Registration of Baroque Organ Music

Barbara Owen has prepared the first work to present in a single volume the registrational practices of organists from 1550 to 1800. Along with the many stoplists and discussions of performance traditions, the book discusses the religious and political context for each period and region - and how these affected the work of composers and organ builders. Full promo description: "Barbara Owen has compiled and intelligently analyzed all of the available information on registration practices from the late Renaissance to Classical times into a coherently organized and cogently presented text...The depth of research , the thoroughness of approach, and the practical nature of the material make this text unique at the present time." (Christopher Young, Indiana University). "It is rare to find a book that combines such careful scholarship with a practical focus that makes it accessible to performing musicians as well as research specialists." (Sharon L. Gorman, Notes). Here is the first single book to present registrational practices of organists from c. 1550 to 1800. Each of the four parts of the book 'the Renaissance and the Early, High, and Late Baroque' starts with a brief description of the political and religious climate of the period and the way it affected organ building and the music composed at the time. Within each historical period, Owen provides for each country a list of the active composers and information about representative organs, including their locations, dates, builders, and stoplists. She then discusses the registrational practices in each area in relation to contemporary musical styles and forms, referring to sources such as scores and treatises. In light of the historical evidence, Owen advises organists on adapting the earlier principles and practices to modern instruments in order to perform Baroque organ works in a style appropriate to their period and region. With its comprehensive geographic, historical, and musicological approach, "The Registration of Baroque Organ Music" will long remain an invaluable source book for teachers and performers.