Six Chorale Preludes
by Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877 – 1933)
for brass quintet
arranged from the organ by Franklin Stöver
This set of six pieces are taken from Sigfrid Karg-Elert's Choral-Improvisationen, op. 65 for organ. Composed between 1906 to1908, this single opus consists of 66 choral improvisations in six volumes with each volume dedicated to a phase in the church calendar year. Respectively, they are: Vol. I: Advent/Christmas, Vol. II. Passion, Vol, III. New Year & Easter, Vol. IV. Ascension, Pentecost, Vol. V. Reformation Day, Day of Repentance, Holy Communion, and Vol. VI. Confirmation, Marriage, Baptism, Thanksgiving. Therefor, this collection of six chorale preludes is a small sampling of a much larger work. The work was originally published by Carl Simon Musikverlag of Berlin in 1909 and later republished by Breitkopf & Härtel of Wiesbaden. For a more in-depth discussion of this work, see below my article in the All Music Guide: Classical of 2005.
I. Freu dich sehr, o meine Seele. (When the Lord recalls the banished). This is Nr. 5 in Vol. I (Advent, Christmas). The composer wrote it as a sarabande, and it was first published in Demantius's Threnodiae of 1620, in 10 stanzas of 8 lines, entitled "Spiritual joy after the Eternal Joy." It has been repeated in many later hymnbooks, as in the Unverfälscher Liedersegen of 1851, No. 814 and has been erroneously ascribed to Caspar von Warnberg, Simon Graff, to Valerius Herberger, and others.
II. Alles ist an Gottes Segen (All things hang on our possessing) is Nr. 3 in Vol. I (Advent, Christmas). The composer expressed this hymn as a fughetta. The hymn on Christian faith and patience is anonymous and dates back to 1673. In the Nürnberg Gesang-Buch of 1676 it is No. 943 (edition 1690, No. 949) in 6 stanzas of 6 lines. It is included as No. 488 in the Unverfälschter Liedersegen, 1851.
III. Mit Ernst, o Menschenkinder (Ye sons of men, in earnest). The hymn is attributed to Valentin Thilo (1607-1662) and occupies Nr. 9 in Vol. 1 (Advent, Christmas). It partly paraphrases the call to penitence by John the Baptist. The text was first published in 1642 in the collection Preußische Festlieder.
IV. Sollt ich meinem Gott nicht singen? (What, no anthem for my Maker?) Composed by Johann Schop (1590-1667), Nr. 22, Vol 2 (Passion).
V. O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort ( O eternity, word of thunder) is Nr. 42 in Vol. 4 (Ascension, Pentecost). This is a Lutheran hymn with text by Johann Rist, first published in Lüneburg in 1642. The composer wrote it as a festive rigaudon.
VI. Nun danket alle Gott, (Now everyone, thank God) is Nr. 59 from Vol. VI. (Confirmation, Marriage). With text attributed to Martin Rinkart (1586-1649), it appeared in Johann Crüger's Praxis Pietatis Melica of 1647. It has been arranged for brass by others under the title, Marche Triomphale.
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Article from the book, All Music Guide: Classical
Sigfrid Karg-Elert's 66 Chorale-Improvisations for organ have been described as "monumental" to "highly original." Listed as opus 65, the sixty-six fantasias were composed between 1908 to 1910. Organist and Karg-Elert biographer Wolfgang Stockmeier has said that "the 66 Chorale-Improvisations brought an end to more than a hundred years of dormancy of what lapsed into an uninteresting genre." Many consider Karg-Elert as having attained the apex of contrapuntism when he breathed new life into the old organ-chorale, essentially updating the form that found expression in the works of J. S. Bach, Sweelinck, Praetorius, and others.
Around the time Karg-Elert had been working on his Chorale-Improvisations, the composer was in the midst of composing an entire repertoire for the harmonium d'art (or kunstharmonium), for which over a hundred pieces for the instrument may be attributed to him. Other works of the same period include the Sonata in A, Op. 71 for cello and piano; Gedichte, Op. 63 -- a collection of songs; and Sequenz No. 1 for organ. By the time Karg-Elert began work on the Chorale-Improvisations, he had decided to leave teaching so that he could devote all of his energy to composition. A meeting with Max Reger encouraged Karg-Elert to write for the organ, and to transcribe some of his harmonium works for organ.
As a musical form, the chorale is distinctly a product of the German Protestant Baroque era, and may be traced to Martin Luther (1483-1546). To a large extent, Luther's reform movement took music seriously, and the development of a repertoire of singable melodies (chorales) occupied the thoughts of many composers. Many of these hymns or chorales were also given a polyphonic setting, excluding congregational participation. Therefore, from the earliest days of the Reformation, composers took chorale melodies as the basis for larger and more complex works, resulting in cantatas, oratorios, and even improvisations.
Typical of Karg-Elert's creative method was the simultaneous following of a time-honored tradition and its subsequent innovation. Like the redefinition of the canzone and partita, his idea of the organ-chorale was shaped and developed to include these ingenious chorale fantasias. Here, the composer aptly demonstrates his skill in the art of polyphonic writing, or Baroque musical practices, and displays his deep understanding of the organ proper. The genius that is Karg-Elert's shines forth, in these, his miniature masterpieces for the organ. - - Franklin Stöver
Other Arrangements/Transcriptions of Karg-Elert's work by Franklin Stöver
Symphony in f sharp minor, op.143 (1930) for full orchestra
(originally for organ)
Quintet in c minor, op. 30 (1904) for w.w. quintet
(originally for oboe, 2 clarinets, bassoon & horn) .