KÄMPF: Pietà, played on Mason & Hamlin chapel organ

Описание: Karl Kämpf (1876-1950) was a German composer, based in Berlin. Besides songs, choral works, piano and chamber music, he composed a significant body of works for the Normal-Harmonium, the negative-pressure reed organs produced in Germany, a much more standardized instrument than the American reed organs. The Mason & Hamlin company of Boston made several models of reed organ with the Normal-Harmonium specifications; some of Kämpf's works were written for the Mason & Hamlin instruments. Among the very few religious titles I have found among the composer's output, here is a stunningly beautiful Pietà, from his four Lyrische Stücke, Op. 18, published in 1904. "Pietà" is a title reserved for works of art depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of her son Jesus, following his crucifixion. The very Wagnerian music is not a lament, but rather a quietly noble, deep profession of faith. Every stop registration and dynamic expression is printed in the score. Kämpf was a master composer: he allowed me to hear voices in this instrument I had not heard before. Huge thanks to my friend Tomasz in Poland for introducing me to Kämpf's music, and for sharing this score from the Staatsbibliothek in Berlin. The instrument is a chapel-model Mason & Hamlin reed organ, built in Boston in 1915: Style 93BF, No. 239146, and # 4874 in the Reed Organ Society database. The black walnut cabinet contains five ranks of reeds throughout, plus a 16' SubBase. Our friend Kenneth C. Pratt restored this instrument about ten years ago. Performed by Michael Hendron; recorded 11 April 2025.