The Fredösphere

Aworks found one of many Virgil Fox Youtube manifestations.  You gotta credit Fox for blowing the dust out of the pipe organ world with his Heavy Organ tour, but here, he disappoints.  With the funeral home decor, the fruitcake attire, and the middlebrow attitude in his introduction, he seems to be laboring under an ambition to leave no organist stereotype unresuscitated.

I did enjoy hearing again his interpretation of Ives' Variations on America.  This, along with The Unanswered Question, is among Ives' few unambiguously successful compositions.  To my knowledge, it was Fox's recording of this piece on the Wichita Wurlitzer that most closely achieved the ideal, optimized combining of performer, instrument, and composition.  In my only conversation with Michael Daugherty, I asked him if he knew of Fox's America recording (since the topic of the day was organ music) and he did.  Michael Daugherty knows everything, apparently, since he remembered which record company produced it, and asked me to confirm.  Sorry, Michael; I didn't realize that information would be on the test.

For sound clips of the Wichita, go here and scroll down.  Also have a look at the beautiful album art for the two-volume set of direct-to-(vinyl)-disc album "The Fox Touch."  For in my previous, vinyl-centric listening life, these records were my most precious possession.  Each side, about 20 minutes of music, was performed in a single take, as necessitated by the technology.  The (few) blatant clams only added to the charm.  They were as close to live as vinyl could get.

Poor Virgil; the Youtube video does not hide is ugly hands.  He comes off better in a video of a work he championed, Symphonie Concertante by Joseph Jogen--although his Nixonian form factor is on display.  "Let me make each note puurfectly clear."

Labels: Organ, VideoClip