Customer Reviews

Hymn Improvisation

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'll keep this simple. This book is wonderful. It gives ample examples of all the various techniques used in improvisation. It is sequenced for success. The formula's are spot on. Any music major would find this text very accessible (and maybe very well trained dabblers).

I have several books on improvisation and could have saved probably 50 bucs and just bought this one.

For me this is a very practical book with enouhg theory. I recommend this book to novice organists.

This book is a short treatise on a very limited area of liturgical hymn improvisation. It is best suited for use by skilled organists or perhaps pianists who for some reason never mastered work with basic intervalic changes. If you need to ask what I just said, you certainly will not be comfortable with this book. I could only give it three stars as the information given is limited (but accurate) .
The data in this volume is also classically oriented and more useful in a church setting which regularly uses very traditional or "classical" music. I would not advise anyone who wants to get into purely Gospel or jazz to purchase the volume. Classical pianists-organists who are called upon to do some extra voicing in a liturgical church may find it has limited value. If you look at the pages Amazon has listed, on of the first examples begin with a section called "Bicinium", which will give you a hint of how the entire book is structured. Oh yes, you may wonder what that word means. You won't find the word "bicinium" in Webster's or Oxford dictionaries. It's an archaic term used in and 16th century German to describe a song sung by two voices (from the latin roots: bis=twice, canere = to sing). This term was sometimes also used in the 17th century to refer to any instrumental piece for two voices.