole of the large double
chorus and double orchestra employed in performance of the Passion
music on Good Friday.
The smaller organ was built in 1489. In Bach’s time it stood in a
gallery opposite the large organ. It was of very little use, and in
1740 was sold to St John’s Hospital. It had three manuals, pedal, and
twenty-one stops, and was only employed on high festivals. As it was at
a considerable distance from the other organ, difficulty was felt in
keeping the two choirs together. This gallery remained, and was used
for musical purposes, till 1886.
The organ of the Nicolai Church was built in 1598, repaired in 1692,
and in 1725 was thoroughly renewed by Scheibe at a cost of 600 thalers.
[Sidenote: Leipsic University Organ]
The organ at the University Church was the best in Leipsic at that
time. It consisted of:--
GREAT
1. Principal (open diapason), 16 ft.
2. Quintatön, 16 „
3. Principal (open diapason), 8 „
4. Schalmei, 8 „
5. German Flute, 8 „
6. Gemshorn, 8 „
7. Octave, 4 „
8. Quinte, 3 „
9. Quintnasat, 3 „
10. Octavina, 2 „
11. Waldflöte, 2 ft.
12. Mixture, 5 and 6 ranks.
13. Cornet, 3 ranks.
14. Zink, 2 „
BRUSTWERK
1. Principal, 8 ft.
2. Gamba, 8 „
3. Grobgedackt, 8 „
4. Octave, 4 „
5. Rohrflöte, 4 ft.
6. Octave (fifteenth), 2 „
7. Nasat, 2 „
8. Sedesima, 1 „
9. Schweizer Pfeife, 1 „
10. Largo (No. of feet not stated).
11. Mixture, 3 ranks.
12. Clear Cymbal, 2 „
THIRD MANUAL
1. Lieblich Gedackt, 8 ft.
2. Quintatön, 8 „
3. Flûte douce, 4 „
4. Quinta Decima, 4 „
5. Decima Nona, 3 „
6. Hohlflöte, 2 „
7. Viola, 2 „
8. Vigesima Nona, 1-1/2 „
9. Weitpfeife, 1 „
10. Mixtur, 3 ranks.
11. Helle Cymbal, 2 ft.
12. Sertin (perhaps serpent), 8 „
PEDAL
1. Principal, 16 ft.
2. Quintatön, 16 „
3. Octave, 8 „
4. Octave, 4 „
5. Quinte, 3 „
6. Mixtur, 5 and 6 ranks
7. Quinten-bass, 6 ft.
8. Jubal, 8 „
9. Nachthorn, 4 „
10. Octave, 2 „
11. 2nd Principal, 16 „
12. Sub-bass, 16 „
13. Posaune, 16 „
14. Trompete, 8 „
15. Hohlflöte, 1 „
16. Mixtur, 4 ranks.
The organ had been tried by Bach on its completion in 1716, who wrote
a very elaborate report.[82] It may be of interest to quote some of
Bach’s remarks, 1. He says that the space occupied is too confined to
admit of easy access to some of the parts, in case of repairs being
required. This was, however, not the fault of the builder Scheibe, as
he was not allowed the space he asked for.
2. The wind must be made to come more equally, so as to avoid heavy
rushes of wind.
3. The parts quite fulfil the description in all respects; and the
contract, with the exception of the Schallmey and Cornet, which were
changed by order of the college for a 2 ft. Octave (15th) and 2 ft.
Hohlflöte, is completed.
4. The defects of intonation must be done away with; and the lowest
pipes of the Posaune and Bass Trumpet made to speak less roughly and
harshly. The instrument to be frequently and thoroughly tuned in good
weather.
5. The keys have too great a fall, but this cannot be helped, owing to
the narrowness of the structure.
6. Finally, the window behind the organ should be built up as far as
the top of the organ, or covered with an iron plate, to prevent damage
by weather.
The above list of 54 stops is given by Spitta, who quotes from the
“Acta” of the university; but a MS. chronicle of Leipsic, discovered
after 1880, of which the references to musical matters are quoted
in the “Musikalisches Centralblatt” for 1884, has the following
entry:--“1716, June. This summer the beautiful Pauliner organ, which
consists of 67 stops, was finished.” A complete list of the stops
follows, but is not given in the “Musikalisches Centralblatt.”
During the concerted music, the organist had to accompany from figured
bass, and the voice part was rarely given him, as the cantor would
not trouble to write it out, though Bach, with his characteristic
thoroughness did so in many cases.
[Sidenote: _Bach’s method of playing from figured bass_]
There exists a specimen of Bach’s method of playing from figured bass
in a MS. accompaniment to a violin sonata of Albinoni, by H. N. Gerber,
a pupil of Bach.[83] It contains a few autograph corrections by Bach
himself, and it may be taken, therefore, as an example of the manner
which Bach approved of. It is described by Spitta as of no melodic
character, as being in four parts throughout, and as not adhering
strictly to the harmonies given by Albinoni where an improvement was
possible. The adornment of a figured bass accompaniment by a melody in
the right hand was only possible to the greatest artists, such as Bach
himself; and it soon went out of fashion.
During the seventeenth century it was the custom for performers to
elaborate the melody written by a composer, and naturally Bach’s
were treated in this way. But it was complained that he left little
for the performer to add, for he “indicated all the _manieren_, the
small ornaments, and everything else that is understood by ‘Method’
in playing, by actual notes,” and the performer could therefore not
impress his own individuality on the piece.[84] Bach was particular
to show exactly what he required; and it is evident that there was at
this time a school of musicians rising, who objected to superfluous
ornaments on the part of the performer. J. S. Petri objects to
extemporised shakes and right hand melodies. Scheibe objects to
contrapuntal accompaniment. Kirnberger says that the accompanist should
aim at simplicity, and only add such ornaments as were absolutely
necessary.
If the pedal was employed, the left hand helped with the harmonies. But
if the bass moved rapidly the pedals only played short notes to mark
the essential harmonic progressions; or the bass was even omitted, as
the other instruments played it. For accompanying the solo voices in
arias and recitatives the Gedact 8 feet was usually used alone, and
was sometimes therefore called the “Musik gedact”: it is the same as
the English stopped diapason. The chords in a recitative were not held
long, even if the bass notes were. They were played arpeggio, as on a
harpsichord. But Petri considers that if there is a very soft stopped
flute, the chords may be held in the tenor register and the changes of
harmony indicated by a short pedal note.
[Sidenote: Organ-playing]
Staccato playing was universal on the organ, but Bach and his pupils
insisted on a legato style, and gradually eliminated the staccato,
though in accompanying they still kept to it. The tradition of Bach’s
style of accompaniment was carried on by Kittel a pupil of Bach, who
spread the knowledge of it through Thuringia, and one of Kittel’s
pupils, M. G. Fischer of Erfurt, continued it. He died in 1829, and
was heard by Grell of Berlin (b. 1800, d. 1886), who described the
performance to Spitta. He played the bass with considerable power, and
accompanied it by short chords in the right hand on another manual,
thus agreeing with Petri’s direction that the organist is to accompany
in as short a style as possible, and to withdraw the fingers after
striking the chord.
But this was by no means Bach’s only method of accompanying, for he
demands in the majority of cases a legato accompaniment, and sometimes
a “melodic” manner. In his _Matthew Passion_ and some of his cantatas
the organist is to play short chords in _recitativo secco_.
He considered the Gedact peculiarly adapted for purposes of
accompaniment; and in many passages he dispensed with part or the
whole of the bass instruments.
In order not to drown the voices, or make the organ too prominent, no
reeds or mixtures were allowed to be used in accompanying. They were
reserved for solo organ work, in which Bach made use of astonishing
combinations of stops. Orchestral effects were produced by the
contrasts of tone-colour in the different groups of instruments,
string, brass, reeds and flutes. To these the organ, making use of
diapason work only, formed a background, and it was not allowed to
predominate over them.
[Sidenote: _The number of performers in a cantata_]
Bach, in 1730, fixed the number of voices requisite for the
performance of a cantata at twelve, and of instrumentalists, excluding
the organist, at eighteen. His sympathies were so much more with
instrumental than vocal music, that he treated the voice merely as
an instrument capable of expressing words. The influence of Handel’s
works, in which the voice parts were of more importance than those of
the instruments, brought about the change of arrangements by which the
singers outnumbered the instrumentalists.
Students and admirers of Bach’s music have often wondered how he could
have got boys to overcome the immense difficulties of its execution.
They certainly complained of the difficulties, but execution was at
that time, owing to the Italian influence, more studied than now.
Boys were made to practise shakes diligently every day. They were
not expected to enter very much into the spirit of the music; it
sufficed if they sang the notes correctly. Moreover there were plenty
of falsetto sopranos and altos, and these could, of course, take the
upper parts. The tenor voice became a soprano, the bass an alto. A
falsetto soprano could sing up to E and F above the treble stave.
[Sidenote: _The pitch of organs_]
The pitch question at Leipsic must have caused considerable difficulty.
The organ at St Thomas’ Church was a tone higher than that of St
Nicholas,[85] and many of the cantatas have the organ (continuo) parts
in two keys, for the two organs. There must have been a separate set
of string and wind instruments for each church; for the frequent
alterations of strings by so great an interval as a tone would hardly
conduce to good intonation.
There were in fact two recognised pitches in use, called chorus pitch
and chamber pitch. Of these the chamber pitch was used for ordinary
orchestral performances, and was a tone lower than the chorus pitch, to
which the organ was usually tuned. This would cause no inconvenience if
the orchestras were not used in the churches; but it is very strange
that such a troublesome arrangement should have been allowed to
continue after it had become the custom to employ the orchestra every
Sunday.
FOOTNOTES:
[80] The portion in front of the main organ and therefore behind the
performer.
[81] See Glossary.
[82] Given by Spitta, vol. ii. p. 289.
[83] It is given by Spitta as a supplement to vol. iii. It is worth
noticing that the right hand plays the three upper notes in each chord,
the left only playing the bass; and this is how harmony exercises are
still written in Germany.
[84] There are organists still living who have not forsaken the ancient
custom of adding small ornaments to the written notes.
[85] This is referred to by Berlioz in his “Instrumentation.” Organ
builders would frequently use the higher pitch to save the expense of
the largest pipes, unless carefully watched.