Cameron Carpenter, organist

[Lance]

Virgil Fox is gone, so is E. Power Biggs, Helmut Walcha, Carl Weinrich, Maurice Durufle, the Alains, Richard Ellsasser, Frederick Swann, Carlo Curley and a few others. There are, of course, some outstanding ones in our midst. Simon Preston, Lionel Rogg, Jane Parker-Smith, Susan McDonald, Ulrik Spang-Hansen, Chistopher Herrick, Janos Sebestyen, Michael Murray, but none seemed to have reached the general popularity of Virgil Fox or E. Power Biggs -- like them or not -- they sold more organ records for RCA and Columbia than most everybody else. Carlos Curley probably was the closest to emulate the Fox style, but few others.

I have heard some recordings by CAMERON CARPENTER who seems to inherited the "Fox manner" in every respect from his dress, virtuosity, shoes, technique, electronic touring organs and what-have-you. I know we have some fine organists amongst us (jbuck!), but wondering what you thought of Cameron Carpenter. Can you imagine Schubert's song The Erlking on the organ, or Sousa's Stars and Stripes Forever (which has been done before), Moskowski's Etincelles, or Liszt's Au bord d'une source? It is on his Telarc two-CD set (only on the DVD only), and there is lots of JS Bach. I have yet to see Carpenter in concert though I did see him on television. He has also written some works (on Sony Classical) such as "All You Need is Bach" arranged by Carpenter after Bach's Invention No. 8 in F Major, BWV 779.

Where does Cameron Carpenter fit into the pantheon of those we consider great organists from your point of view?

[maestrob]

Lance,

You mentioned Fred Swann: He played at our wedding at Riverside church in 1982, his last assignment before moving to Chicago to play with the orchestra there! Such a gentleman!

[jbuck919]

I have no use for Cameron Carter's show antics, which are obviously designed to make him money as some kind of crossover (a cross over between good and bad taste, IMO, for he had a "straight" earlier career). He is of course allowed to choose what to be, but I would never attend a performance by him.

There are many more fine recital organists than on Lance's list. I get to hear a number of them every year, but they have not all pursued (or at least succeeded at) notable recording careers.

[Marc]

​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1aGPeqWNFw