Ferko: The Hildegard Organ Cycle

Frank Ferko (Composer), Frank Ferko (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Frank Ferko
• Composer: Frank Ferko
• Audio CD (October 1, 1996)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Arsis Records
• ASIN: B0000015E6
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #580,616 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Origin of Life (after Hildegard von Bingen) - Frank Ferko

2. The Construction of the World (after Hildegard von Bingen)

3. Human Nature (after Hildegard von Bingen)

4. Articulation of the Body (after Hildegard von Bingen)

5. Places of Purification (after Hildegard von Bingen)

6. The Meaning of History (after Hildegard von Bingen)

7. Preparation for Christ (after Hildegard von Bingen)

8. The Effect of Love (after Hildegard von Bingen)

9. Completion of the Cosmos (after Hildegard von Bingen)

10. The End of Time (after Hildegard von Bingen)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An ambitious, rewarding work, January 20, 2009

By 

DJ Rix (NJ USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Ferko: The Hildegard Organ Cycle (Audio CD)

Although all ten sections use Hildegard chants as source material, the cycle is inspired by the visions of Hildegard, an important distinction. This is not an album of arrangements, or liturgical music. The visions account for the more cinematic organ expressions, the "wow" factor, as Virgil Thomson used to say - not always approvingly - of Messiaen's music. There are some floor-shaking passages showing off the organ & organist. But the most effective sections are those most evocative of Hildegard's chants & time. The opening section, "The Origin of Life," is a chant broken up into quietly sustained tone clusters, absolutely lovely, gave me goosebumps. This reverently meditative tone in found throughout the work, most subtly in the long "Preparation for Christ" section that captures the ambience of a peaceful, prayerful monastery. The composer provides the source chants in the liner notes, so it is easy to follow his adaptations & uses. The music manages to sound both very old & contemporary.

I'm tempted to give the CD five stars for the concept. But Ferko's best music here suggests that he could have reached higher by resisting the Organ Power concertizing a little more. Nonetheless, The Hildegard Organ Cycle is an ambitious & rewarding work, & I'm glad to have found it a decade after it was released.