Jennifer Pascual, Organist, at Northminster Baptist Church,
March 1, 2007.
The program opened with three short pieces by the Italian Domenico
Zipoli: Canzona, Pastorale, and All' Offertorio. These were played
crisply, with the feet (foot, actually) confined to a pedal point
(one low note held for many measures) in several places, reflecting
the limited pedal resources Zipoli would have had on the organs he
played. Not so with Mendelssohn's First Organ Sonata, which included
some monumental virtuosic pedal passages which were dashed off as if
they were child's play. In various places in the Mendelssohn there
were very large dynamic contrasts achieved by changing manuals.
These, it seemed to me, were exaggerated, and the back-and-forth
between a very soft romantic sound and a bright full organ seemed a
little out of character, but this is what the score I have (as edited in
1910 by Edwin H. Lemare) specifies - it indicates shifts from pp to
ff and back, as well as the type of registration used. Mozart's
Andante in F, K.616, followed, a light hearted piece played on the
newly added Positiv division of the organ. Then Pascual played
several settings of the Gregorian Chants Ave Maria (Hail, Mary),
and Ave Maris Stella (Hail, Star of the Sea); the first by
Langlais, and the second, a group of four pieces by Marcel Dupré.
These were meditative and featured some rich sounds, except for
the Finale which was a vigorous Toccata.
The real sleeper came next - Trois Preludes Hambourgeois by the
Swiss organist Guy Bovet. It is a wonderful thing when recitals
include a totally unfamiliar work that is nevertheless as
captivating (hence "sleeper") as this. The first of these improvisations,
Salamanca, simulated a fife and drum as it opened, then evolved
into a canon, and then got even bigger. The second, Sarasota, was
somewhat jazzy, and ended on a real "blue" note. The third, Hamburg,
featured a complex syncopated figure that was repeated throughout,
with an almost "minimalist" feel, and at different dynamic levels.
Near the end it included a brief quotation of Beethoven's familiar
Für Elise. These three pieces were for me the highlight of an
already exciting program. They were very different from each other,
and sometimes a little wild, but extremely well-played and registered.
After a sentimental favorite, Leo Abbott's arrangement of
Londonderry Air,
Pascual closed the program with another monumental piece, the Finale
from Widor's Organ Symphony No 6 in g minor. It was a stunning
performance. After several rounds of applause Pascual treated the
enthusiastic audience to an encore: Derek Bourgeois' Serenade in
11/8, a piece he wrote for his own wedding. It was charming, and
a perfect choice.
From the outset it was clear that Pascual was in complete control;
along with that control came an unrestrained and imaginative musicality
that is rare among performers. She is Music Director at New York's
St. Patrick's Catholic Cathedral, the first woman to hold that post.
St. Patrick's is very fortunate to hear her play often, and we were
fortunate to hear her play at Northminster.
- Glenn A. Gentry
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