Fernando Germani (Organ of Westminster Cathedral) - Chorale No. 3 in A minor (Franck) (1947)

Описание: This powerful and exciting performance of Franck's 'Chorale No. 3' was recorded on 1 April 1947. I have attempted to join the 4 sides together as neatly as possible, but this is a difficult task, as Germani's practice was often to end a side with a rall and/or diminuendo (if the engineers didn't do it for him, which they sometimes did!)

The transfer was made from English HMV pressings. These were generally rather gritty, but I have tried to minimise the surface noise as much as is reasonably possible without affecting the musical content.

From Wikipedia: Fernando Germani (5 April 1906 – 10 June 1998) was an organist of the Basilica of St. Peter in Rome during the reign of Pope Pius XII.

Germani was born in 1906 and played the piano and violin in public at four years of age. At age eight he started taking lessons in composition from Resphigi who headed Germani toward the organ. Then at age fifteen, Germani was the organist of the Augusteo Symphony Orchestra in Rome. His career spanned almost seventy-five years. He died in 1998. One of his notable pupils was organist Gérard Caron. Others included, former organist of Westminster Cathedral, Nicolas Kynaston, former organist of Liverpool Cathedral, Noel Rawsthorne and former organist of York Minster, John Scott Whiteley.

In 1951 Edizioni de Santis della ditta Alberto de Santis in Rome published Germani's edition of the toccatas of Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1644). His edition has increased in importance. He published one major organ work, the Toccata, which has now established a position in the repertory. An organ concerto was lost after Germani presented the manuscript to 'an English gentleman' who never returned it.

During the 1960s Germani visited Selby Abbey, North Yorkshire, England, and made three LP recordings: 'He had the most formidable technique of his generation and will be forever remembered as the fount of enormous musical and technical inspiration.'