An Organ Blaster Sampler

Johann Sebastian Bach (Composer), Andre Campra (Composer), John Cook (Composer), Cesar Franck (Composer), Joseph Jongen (Composer), Olivier Messiaen (Composer), Joseph Rheinberger (Composer), Camille Saint-Saens (Composer), Antonio Soler (Composer), Charles-Marie Widor (Composer), Edo de Waart (Conductor), Eugene Ormandy (Conductor), Jahja Ling (Conductor), Robert Woods (Conductor), Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra), Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra), San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), Michael Murray (Performer)

Product Details

• Performer: Michael Murray
• Orchestra: Philadelphia Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Edo de Waart, Eugene Ormandy, Jahja Ling, Robert Woods
• Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach, Andre Campra, John Cook, Cesar Franck, Joseph Jongen, et al.
• Audio CD (February 10, 1991)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Telarc
• ASIN: B000003CXP
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #13,640 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #3 in	Music > Classical > Featured Composers, A-Z > ( R ) > Rheinberger, Joseph
  #5 in	Music > Classical > Featured Composers, A-Z > ( M ) > Messiaen, Olivier
  #5 in	Music > Classical > Featured Performers, A-Z > ( S ) > San Francisco Symphony Orchestra

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pure Majestic Power!, July 20, 2003

By	David M. Fox (Port Orchard, WA United States) - See all my reviews

Corey is right - this is an outstanding organ CD, one of the best I've heard. Murray plays some of the largest and most powerful organs on Earth, and uses the reed stops more than the usual organist to produce great effects and a wall of sound that are majestic in the extreme. The selections are all great virtuoso showpieces, and track #6 by Messiaen (Dieu parmi nous from La Nativite') is especially demonstrative of the great contrasts available in a large organ. The horizontal trumpets in this piece are predominant and very bright, contrasting with the snarling bass of the pedal organ.

A word of caution - this CD requires a capable stereo (think subwoofer) to sound its best. Trust me - if you listen to this CD on a good stereo and if you like organ music, you'll sit there with a big grin on your face and tears in your eyes as you listen to this CD.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Performance by Murray, November 8, 2001

By	Corey Bartell (Pennslyvania USA) - See all my reviews

This is by far one of the best organ CD's I have ever listened to. The variety is very good overall. From the state trumpets at St. John's to the mighty organ of First Congregational Church, Murray provides nice registration on all of the organs sampled. The Finale from Saint-Saens No. 3 is awesome with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy,s direction. Murray provides his own notes on the organs and the pieces in the booklet that is included. This is some fine organ music!!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For those who like BIG organ works, September 3, 2005

By	Alan D. Eastman (Salt Lake City, UT United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This CD concentrates on the big, showy organ pieces that organists love to play. As an organist myself, I find that such numbers are usually more fun to play than to hear. Fortunately, this CD is very listenable, and makes the case for both playing and listening to these works. I'd buy it again; maybe more telling, I'm looking for some of the music, so I can go play it!