Toccata by Anne Wilson (b. 1954)
Prelude and Fugue in E minor by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
("Wedge"), BWV 544
Wondrous Love: Variations on a Shape-Note Hymn, Op. 34 by Samuel Barber (1910-1981)
Fugue sur le thème du carillon des heures by Maurice Duruflé (1902-1986)
de la cathédrale de Soissons
Folk Tune by Whitlock
Symphonie VI by Louis Vierne (1870-1937)
III. Scherzo
Variations on "America" by Charles Ives (1874-1954)
Program Notes
Anne Wilson is a living composer inspired by jazz, a fact that comes through in her exuberant, rhythmic toccata for organ.
Bach's Prelude and Fugue in E minor, BWV 548 ("Wedge") is one of his most monumental preludes and fugues. The majestic prelude, in ritornello form, is followed by an elaborate and virtuosic fugue notable for its widening, chromatic subject, from which the piece's nickname ("Wedge") derives.
Samuel Barber’s Wondrous Love: Variations on a Shape-Note Hymn, Op. 34 is a set of four variations on "Wondrous Love," a popular Sacred Harp tune. Barber's use of open fifths hearkens to the tune's shape-note origins. Each variation has a distinct character and requires a specific registration.
Duruflé's Fugue sur le thème du carillon des heures de la cathédrale de Soissons begins in a strictly contrapuntal manner and culminates in a toccata-like texture, employing inversion, augmentation, and stretto.
Whitlock's Folk Tune exhibits the same tunefulness as his second Fantasie Choral (and happens to be in the same key). It is a simple yet beautiful piece.
The fourth movement of Vierne's Symphony No. 6 is a mischievous scherzo. The central theme of the symphony, played on the Swell oboe, is fragmented and rhythmically off-kilter in this movement, giving it a grotesque character evocative of gargoyles.
Charles Ives composed Variations on "America" as a teenager and described playing its virtuosic final variation as "almost as much fun as playing baseball." The piece is unapologetically cheeky and filled with humor.
Biography of Sarah Palmer
Sarah Palmer is a recent graduate from the Curtis Institute of Music, where she studied with Alan Morrison. She completed her undergraduate studies at St. Olaf College under Catherine Rodland and studied piano at the Manhattan School of Music (Precollege division). She has been the recipient of several scholarships and awards, including the AGO/Quimby North Central Regional Competition for Young Organists and the 2021 Ruth and Paul Manz Scholarship. Her playing has also been featured on Pipedreams.
Sarah has made many transcriptions for the organ, mostly of orchestral and concert band music. While at Curtis, she worked at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church and served as an assistant organist at Macy’s, where she gave regular recitals on the Wanamaker Organ. Starting in August, she will serve as the AAM Gerre Hancock Intern at Church of the Incarnation in Dallas, TX.