Gustav Holst: The Planets - Organ Transcription by Peter Sykes
This is one of the most amazing transcriptions I have heard for pipe organ, a truly transcendent piece marvelously transcribed by Peter Sykes and performed at the Great Skinner Organ installed at Girard College Chapel in Philadelphia. What a grand transformation from the orchestral original by composer Gustav Holst (1874-1934) to a fine demonstration of the capabilities of the symphonic organ as envisioned by Ernest M. Skinner. Peter Sykes plays all 7 parts of the Holst Suite assisted by his wife Victoria Wagner. For this post I will share just a couple selections from You Tube user Gioiellidellamusica who has posted the full Suite on his channel.
This is one of the most amazing transcriptions I have heard for pipe organ, a truly transcendent piece marvelously transcribed by Peter Sykes and performed at the Great Skinner Organ installed at Girard College Chapel in Philadelphia. What a grand transformation from the orchestral original by composer Gustav Holst (1874-1934) to a fine demonstration of the capabilities of the symphonic organ as envisioned by Ernest M. Skinner. Peter Sykes plays all 7 parts of the Holst Suite assisted by his wife Victoria Wagner. For this post I will share just a couple selections from You Tube user Gioiellidellamusica who has posted the full Suite on his channel.
Cover of Raven CD featuring NASA photographs
The CD liner notes share some very interesting background information on both this instrument and the accompanying recording. The organ was apparently built between 1931 and 1933 and features a marvelous organ chamber mounted above the ceiling where all the pipes are installed. The distance to the ceiling is 100 feet with the chamber measuring 40 feet in height above the ceiling. The chamber stretches 60 feet in length with 40 feet width at one end and 22 feet width at the opposite end. This becomes a huge acoustic advantage in the propagation of sound. Peter Sykes relates that one selection ("Neptune") requires two players at one time playing all four manuals and pedal, utilizing "four hands, two feet, and a pencil holding a long note!"
All of the selections composed by Holst for "The Planets" have been transcribed in this spectacular recording by Peter Sykes. I think that "Venus" and "Neptune" may be my favorites, but overall this is a remarkable feat of transcription and one of the most satisfying organ recordings I have ever heard. Only in the "Neptune" sequence do I miss the wordless chorus which usually appears in the orchestral versions. But through my imagination I can blend in my own inner choral accompaniment which sounds perfectly suited to the organ recorded here.
Notes on the Full Score
In listening to this recording, I have written some of my own personal observations on the effects of its sound and atmospheric thrust.
Mars: the Bringer of War 7:29
- menacing bass - expanses of vast sound - martial phrases - moments of climbing intensity - spurts of raw power
Venus: the Bringer of Peace 9:06
- silvery quietness - marvelous textures - graceful phrases - melodious harmonies - a hushed atmosphere - a sense of divine purity and rare serenity - beautiful voices throughout
Mercury: the Messenger 4:49
-playful running up and down the keyboard - light, mystical touch - clusters of notes, like a gathering in a musical garden - a dazzling burst of virtuosity and a dance upon the keys
Jupiter: the Bringer of Jollity 8:50
-full spectrum introduction - a calling forth to all dimensions near and far - like a dialogue of different voices - also an Elgarian theme which is introduced in noble fashion - fun to listen to with lots of life - magical ending in this segment
Saturn: the Bringer of Old Age 8:57
-mysterious, brooding entrance - a quiet, reflective sound - almost like examining the interior of a great and ancient temple - a slow march emerges, like a procession from one place to another - waves of sound in slow succession - openings in time - larger and larger perspectives - sense of hesitation and renewed quietness - beautiful voices and mysterious passage - silvery quiet ending in warm tones
Uranus: the Magician 5:46
- a broad opening with rhythmic pulses - fantastic development - neat clusters of sound - a sparkling presentation - a sense of pulse and incessant rhythm - kind of a joyous ride from one measure to another - almost Wagnerian - dense textures, notes flying everywhere - relentless energy - bold chords at end with quiet segments
Neptune : the Mystic 9:03
- ethereal beginning - a sense of establishing place or identity - swirling between mysterious chords and clusters of notes - setting down a pattern - an otherworldly canvas - variations in sound level as if coming closer to something fantastic - a sense of generation of sound and spirit - a gigantic pulse from one end of the universe to the other - sense of far-off distance - lifting up in space from ground to ultra-heights - building up of atmosphere - quiet charm and mystical envelopment - swirling finale with treble enchantment - fade to infinity
Mars: the Bringer of War 7:29
- menacing bass - expanses of vast sound - martial phrases - moments of climbing intensity - spurts of raw power
Venus: the Bringer of Peace 9:06
- silvery quietness - marvelous textures - graceful phrases - melodious harmonies - a hushed atmosphere - a sense of divine purity and rare serenity - beautiful voices throughout
Mercury: the Messenger 4:49
-playful running up and down the keyboard - light, mystical touch - clusters of notes, like a gathering in a musical garden - a dazzling burst of virtuosity and a dance upon the keys
Jupiter: the Bringer of Jollity 8:50
-full spectrum introduction - a calling forth to all dimensions near and far - like a dialogue of different voices - also an Elgarian theme which is introduced in noble fashion - fun to listen to with lots of life - magical ending in this segment
Saturn: the Bringer of Old Age 8:57
-mysterious, brooding entrance - a quiet, reflective sound - almost like examining the interior of a great and ancient temple - a slow march emerges, like a procession from one place to another - waves of sound in slow succession - openings in time - larger and larger perspectives - sense of hesitation and renewed quietness - beautiful voices and mysterious passage - silvery quiet ending in warm tones
Uranus: the Magician 5:46
- a broad opening with rhythmic pulses - fantastic development - neat clusters of sound - a sparkling presentation - a sense of pulse and incessant rhythm - kind of a joyous ride from one measure to another - almost Wagnerian - dense textures, notes flying everywhere - relentless energy - bold chords at end with quiet segments
Neptune : the Mystic 9:03
- ethereal beginning - a sense of establishing place or identity - swirling between mysterious chords and clusters of notes - setting down a pattern - an otherworldly canvas - variations in sound level as if coming closer to something fantastic - a sense of generation of sound and spirit - a gigantic pulse from one end of the universe to the other - sense of far-off distance - lifting up in space from ground to ultra-heights - building up of atmosphere - quiet charm and mystical envelopment - swirling finale with treble enchantment - fade to infinity
Another Version of this Transcription
Hansjorg Albrecht has recorded the Peter Sykes transcription on the Oehms label featuring two pipe organs at the Medieval Church of St. Nicholas in Kiel, Germany. Albrecht performs on the 48 rank 1965 Detlef Kleuker organ and the 17 rank Aristide Cavaille-Coll/ Charles Muton organ at opposite ends of the nave. This recording is available from ArkivMusic.com. The Peter Sykes recording on Raven is available from Amazon.com. (For comparison purposes, the Skinner Organ features over 100 ranks and almost 7,000 pipes
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