Organ Sensation
$11.98 – $24.98
Felix Hell
Music of Liszt, Vierne, Guilmant, and Rheinberger
Prof. Johnson brilliantly captures the spectacular sounds of the massive Schoenstein Organ of First-Plymouth Congregational Church, Lincoln Nebraska. Felix Hell is one of the most exciting and remarkable organists on today’s concert scene. His virtuosity and dazzling technique, and his profound understanding of the music is all the more remarkable in a musician just 17 years of age! He is gaining an international reputation as an up-and-coming superstar of the King of Instruments, and his gifts are fully on display in this recording of some of the greatest of the organ masterworks by Liszt (the great Fantasy and Fugue on Ad Nos ad Salutarem Undam, and the Prelude and Fugue on B.A.C.H.), Guilmant (Sonata No. 1), Vierne (Finale from Symphony No. 1) and Rheinberger (“Evening Peace”).
On This Recording
-
GUILMANT: Organ Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Op. 42:
- Introduction and Allegro
- Pastorale
- Final
- RHEINBERGER: 6 Charakteristische Stücke, Op. 67: No. 1, Abendfriede
- VIERNE: Symphony No. 1 in D minor, Op. 14: IV. Final LISZT: Prelude and Fugue on B-A-C-H, S. 260:
- Prelude
- Fugue LISZT: Fantasy and Fugue on the Chorale “Ad nos, ad salutarem undam”, S. 259:
- Moderato
- Marziale
- Recitativo
- Adagio
- Andante
- Un poco piu di moto
- Adagio
- Allegro
- Fugue
- Vivace
Reviews:
“…It is extremely difficult t make a good recording of an organ …If you would like to hear just what CAN be done with the most modern recording techniques, I would suggest that you invest in this CD…This recording gets it ALL right” –Douglas A. Campbell, PIPEORG
“Felix Hell is a real phenomenon, a young man who’s been packing ’em in at organ recitals for years, although at the time this recording was made in June of 2002, he wasn’t old enough to vote …Most impressive are the two Liszt works. Hell makes the most of the power and color of the lage Shoenstein instrument, but is also fully attuned to all the contrapuntal and architectural complexities of the pieces…The organ sound is rich and dense, maintaining its focus when loud, and the recorded perspective is ideal – close enough for detail and timbral nuance but not so close that the organ doesn’t have room to breathe. Low bass is almost scary. If you have a subwoofer in a small-to-medium sized room, prepare to have your eardrums pressurized” –Andrew Quint, THE ABSOLUTE SOUND
“The newest CD from Felix Hell is a sonic blockbuster that may become a contender for status as one of the best organ recordings ever… For those who have been reading about Felix nut have not heard him in concert, especially on a large instrument, THIS is the CD to purchase… Turn down the lights, crank up the volume and revel in it!“ –Rich Blacklock, PIPORG-L
