Chorale Prelude on Fulda
Joseph Bertolozzi
About this work:
Performed here by Marjorie Jackson Rasche, F.A.G.O. on the 1998 Schantz Organ (V/117) at Moody Memorial 1st United Methodist Church in Galveston, TX, this work was commissioned by Fr. Paul Chovanec as a farewell present for Robert Fulda, organist of St. Christopher's R.C. Church in Houston, TX. There happens to be a well-known Catholic hymn-tune named "Fulda," and so it was very appropriate to use that melody as the basis for this composition. Though the melody is outlined quite clearly (with each phrase separated by an interlude) it also appears in augmentation and retrograde. These arcane techniques never intrude on the flow of the music however; the piece sounds like a simple, straightforward setting. For the organist as executant, there are a couple of interesting components, such as having one hand playing (fleetingly) on two keyboards at once, and the use of the highest pedals where, at the end, a pedal ostinato gives way to a pedal chord while the hands play behind it in lower registers. The sheet music, published by Blue Wings Press, is available by contacting info@JosephBertolozzi.com
Year composed: 2000
Duration: 00:05:00
Ensemble type: Keyboard:Organ
Instrumentation:
Instrumentation notes: Organ solo